Tomorrow we will have reached the two hundred fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence which was signed in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776. The tiny room where this historic moment took place is still there and so is our nation which is still in the process of evolving. The document announced the attempt at creating a more perfect union, not a perfect one. Our founders understood that there was still work to be done but most of them believed that they had created a system of government that would incrementally become a better and better version of itself. 

In this moment in time our democratic republic is teetering a bit. The kind of disagreements that allowed slavery to stand even as our nation declared its freedom from tyranny are still raging two hundred fifty years later. At the time of the signing there were already indications that this grand experiment might not stand for very long. War with a powerful nation and a well trained army would test the resolve of the citizenry while all the world watched with many doubts that the independence would last. 

Somehow we have muddled through another war with Britain, a civil war between Americans, the end of slavery the Jim Crow efforts to keep Black citizens segregated, two world wars, depressions, wars in Korea, Vietnam and the Middle East and now an authoritarian president who is taxing the system of checks and balances that should have curbed many of his one sided measures. Through it all we have somehow seen heroes arise to lead us forward even in times that we seem to be moving backwards. 

The recent FIFA games in the United States were a delightful reminder of who we are as Americans. We were great hosts, embracing athletes and fans from many nations with an openness and kindness that defines the true heart of our nation. Yes, we have dark forces that persecute immigrants, still hold racist views of black and brown people, ugly persons who use religion to threaten members of the LGBTQ community and even some who would set back women by confining them to homes under the authority of husbands. Still, there are warriors insisting that this is not who we are as Americans. We are better than the dark vision that is posted by our president and his enablers and deep down inside we know that this too will pass just as we have rallied again and again to become better versions of ourselves. 

On this day I celebrate the ideals of our beginnings many of which are still to be insured. As long as we believe in freedoms not just for ourselves or certain groups but for all we will make it to the next big celebration even as we appear to be faltering in this moment. I for one believe in the goodness of Americans. I do not think that our ugly side can last for much longer. It is not who we have become through a beautiful evolution of extending the rights and privileges of our democratic republic to all. 

We are a nation of many people. The color of our skin should no longer define the level of respect and acceptance that each of us should give to one another. The greatness of America has always been in our willingness to be honest about our faults and to remedy them step by step. We should not be flaunting our freedoms and the wealth that we have experienced but rather sharing our bounty with all of the world. Surely we have learned that all humans are engaged in a daily hopefulness that blends our dreams together. Our greatness in the United States is measured best by our embrace of our fellow humans across the globe. 

I love the United States of America. I have festooned my home with red white and blue not because I believe that we are better than every other country but because I want the freedoms that I enjoy to be extended to has many people as possible. I celebrate the brave souls from all over the world who have enriched the American experience with their presence and their hard work. I am a descendant of immigrants and members of the American revolution. My ancestors all came here looking for opportunities and in most cases their dreams were fulfilled. I can trace my heritage back to a time before the Declaration of Independence when my people were fleeing the kind of tyranny and religious persecution that was so rampant in the world of long ago. I have flourished as a woman living through a time when the limits to what I might achieve were ended one by one. 

I am watching what is happening in our nation today with great caution. The undoing of progress worries me but I also see and hear the determination of the freedom fighters of today who relentlessly work to keep and improve on a republic that had incrementally become better. As forces attempt to take us back to a time when only white miles were able to rule the roost I still have the right to resist, to speak out with freedom. For this reason I am still proud of our nation and I intend to do everything in my power to keep it from devolving into a different kind of tyranny from wealthy power brokers who seem to believe that only a certain group of Americans are worthy of running our nation. 

I truly believe that on this July 4, 2026 we have reached yet another watershed moment that will test our mettle and our willingness to keep the United States as the land of the free regardless of how different each of us may be. Happy Birthday, America!. May we all work to keep our republic and remain a destination of hope and change until one day perhaps our union will be closer and closer to perfection.