We held the first 4 Freedoms Festival ® in Southern Vermont in the summer of 2018 . At that time , with a few notable exceptions , the entries for the “ Create 4 Freedom ® Contest ” almost unanimously focused on “ Freedom from Fear .”

In this first-ever essay and poetry contest in Berkshire

Magazine , presented by Old Mill Road Media and co-sponsored by Arcadia Publishing and the Norman Rockwell Museum , we asked writers to choose one of the 4 Freedoms and express how and why it is still relevant .

While “ Freedom from Fear ” was strongly represented in this year ’ s entries ( including this year ’ s winning poem ), it is fascinating to see that “ Freedom of Speech ” and “ Freedom from Want ” resonated deeply with many of this year ’ s entrants . Given the events of the last year , this is not surprising .

The world has changed since they were first outlined by Roosevelt in 1941 , but these 4 Freedoms endure because they capture our collective experience . They ARE essential human rights — now and for all time . Congratulations to this year ’ s winners , who each will receive a $ 1,250 cash prize and whose works are published here — and a sincere thank you to all who participated . Also , a special thank you to New York Times best-selling author ( and Sandisfield resident ) Simon Winchester , who joined me and editor-in-chief Anastasia Stanmeyer in judging the entries .

FREEDOM OF SPEECH , NORMAN ROCKWELL , OIL ON CANVAS , SATURDAY EVENING POST , FEBRUARY 20 , 1943 FREEDOM FROM FEAR , NORMAN ROCKWELL , OIL ON CANVAS , SATURDAY EVENING POST , MARCH 13 , 1943 BOTH IMAGES , © 1943 SEPS : LICENSED BY CURTIS PUBLISHING , INDIANAPOLIS , IN , NORMAN ROCKWELL MUSEUM COLLECTION

Joshua Sherman , M . D .

44 // BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE July 2021