Beyond Independence Day: A Meditation on Celebrating the 4th of July
This year I took my kids to watch the 4th of July fireworks display at Seattle’s Gas Works Park. It was our first time doing so as a family. Normally, we escape the city to avoid the noise and chaos of the evening, as the explosions throughout our neighborhood make it difficult for children trying to sleep. However, my boys, growing older and more curious, insisted on experiencing the city’s celebration firsthand.
As fireworks illuminated the night sky and patriotic songs filled the air, I found myself reflecting on both the impressiveness of the spectacle and the subtle discomfort I tend to feel around this time of year. It’s not just the noise that has kept me away from the city, if I’m being honest, but the gaudiness of what Independence Day has come to mean for so many: a day of blind patriotism, of listening to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” on repeat while waving flags and drunkenly igniting incendiary devices.
It all just feels a bit…insufficient. We think of Independence Day as a completed story, a recounting of a scrappy, startup nation’s successful bid for freedom. But in doing so, we neglect the stories of those of our people who have yet to find their happy ending. What did our victory over the British mean for Indigenous communities, decimated by colonialism and the myth of manifest destiny? How has the birth of America sustained and strengthened Black and Brown communities that have never felt the full light of democracy, despite the stories we tell ourselves? Whose freedom are we celebrating, when trans people are attacked for their mere existence and women lack full autonomy over their own bodies?
When we celebrate our nation’s independence from an authoritarian regime, how do we square this with the rising fascism that marks this current moment in the American experience?
As I watched the fireworks dance across the sky, I was reminded that there is still so much work to do. Sitting there with my kids, I also held onto the hope that this celebration could be more than just a display of pyrotechnics. It could be a reminder of our collective responsibility to challenge complacency, to strive for a more inclusive society, and to build a nation that truly lives up to its ideals. The 4th of July fete I envision is one that connects the best parts of our nation’s founding with the spirit of revolution that so many of us are in pursuit of today – one that not only recognizes that which our forebears achieved, but illuminates our collective path toward a better future.
America has always been a work in progress. Let us transform this celebration into an opportunity for growth and unity, where patriotism is not blindly accepted but earned through our commitment to justice, equality, and the betterment of our communities. Considering the full breadth of our nation’s history, it’s hard to imagine a more patriotic meditation than this.