4th of July

Frederick Douglass On The Meaning Of July Fourth To The Slave

July 4, 2024 In These Times. Educate! 4th of July, Frederick Douglass, History, Slavery

Fellow-citizens, pardon me, allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here to-day? What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us? And am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits and express devout gratitude for the blessings resulting from your independence to us? I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. The blessings in which you this day rejoice are not enjoyed in common.

Hold The Fireworks

July 6, 2022 John Kiriakou, Consortium News. Educate! 4th of July, Police, Supreme Court

I can’t celebrate a country this year where the highest court in the land sets society back a century with rulings so out of the mainstream of society that they harken back to the Dred Scott decision. Newspapers on the morning of July 4 told the story of a 10-year-old pregnant rape victim who, thanks to the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, was denied an abortion and told that she would have to carry her rapist’s baby to term. Her parents had the wherewithal to take her to neighboring Indiana for an abortion. It’s not that Indiana is in any way a progressive state.

The Dilemma Of The Fourth Of July

July 4, 2022 Mark Charles, Native News Online. Educate! 4th of July, American genocide, Declaration of Independence, Indigenous Rights

This is the dilemma that Native ‘Americans’ face every day. The foundations of the United States of America are blatantly unjust. This land was stolen. Native peoples, Africans and many other minority communities have long been recipients of systemic racism. And the roots of it are right there for the entire world to see, printed in many of our founding documents; like the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and United States Supreme Court case rulings. We announce it. We flaunt it. We celebrate it.. As a nation we embrace this history because we are largely ignorant of the true nature of our past and have never been held accountable for our actions.

Town To Replace July 4th Fireworks With Eco-Friendly Alternative

July 4, 2022 Olivia Rosane, EcoWatch. Create! 4th of July, California, climate crisis, Fireworks

Fourth of July firework shows are getting harder and harder to stage as high summer temperatures fueled by the climate crisis increase the risk that they will spark wildfires. But one town in the drought-stricken West has come up with a more environmentally-friendly alternative: a drone show. The town of Incline Village Crystal Bay on the north side of Lake Tahoe announced that it was swapping out the traditional Independence Day pyrotechnics for environmental reasons. “I enjoy fireworks and always have,” Incline Village Crystal Bay Visitors Bureau (IVCBVB) president and CEO Andy Chapman said, as The Guardian reported.

The Terrible Origins Of July 4th

July 3, 2022 Margaret Kimberley, Black Agenda Report. Educate! 4th of July, American genocide, American Revolution, colonization, Slavery

The July 4 holiday in the United States commemorates the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Anyone educated in this country has been propagandized with lies about patriotic colonists seeking freedom from a tyrannical British monarch. Our minds were filled with tales of Paul Revere and Betsy Ross which erase the role that indigenous and Black people played as they attempted to end true tyranny over their lives. The present day traditions of enjoying cookouts, vacations, and fireworks should not obscure the true meaning of this date.

The Terrible Origins of July 4th

July 3, 2021 Margaret Kimberley, Black Agenda Report. Educate! 4th of July, colonization, Independence Day, Indigenous Peoples

“He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.” -- Declaration of Independence

What Are We Celebrating?

July 5, 2018 Be Eleanor Goldfield, Act Out. Resistance Report 4th of July, Nationalism, Patriotism, US Imperialism

In a 4th of July special, we take a look at what America is – the good, the bad and the ugly – the real shit and the real people fighting and building beyond the confines of a capitalist empire. Coz inside these walls – of an empire dying, we can keep rising – we can aim higher than just getting by and we can steal hope – from a hangman's white rope – we can build dignity in the halls of a capitalist divinity – we – can move past – the blame game and masturbatory shame. We'll wrap it all up in a firework musing that goes quite well with sparklers and watermelon.

Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Fourth of July

July 5, 2016 Chris Hedges, www.truthdig.com Resist! 4th of July, Independence, Mumia Abu-Jamal

By Chris Hedges for Truth Dig - FRACKVILLE, Pa.—Tens or even hundreds of thousands of Americans, like those in the visiting room of the State Correctional Institution at Mahanoy, drove often for hours on the Fourth of July weekend to visit relatives or friends who are locked in cages. Millions suffered the painful absence this weekend of a father, a mother, a brother, a sister, a son, a daughter or a friend. These people, mostly poor people of color, understand a dark truth about the cruelty and ultimate intentions of the corporate state. They know that “freedom,” “justice” and “liberty,” especially if you are poor, are empty slogans.

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