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NDTV
04-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
4th Of July: Timeline Of Events That Followed The Birth Of America
New Delhi: When Americans celebrate the 4th of July, they commemorate what they believe to be the birth of the United States. July 4, 1776, was the day the colonies declared independence from Great Britain. The signing of the Declaration of Independence was the result of a month-long political process marked by debates, drafts, and key decisions. Here is a look at the timeline of events that led to (and followed) July 4, 1776. June 7, 1776: Call For Independence The first formal step towards American independence came on June 7, 1776, when Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a resolution in the Continental Congress declaring that "these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States." Congress appointed a five-man committee: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R Livingston, to draft a document that would justify the break from Britain, in case the resolution passed. June 11-28: Drafting The Declaration Between June 11 and 28, Thomas Jefferson drafted what would become the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson's draft underwent several revisions with input from John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. By the end of June, the document was ready for presentation, but Congress had yet to vote on independence itself. July 2: The Vote For Independence The actual decision to break away from Britain occurred on July 2, 1776, when 12 of the 13 colonies voted in favour of Richard Henry Lee's resolution. New York abstained, pending instructions from its provincial convention. In a letter to his wife, Abigail, John Adams predicted that July 2 would be celebrated as the "great anniversary festival." He wasn't entirely wrong, only a little early. July 4: Adopting The Document On July 4, the Continental Congress reconvened to vote on the final text of the Declaration of Independence, incorporating various edits made over the previous days. That morning, the delegates approved the wording. This is the date printed on the first official copies of the Declaration, making it the day most associated with independence, even though the formal break had already occurred two days earlier. The version approved on July 4 was sent to printer John Dunlap, who produced around 200 broadsides single-page printed copies of the Declaration - to be distributed across the colonies. These Dunlap Broadsides became the first published versions of the Declaration and are the reason the date July 4 gained iconic status. July 5-8 On July 5, copies of the Declaration were sent to colonial legislatures, military leaders, and newspapers. The most dramatic moment came on July 8, when Colonel John Nixon publicly read the Declaration for the first time in the yard of the Pennsylvania State House (now Independence Hall). The crowd reportedly erupted in cheers. Public celebrations followed in cities like Philadelphia and New York, where the British royal coat of arms was torn down. August 2 Most delegates did not put pen to parchment until August 2, 1776. That is when Congress had the text engrossed, carefully handwritten on vellum, and presented for signatures. Some members signed later, depending on when they returned to Philadelphia. A few delegates, like New York's Robert R Livingston, never signed at all.
Boston Globe
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Fourth of July celebrations start bright and early in Boston
Led by Mayor Michelle Wu, the procession, including the Middlesex County Volunteers Fife & Drums ensemble, will stop off at the Old Granary Burying Ground, the resting place of Revolutionary War heroes, to lay wreaths on gravesites. Paul Revere, three signers of the Declaration of Independence, and Crispus Attucks, the first colonist killed by British troops during the Boston Massacre, among others, are buried at the site. The reading of the Declaration, formally known as The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, is slated for 10 a.m. from the balcony of the Old State House at 206 Washington St., the same balcony where the founding document was first read to Bostonians on July 18, 1776. Advertisement The Captain Commanding of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts will read the text. The USS Constitution Museum will be open for tours all day and Old Ironsides will set sail at 10 a.m. for its annual voyage from the Charlestown Navy Yard through Boston Harbor to Castle Island. The ship will fire a 21-gun salute when it passes Fort Independence on Castle Island at about 11:30 a.m. Advertisement At 12:30 p.m., the Middlesex County Volunteers Fife & Drums ensemble will take to the Summer Street Stage in Downtown Crossing for a two-hour concert. For those set on snagging the best possible seating for the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River Esplanade, it's best to get there bright and early. The free concert doesn't start until 7 p.m. followed by fireworks at 9:40 p.m., but folks have been known to get in line as early as 6 a.m. According to Tonya Alanez can be reached at
The Hill
04-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
The Founders put God at the center of the Declaration of Independence
Today is synonymous with fireworks, flags, parades and barbecues, but 33 percent of Americans do not plan to celebrate the nation's 249th birthday. National pride has fallen to record lows, and a 2023 poll found that 41 percent of Americans do not know the meaning of Independence Day on the Fourth of July. As a lead-up to next year's 250th anniversary, a concerted effort should be made to educate citizens about the holiday and the risks the Founding Fathers took to make it happen. Little attention is paid to the collective bravery necessary to establish our country after the Declaration of Independence was signed, which severed ties with Great Britain, then a leading world power. Thank you for signing up! Subscribe to more newsletters here Most significantly, God's role is often downplayed or ignored in the Declaration, with three godly references that altered history and remain politically relevant. For example, after President Trump authorized the bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities last month, he addressed the American people and concluded by saying, 'And I want to just thank everybody, and in particular, God. I want to just say, we love you, God, and we love our great military. Protect them. God bless the Middle East. God bless Israel, and God bless America. Thank you very much.' While Trump expressed gratitude and love for God after a successful attack, the Founders justified their Declaration of Independence because of God. Knowing that winning freedom from Great Britain would be a David-vs.-Goliath battle, our revolutionary leaders placed God at the tip of their spear both philosophically and militarily. Let's analyze the three references to God in the Declaration of Independence. The first paragraph is a single long sentence: 'The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them …' Initially, the Founders declared political independence based on 'the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God.' They believed these were inherent, universal natural rights emanating from God, to which people are entitled. Those rights help establish a divine moral order where humankind can thrive, achieve and create. Best-known is the second mention of God, found in the second paragraph: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.' So having established that God grants natural law and rights that cannot be nullified, the Founders based their new nation on unalienable rights 'endowed by their Creator.' This was groundbreaking because, for centuries, rights and freedoms had been granted by kings. Then the Declaration listed the many reasons why the 13 colonies were being unjustly governed by the British king, who violated their God-given rights. President Ronald Reagan eloquently explained that revolutionary concept in an essay published in Parade Magazine commemorating Independence Day in 1981. 'Somewhere in our growing up, we began to be aware of the meaning of the day, and with that awareness came the birth of patriotism,' he wrote. 'July Fourth is the birthday of our nation. I believed as a boy, and believe even more today, that it is the birthday of the greatest nation on earth. 'It also commemorates the only true philosophical revolution in all history. Oh, there have been revolutions before and since ours. But those revolutions simply exchanged one set of rules for another. Ours was a revolution that changed the very concept of government. 'Let the Fourth of July always be a reminder that here in this land, for the first time, it was decided that man is born with certain God-given rights; that government is only a convenience created and managed by the people, with no powers of its own except those voluntarily granted to it by the people. We sometimes forget that great truth, and we never should.' The founding document's third reference to God appears in the final paragraph: 'And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.' So the Founders openly proclaimed a 'firm reliance on protection of divine Providence' to establish their new nation based on natural rights 'endowed by their Creator.' That three-part, divinely-inspired reasoning helped sustain our fledgling nation through seven years of revolutionary war. Miraculously, on Sept. 3, 1783, the 13 states won independence from the tyrannical British crown. By 1945, the U.S. had become — and continues to be — a global superpower. However, on this 249th birthday, America is being tested in ways that our Founders foresaw when they established three co-equal branches of government to prevent the president from usurping power and becoming a king. That system of checks and balances was attacked on Jan. 6, 2021 — and it survived. Today, Trump delights in expanding executive power, while the judicial and legislative branches willingly cede authority to him. If current trends continue, by America's 250th birthday the three co-equal branches could form a triangle, with the executive at the top and the judicial and legislative branches relegated to the base. Fearing the expansion of the executive branch, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor recently warned the American people, writing, 'The rule of law is not a given in this nation, nor any other. It is a precept of our democracy that will endure only if those brave enough in every branch fight for its survival. Today, the court abdicates its vital role in that effort.' Cue the fireworks! Requoting the Declaration of Independence, America needs 'firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence.' Happy Fourth of July, and God Bless America! Myra Adams is a political and religious opinion writer who served on the creative team of two Republican presidential campaigns, in 2004 and 2008.
Newsweek
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Gabby Giffords: Americans Deserve Freedom From Gun Violence
Growing up in Arizona, I loved the story of the Declaration of Independence. I was thrilled by the vision of the Founders—that we, the people, had the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness—and fascinated by the proclamation that the 13 colonies were entitled to a novel form of government—democracy—to bolster the people's "Safety and Happiness." But 249 years later, our government is failing to keep us safe. Last Friday, I saw images of the solemn lying in state of my friend, former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, and her husband, Mark, under the great dome of the state capitol. They were stalked and murdered by an extremist who also nearly killed state senator John Hoffman and his wife, and who had a hit list of other Democratic officials. Political violence like this is escalating—and threatening the very foundations of the democratic experiment that began with the Declaration. I feel this tragedy in my bones, personally. I narrowly survived an assassination attempt at a congressional event I was holding outside of a grocery store in Tucson, Arizona, in 2011. Six people died and many more were wounded. Before that day, I'd received threats, and my office door had been shot in—during the very public debate about the health care bill known as the Affordable Care Act. Of course, not all gun violence is political. Some 46,000 people are shot and killed in America every year, and Black and Brown communities bear a disproportionate share of this burden. Gun violence doesn't just claim lives; it robs people of their sense of safety and freedom. It casts a shadow over everyday life—going to the store, walking outside, attending school, seeing a movie, or celebrating a Fourth of July parade might all become occasions of violence. For victims, survivors, and the millions of Americans who live in fear, our government is not upholding its end of the deal. It is failing to protect our safety and our happiness. Former US Representative Gabby Giffords speak at a rally for US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz during a campaign event at Desert... Former US Representative Gabby Giffords speak at a rally for US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz during a campaign event at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, on August 9, 2024. More Robyn Beck / AFP/Getty Images Making matters worse, extremists have hijacked the gun lobby and twisted the meaning of the Second Amendment. In one breath, they take up their arms in preparation for violent resistance against perceived tyranny, but then cry "tyrant!" whenever an elected official says something they don't like. This isn't patriotism. It's a dangerous, growing threat to our democracy. While most gun owners, like me, rightly roll their eyes at these performative hysterics, there are a few who take these extremists' warnings at face value. This status quo is deadly and unacceptable—and elected officials of both parties have a duty to say so. If our nation continues down this path unchecked, we risk losing the very democracy we celebrate every July fourth. On this Independence Day, the last before our nation's 250th birthday, Republicans and Democrats alike must recommit to keeping the American people safe from the threat of dangerous people with guns. While legislatures may remain divided on the issue, the American people are not. Roughly 90 percent of voters support background checks on all gun sales and stopping domestic abusers from owning guns. Large majorities support banning untraceable ghost guns, requiring a license to purchase a firearm, and passing red flag laws that remove guns from someone who poses an immediate threat. The will is there. What's missing is the courage. When I was shot and nearly died, colleagues from both sides of the aisle promoted the idea that politicians should adopt softer, less inflammatory rhetoric. I appreciated the thought, and I still agree that we'd all benefit if politicians chose their words more carefully. But a functional democracy is only possible when those who serve it don't have to fear for their lives. And as long as loopholes in our laws allow dangerous people—like the man who killed Melissa Hortman—to stockpile weapons, people will be afraid. This Independence Day, I hope you—and elected officials at every level of government—will join me in this fight, so every American can live free from the threat of gun violence. Gabrielle Giffords was a Democratic U.S. representative from Arizona from 2007 to 2012. She is the founder of Giffords, a national organization dedicated to saving lives from gun violence. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Newsweek
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
The Real Meaning of Independence Day
It's the 249th birthday of the United States. And as Americans begin to prepare for our nation's grand semiquincentennial celebration next year, it is worth reengaging with the document whose enactment marks our national birthday: the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration is sometimes championed by right-libertarians and left-liberals alike as a paean to individualism and a refutation of communitarianism of any kind. As one X user put it on Thursday: "The 4th of July represents the triumph of American individualism over the tribalistic collectivism of Europe." But this is anything but the case. We will turn to lead draftsman Thomas Jefferson's famous words about "self-evident" truths in a moment. But first consider the majority of the text of the Declaration: a stirring enumeration of specific grievances by the American colonists against the British crown. In the Declaration's own words: "The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States." One might read these words in a vacuum and conclude that the Declaration indeed commenced a revolution in the true sense of the term: a seismic act of rebellion, however noble or righteous, to overthrow the established political order. And true enough, that may well have been the subjective intention of Jefferson, a political liberal and devotee of the European Enlightenment. But the Declaration also attracted many other signers. And some of those signers, such as the more conservative John Adams, took a more favorable view of the incipient America's inherited traditions and customs. These men thought that King George III had vitiated their rights as Englishmen under the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and the Bill of Rights that passed Parliament the following year. It is for this reason that Edmund Burke, the famed conservative British statesman best known for his strident opposition to the French Revolution, was known to be sympathetic to the colonists' cause. As my Edmund Burke Foundation colleague Ofir Haivry argued in a 2020 American Affairs essay, it is likely that these more conservative Declaration signers, such as Adams, shared Burke's own view that "the Americans had an established national character and political culture"; and "the Americans in 1776 rebelled in an attempt to defend and restore these traditions." An American flag waves in the wind at sunset. An American flag waves in the wind at American Founding is complex; the Founders themselves were intellectually heterodox. But suffice it to say the Founding was not a simplistic renouncement of the "tribalistic collectivism" of Britain. There is of course some truth to those who would emphasize the revolutionary nature of the minutemen and soldiers of George Washington's Continental Army. But the overall sounder historical conception is that 1776 commenced a process to restore and improve upon the colonists' inherited political order. The final result was the U.S. Constitution of 1787. Let's next consider the most famous line of the Declaration: the proclamation that "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." We ought to take this claim at face value: Many of the Declaration's signers did hold such genuine, moral human equality to be "self-evident." But is such a claim self-evident to everyone—at all times, in all places, and within all cultures? The obvious answer is that it is not. Genuine, moral human equality is certainly not self-evident to Taliban-supporting Islamist goat herders in Afghanistan. It has not been self-evident to any number of sub-Saharan African tribal warlords of recent decades. Nor is it self-evident to the atheists of the Chinese Communist Party politburo, who brutally oppress non-Han Chinese ethnic minorities such as the Uyghur Muslims of Xinjiang. Rather, the only reason that Jefferson—and John Locke in England a century prior—could confidently assert such moral "self-evidence" is because they were living and thinking within a certain overarching milieu. And that milieu is Western civilization's biblical inheritance—and, specifically, the world-transforming claim in Genesis 1:27, toward the very beginning of the Bible, that "God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him." It is very difficult—perhaps impossible—to see how the Declaration of 1776, the 14th Amendment of 1868, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, or any other American moral ode to or legal codification of equality, would have been possible absent the strong biblical undergird that has characterized our nation since the colonial era. Political and biblical inheritance are thus far more responsible for the modern-day United States than revolution, liberal rationalism, or hyper-individualism. Adams famously said that Independence Day "ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires, and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more." Indeed, each year we should all celebrate this great nation we are blessed to call home. But let's also not mistake what it is we are actually celebrating. Josh Hammer is Newsweek senior editor-at-large, host of "The Josh Hammer Show," senior counsel for the Article III Project, a research fellow with the Edmund Burke Foundation, and author of the new book, Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Destiny of the West (Radius Book Group). Subscribe to "The Josh Hammer Report," a Newsweek newsletter. X: @josh_hammer. The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
