Happy 4th of July!!!

On this date, over two hundred years ago, the Declaration of Independence officially became part of American culture and world history. The document, designed for America to announce its separation and independence from Britain, declared our rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” a quote from the Declaration that has become common knowledge amongst all Americans as being one of the primary foundations of this great country.

Since the signing of the Declaration, however, Independence Day, otherwise known as the Fourth of July, has become an annual celebration of all things American. With community gatherings, food, parades, and spectacular fireworks, we celebrate our independence, our country, our freedom, and we pay homage to the men and women who have helped create and protect America since its conception. It is truly an American holiday.

Warm rays of the sun appear a bit brighter on the Fourth as they shower down upon families and friends joyfully gathered together, feasting on hotdogs and hamburgers and cold lemonade; or as they sit in lawn chairs at the side of Main Street, cheering for their fellow citizens who parade by in uniforms or antique clothing. As the day continues, impromptu baseball teams compete as they encourage each other and laugh at their own errors. And, as the sun begins to set, a wonderful sense of quiet peace begins to blanket communities across the nation.

After night has fallen, and as streaks of red, white, and blue, green and gold and yellow light up the night sky, America seems to be at her best, a community coming together as one to celebrate everything we have in common and to be grateful for the freedom that allows us to be different from each other.

We need Independence Day. We need it to remind us annually of the larger community to which we belong: America. We need the Fourth of July to remind us of our “unalienable rights,” of our precious freedoms, of both the price and the responsibility of that freedom, of our common ground, and of the right to and power of each of our individual voices. Our founding fathers wrote historical documents to declare that America would not be a tyranny; it would not be a country of people with daily lives controlled by the government; rather, it would be a country of freedom, of independence, a country of people with the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” and a country governed “of the people, by the people, for the people.”

Though our country is experiencing some difficult times, we have much for which to be grateful and much to celebrate. Independence Day. Yes, it is truly an American holiday.


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1 “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” and “unalienable rights” are quotes from The Declaration of Independence, officially adopted in 1776.


2 “Of the people, by the people, for the people” is a quote from the Gettysburg Address, a speech given by Abraham Lincoln in Gettysburg, PA, November, 1863.



Both the Declaration of Independence and the Gettysburg Address are available for reading in numerous formats and locations. However, both documents can be read on-line at:

http://www.ushistory.org



Happy 4th of July!!!