This Fourth of July, our country will celebrate the 248th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. That was the day representatives from thirteen colonies spoke as one. It was the day they stood together and signed a document that declared the sovereignty of the United States of America to the world.
We would no longer be ruled by Great Britain; we would collectively rule ourselves.
That was the first step in a long, dangerous, and difficult journey toward personal, political, religious, and economic freedom. It would cost them and our country dearly, but they were all willing to take that first step.
Since none of us personally knew the “Signers”, we only know who they were and what they did based on the limited historical records available to us. We can speculate, interpret, and have an opinion, but we should do so in the context of their time, not ours.
Some will argue that these men were not perfect, that they were flawed. Yes, save one man, we are all flawed. What can’t be argued is that these men were brave, steadfast, and patriotic as they laid the foundation upon which our country was built.
Since their time, the United States of America has grown into the great Nation we all call home. Millions of immigrants legally emigrated from countries all around the world and chose to come to America. They came to help build this country. They wanted to experience the freedom, promise, and opportunity that this country offered. They wanted to work and to make a better life for themselves and their families.
My grandfather was one of those immigrants. He came from Italy to become an American, not an Italian living in America. He didn’t come here to be accommodated by America, he came here to assimilate into the “melting pot” that was America. He loved this country and was proud to be an American.
Countless immigrant family members served in World War II, fighting as Americans. They learned the language of their newly adopted country and insisted that their children did as well. They fully immersed themselves in the culture and traditions of their new homeland.
You see, in order to become a naturalized American citizen, legal immigrants are required to renounce their former country and take an oath to “support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Today’s illegal “migrants” take no such oath.
Americans still absolutely welcome and support legal immigration. Americans are generous to a fault, and we are always willing to welcome into our country those who love our country, our traditions, and our way of life and who respect our laws.
Even as American citizens are being held against their will in foreign countries around the world, we allow foreigners, many who entered our country illegally, to burn our flag and disrespect our Country.
We allow them to spread hate, distribute drugs, traffic children, rape, murder and commit countless crimes against American citizens. Many of these foreign interlopers come from countries where the freedoms we take for granted don’t exist.
Yet despite breaking our laws, our government showers them with free housing, food, clothing, healthcare, and welfare, while American Veterans and citizens remain homeless. Is this the America the Signers dreamed of? I think not.
Sadly, even some misguided American citizens support and join these hate-filled demonstrations that denigrate and attack their own country.
Fortunately, most Americans still love and support their country. They understand that there is no perfect country, and they realize that America, despite her faults, is still the “home of the free, because of the brave”. Yes, Americans are still free to pursue, as our Founders declared so long ago, “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”.
Since that declaration almost two and a half centuries ago, many patriotic men and women have stepped forward to defend the freedoms we all enjoy. They, like the Signers, so loved this country that they were willing to die for it. Today, and every day, we should remember the words engraved on the granite wall of the Korean War Memorial in Washington, DC: “FREEDOM IS NOT FREE.”
So what does Independence Day mean to today’s American citizens? Do we all feel a sense of shared history, community, unity, patriotism, pride, love of country, thankfulness and appreciation for the country the Signers bequeathed to us? Again, I believe that most Americans still share those sentiments.
So today, as we celebrate our Independence Day by gathering with family and friends, let us not forget how blessed we are to live in this beautiful and bountiful country.
Let us pledge never to give up the personal, political, religious, and economic freedoms the Signers fought so hard for.
Let us remember those brave and selfless Signers whose actions on July 4, 1776, literally changed the world.
Let us put aside our personal differences and remember the common thread that unites us: We are all Americans, and it’s our birthday.
Happy Birthday, America, and may God continue to bless us!
