1776 was 244 years ago. We are not far from the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
John Adams said the Day (he was thinking of July 2) should be celebrated with “games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations.” Eighteenth century celebrations did, in fact, include bonfires, parades, the firing of muskets and cannons, and public readings of the Declaration of Independence.
Not this year. Except for fireworks and Donald Trump execrable speech at Mount Rushmore. Not much to celebrate with this President. Under his leadership western civilization lost Crimea to Russia and is losing Hong Kong to China. Under his leadership, the United States is losing more lives to the Cofid-19 than any other country and is on its way to an unforgettably bad economy.
What has he done? Cut the taxes of our country’s wealthiest people. Endangered the health care of innumerable Americans. Declared people of color and immigrants to be his enemies in a way that has created a backlash that will defeat him.
We’ve missed the parades, the fireworks, the readings of the Declaration of Independence. We have had protest parades. Far more people have been lighting their own fireworks than in past years. If only….Donald Trump had read the Declaration of Independence instead of his execrable speech.
Our favorite manifestations of those traditions? When we lived in Deerfield, MA, there used to be a brief parade in front of the Old Brick Church and a reading of the Declaration of Independence. When I was in graduate school in Chicago and visited a friend in his home town in Indiana – the parade was led by the local fire tricks, garbage trucks, and every other town vehicle they had.
Not this year in either town, I’m sure. We all missed our traditions this year. We’ll get them back. Meanwhile, our family – these days just the two of us – have kept ours. We are watching the film 1776. It is great fun. Not necessarily perfectly accurate. True to the spirit, though. A pretty good family Fourth of July tradition.