Inevitably, when I think about today, I think about todays of the past. Where I have been and what I have done on recent Independence Days. On Christmas I think of past Christmases, on my birthday I think of past birthdays, on March 12 I think of where I have been on past March 12s...
This is somewhat unfortunate because the post I woke up and thought to write today is essentially the same one I wrote last year (which I highly recommend you all re-read), and while it would probably turn out different today through a lens one year thicker, I kinda want to write something new.
This is what holidays are all about, though, if you think about it: looking through a thicker, richer lens at an event worth remembering, commemorating. The Fourth of July is not celebrated the same way today as it was 200 or 100 or even 50 years ago (or even 10 or 5 years ago, in my case), and there is something special and profound about this simple fact. We are still celebrating the independence of our nation, but that means something different to us today than it did back in 1776.
On July 4th, 1776, 13 dudes in powdered wigs celebrated independence by adopting the Declaration of Independence, severing on paper their ties from the Mother Country, Britain. This famous document is most famously (or infamously) known by these words:
Back in the Revolutionary Era, the colonists used to celebrate independence by staging mock funerals for King George III as a symbol of the end of his reign on this side of the pond. A little morbid, but you can see the roots of some of our modern traditions in their celebrations: bonfires, parades, shooting off cannons and muskets. George Washington (though he strangely shared a name with the king) doubled the rum rations for his troops on the second anniversary of the signing. (Booze, pyrotechnics, parades? Sounds about right.)
July 4th didn't hit calendars until 1781, though, when Massachusetts made it an official state holiday. Over the next decade or so, the major political parties held separate Independence celebrations in many of the major cities (which, might I remind you, would not have included LA or San Francisco or Seattle; we're talking Philadelphia here). Back then, the 4th of July provided an opportunity to make grandiose statements of patriotism and political affiliation. It was a critical sealant on the bonds of our baby nation. Almost a century later, in 1870, Congress established Independence Day as a federal holiday, but it wasn't until 1941 that it became a paid holiday for all federal workers.
Probably the major symbolism tying all these various celebrations together? The red, white, and blue. (Despite the fact that John Philip Sousa didn't compose The Stars and Stripes Forever until 1896! Just imagine. 100 years of Independence without that illustrious march...)
It is weird to consider how much our culture has changed since T.J. wrote that important document (by hand). These days, we know ("hold these truths to be self-evident") that not only men (read, straight white men in powdered wigs) but also women, former indentured servants, and people of other races are created equal. Or at least that all of these groups are endowed...with certain inalienable rights. We're still working on gay men and women, and haven't even figured out how to approach transgender, and we're not so sure collectively about that "Creator" business, and we can't quite seem to get the "total equality" thing down.
But we're working on it, and this day is one thing we can't really fight over. Today we all proudly wave the same flag, regardless of what platform, political or otherwise, supports its post. I think we can all agree that those original, elemental tenets of T.J.'s brainchild still have a lot of potential to expand and grow, and that we need to keep carrying them forward through our country's ever-morphing culture. But this is as good a time as any to look back and recognize our roots, and how far we've come since their planting.
Stay safe today, fellow revelers. Avoid burns at the hands of grills, fireworks, and the sun, and please stay off the road if you've been drinking. But take a moment to acknowledge what you're most proud of in our nation's history, and think about what you hope to celebrate, and remember, next July 4th.
***
P.S. If you read my post from last year, you might have noticed that I've spent a lot of July Fourths with my dear friend Alex, who less than a month ago returned from a post-grad year abroad and writes a BEAUTIFUL blog, which can be found here. His latest post is a fitting tribute to just what I'm talking about here.
This is somewhat unfortunate because the post I woke up and thought to write today is essentially the same one I wrote last year (which I highly recommend you all re-read), and while it would probably turn out different today through a lens one year thicker, I kinda want to write something new.
This is what holidays are all about, though, if you think about it: looking through a thicker, richer lens at an event worth remembering, commemorating. The Fourth of July is not celebrated the same way today as it was 200 or 100 or even 50 years ago (or even 10 or 5 years ago, in my case), and there is something special and profound about this simple fact. We are still celebrating the independence of our nation, but that means something different to us today than it did back in 1776.
On July 4th, 1776, 13 dudes in powdered wigs celebrated independence by adopting the Declaration of Independence, severing on paper their ties from the Mother Country, Britain. This famous document is most famously (or infamously) known by these words:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."This passage today would undoubtedly be a lot longer, imbued with political correctness and all of our nation's intellectual developments from the past 236 years. (It probably wouldn't even get signed, because Dems would have one version and Reps would have another version, and each side of this invisible barbed-wire fence would refuse to even read the other side's version.) But 236 years ago, it was fresh and groundbreaking and signified a big and important change in the lives of the colonists.
Back in the Revolutionary Era, the colonists used to celebrate independence by staging mock funerals for King George III as a symbol of the end of his reign on this side of the pond. A little morbid, but you can see the roots of some of our modern traditions in their celebrations: bonfires, parades, shooting off cannons and muskets. George Washington (though he strangely shared a name with the king) doubled the rum rations for his troops on the second anniversary of the signing. (Booze, pyrotechnics, parades? Sounds about right.)
July 4th didn't hit calendars until 1781, though, when Massachusetts made it an official state holiday. Over the next decade or so, the major political parties held separate Independence celebrations in many of the major cities (which, might I remind you, would not have included LA or San Francisco or Seattle; we're talking Philadelphia here). Back then, the 4th of July provided an opportunity to make grandiose statements of patriotism and political affiliation. It was a critical sealant on the bonds of our baby nation. Almost a century later, in 1870, Congress established Independence Day as a federal holiday, but it wasn't until 1941 that it became a paid holiday for all federal workers.
Probably the major symbolism tying all these various celebrations together? The red, white, and blue. (Despite the fact that John Philip Sousa didn't compose The Stars and Stripes Forever until 1896! Just imagine. 100 years of Independence without that illustrious march...)
It is weird to consider how much our culture has changed since T.J. wrote that important document (by hand). These days, we know ("hold these truths to be self-evident") that not only men (read, straight white men in powdered wigs) but also women, former indentured servants, and people of other races are created equal. Or at least that all of these groups are endowed...with certain inalienable rights. We're still working on gay men and women, and haven't even figured out how to approach transgender, and we're not so sure collectively about that "Creator" business, and we can't quite seem to get the "total equality" thing down.
But we're working on it, and this day is one thing we can't really fight over. Today we all proudly wave the same flag, regardless of what platform, political or otherwise, supports its post. I think we can all agree that those original, elemental tenets of T.J.'s brainchild still have a lot of potential to expand and grow, and that we need to keep carrying them forward through our country's ever-morphing culture. But this is as good a time as any to look back and recognize our roots, and how far we've come since their planting.
Stay safe today, fellow revelers. Avoid burns at the hands of grills, fireworks, and the sun, and please stay off the road if you've been drinking. But take a moment to acknowledge what you're most proud of in our nation's history, and think about what you hope to celebrate, and remember, next July 4th.
***
P.S. If you read my post from last year, you might have noticed that I've spent a lot of July Fourths with my dear friend Alex, who less than a month ago returned from a post-grad year abroad and writes a BEAUTIFUL blog, which can be found here. His latest post is a fitting tribute to just what I'm talking about here.
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