Independence Day - Have Faith in America

By Sen. John Thune

In July 1776, John Adams wrote to his wife of Independence Day, “I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations … It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more.”

Although Adams thought we would celebrate July 2 – the day the Continental Congress voted to declare independence and two days before the Declaration of Independence was approved – our celebrations still resemble what Adams described. Fireworks, parades, games, and many other elements of his centuries-old vision are still defining marks of the Fourth of July today. And, as Adams foresaw, these celebrations take place across a vast country that stretches from sea to shining sea.

I might be biased, but I don’t think there’s any better place to celebrate Independence Day than right here in South Dakota. It’s tough to compete with South Dakotans’ patriotism. There are the rodeos, parades, and barbecues that bring communities together to celebrate our American heritage. And of course, nothing compares to spending the Fourth at Mount Rushmore and the rush of patriotism you get seeing Borglum’s tribute to four great Americans.

That patriotic feeling is a sense of pride – pride in what our country has done and in what it has the potential still to do. And it’s not very different from the Founding Fathers’ vision. They saw what America could be and were inspired to fight for independence. We are still a people of free thought, risk-taking, resilience, loyalty, and faith, qualities we share with the founding generation that fought for freedom and with the generations of brave Americans who have fought to defend it since then. We should take pride in the fact that as much as things have changed since 1776, the American spirit has only grown stronger.

Signing the Declaration of Independence was a courageous act. The Continental Army faced long odds, and there were many difficult years ahead. But they had faith in America, and they believed in the ideas they were putting forward to the world. In the same letter to his wife, Adams acknowledges the difficulties ahead, but he says, “through the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is more than worth all the means.”

We know our history, and we know Adams was right. We live in the greatest country the world has ever known – a beacon of hope to the world. I hope on this Fourth of July we share Adams’ faith in America, in the idea that began with the simple yet revolutionary words: “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.”