“There is an ‘us’ in USA.” I heard that line while standing with 56 other Presidential Leadership Scholars at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin. Roy Spence, a longtime Texas advertising executive behind the “Don’t Mess With Texas” campaign, said it quietly. This country holds together when people show up for each other. Unity is not something we mention only when things are easy; it is something we live, especially when everything feels uncertain.
I grew up in Kosovo during the war. I saw what happens when people stop seeing each other as human. Fear turned those who once lived side by side into enemies while silence gave cruelty the space to grow. That experience reshaped my view of leadership: It’s not about being the loudest voice in the room, but about choosing to speak up, even when staying quiet feels safer. In Austin, listening to stories about President Lyndon B. Johnson, I felt that truth again.
Johnson grew up poor in rural Texas. As president, he pushed for the Civil Rights Act, created Medicare, and signed the Voting Rights Act. He knew what was at stake for those who had been ignored. When things got tough, he did not retreat. He called senators, walked into offices, leaned in close, and pushed until it was done. That became known as the Johnson Treatment. Larry Temple, his former White House counsel, told us, “One of the secrets of Lyndon Johnson is that he was always prepared. He always knew more than anyone.”
Lady Bird Johnson led alongside him, bringing steadiness and clarity when it mattered most. Her presence reminded us that leadership is often quiet, supportive, and essential. That same message came through her daughter, Luci Baines Johnson, who spoke with a calm certainty about why purpose matters. “If you have a purpose-driven life, happiness and everything that lights up your world follows,” she said. Then she added, “Don’t give up hope. You are our hope for tomorrow.” Her words reminded us the responsibility to lead sits with us.
Ambassador Andrew Young, who marched with Dr. King and served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told us the people who worried him most were not those shouting with torches, but the quiet ones who knew better and stayed still. That kind of silence has not disappeared. It lingers when people look away instead of stepping up.
This is not a time for silence. It is a time to speak clearly and act with the kind of courage and care that brings people together.
We see it in all kinds of ways. People scroll past suffering, telling themselves it’s someone else’s job to care. While divides widen and rights are stripped away, too many stay quiet. The world is watching and still hopes that America will lead with honesty and purpose, not just presence. Leadership does not wait for the perfect moment or begin with headlines or power; it starts small, with the simple act of showing up and doing the work without waiting to be noticed.
One line from Roy Spence stayed with me: “We have to build bridges to build a better us.” That spirit lives in communities that rebuild and quiet acts of care. That is what leadership looks like. It begins when we stop looking away, when we pay attention, and when we act.
The LBJ Library did not ask us to admire the past. It asked if we are paying attention to the present and whether we are willing to do something about it. On Memorial Day, we remember those who gave everything. That memory calls for more than reflection. It calls for the kind of leadership they lived and died believing in.
This is not a time for silence. It is a time to speak clearly and act with the kind of courage and care that brings people together.
There is an “us” in USA. That line should mean something. It should remind us to care for one another, to build bridges when it is easier to turn away, and to keep showing up, even when it is difficult.
Together, because that’s the only way this works.
Erblin Ribari is a 2025 Presidential Leadership Scholar and an International Strategy Forum Global Fellow with a cross-sector background in finance, policy, and technology. He has been recognized for his work in building inclusive solutions for underserved communities worldwide, earning distinctions such as Forbes 30 Under 30 and European Young Leader (40 Under 40). Erblin holds degrees from Harvard University, Imperial College London, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Texas Lutheran University, and has also pursued studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
This article appears in May 30 • 2025.