As a child, I loved the Fourth of July. It was a day to celebrate all that made us American: our confidence, our kindness, and our fervent patriotism. I loved the picnics, the fireworks, and all the rest. However, as I’ve grown and matured and realized that our Founding Fathers only sought out freedom for one group of people: white men and that this was at the expense of Native Americans, African Americans, and others, it has become harder to celebrate our independence. It has become harder still over the last few years as rights for women and LGBTQ people have eroded.
Our Founding Fathers were outraged that the British Government had the audacity to tax them without representation. However, they had the audacity to keep slaves and in the case of Thomas Jefferson to have a nonconsensual relationship with a woman who had no liberty or freedom because Jefferson literally owned her. Another asshole of a Founding Father, John Adams, not only ignored his wife Abigail when she implored him to “Remember the Ladies,” he mocked her.
Despite the whitewashed view of history taught in school, there have always been glimmers of truth in what was taught that illuminated the hypocrisy of our Founding Fathers. The justification for this hypocrisy was that they were products of their time and they had to secure their own liberty before fighting for others. I call bullshit on that line of thinking. Keeping African Americans, Indigenous People, and Women subordinate was a deliberate act on the part of our Founding Fathers because keeping them down made life easier for the old white assholes. Having slaves meant they didn’t have to work the fields, keeping women submissive meant there was always someone there to cook their meals, baby them, and warm their beds. And dehumanizing Native Americans meant they could sleep at night while their slaves worked the land they had stolen from this country’s first inhabitants.
Despite all the progress made in the almost 250 years since the Declaration of Independence was written, all Americans are not fully independent and free. Women’s bodily autonomy was taken away by SCOTUS’ cruel decision on Dobbs and the rights of LGBTQ people continue to be degraded. Black people are still being murdered by cops and indigenous people are still paying the price for welcoming the pilgrims.
Today, I won’t celebrate this country that I still love with fireworks and barbecues. Instead, I will read about Black history, donate to causes advancing the rights of women, advocate for the rights of the downtrodden, and pray that the freedom and liberty enshrined in our hallowed documents will one day apply to all Americans and not just those fortunate enough to be born white and male.