My fellow Americans, happy Independence Day! Don’t worry, the last two days didn’t vanish from your memory, it’s July 2nd, not the 4th. But today is the 241st anniversary of the United States of America’s official declaration of independence…depending on who you talk to.
While the Fourth is our official day to celebrate our nation’s independence, July 2nd, 1776 is the day when the Continental Congress voted to declare independence from Great Britain. Two days later, they voted to approve the Declaration of Independence, which is why we now get to barbecue, relax, and enjoy a day off every Fourth of July.
However, brace yourself for another fun fact, the Declaration wasn’t actually signed until August 2nd, 1776, and even then it wasn’t signed by everyone. In fact, the document wasn’t made public until January 1777.
The point of this endless stream of possible national holidays is not that we couldn’t get our nation’s Independence Day right, it’s that our country wasn’t established in a day. There’s not one official document or one specific signature that signified the official beginning of our nation. Our declaration of independence was a process, not one moment or even one day. Those who founded our nation had to work at it and fine tune their process, a struggle that continues to this day.
It’s something to keep in mind this holiday weekend. We’re a nation that works for what we believe in, and that’s been the case from day one (whichever day that was).
Happy Independence Day to all! Have fun, stay safe, and be kind to each other.
…just for fun:
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