Should we still be celebrating Independence Day?

I’d vote yes, and I suppose that most of our fellow 316 million Americans would agree. Having said that, it seems to me that July 4^th is more about celebrating freedom (and the principles underlying the American story) than about achieving independence. The link is unassailable – freedom, equality and democracy are indeed a direct result of our bid for independence, some 237 years ago, but watching Old Glory wave in the breeze, I think more about our place in the world pantheon than our battle with Britain two centuries ago. 

Yet, as I drive both on and off Daniel Island, and past the resplendent line of Old Glories, I can’t help but wonder why we don’t spend similar time celebrating our connection with the world. In the history of man, some 115 billion people have been born, we among them, and of that vast sum, 7.1 billion people are here among us.  We are, in the final analysis, fellow travelers on the same voyage – all members of the World community. Each one of us, when asked where we’re from, can answer the same: Planet Earth.  We are all members of the same tribe, and though, as a group, we have not fought together for independence (from, perchance, Venus?), we are linked together in a special way. 

Yet, amid that reality, nationalism (defined as “supporting the aspirations of a single nation” or “devotion and loyalty to one’s own country”) has its limits.  I’m proud to be an American, and feel exceptionally lucky to have been born on American soil, and afforded the opportunity and support that comes with being an American citizen. There’s a reason that people from all over the world continue to flock here.  And while our legislators currently are struggling to do what’s best for the country, the underlying principles remain strong. 

The United States, after all, is the longest running democracy in the history of the world, and while threats persist, witnessing the seamless transition of Presidential power on the front lawn of the Capital (one president sworn in, one waving goodbye from their chopper), we all can feel whole in the notion that the experiment works, that “this nation . . . can endure.”

But, in a larger sense, one could argue that we spend too little time thinking of ourselves as a whole.  As an international community, we do join hands on certain occasions (e.g., Earth Day, International Women’s Day*), but perhaps a bit more time could be devoted to humanism, or globalism, or inter-nationalism. As a member of the animal kingdom, humans seem intent on becoming #1, indeed, all major U.S. systems are based on it (e.g., corporate America, our political system, the world of sports, et al).  Yet being #1 in any arena naturally means there’s a two and a three. Take education. Currently, the US ranks #17 worldwide; yet, if our system meets the necessary criteria for success, then our rank is irrelevant; conversely, if we rank #1, yet fail to meet our students’ needs, our standing in the international community is no cause for celebration. Sure, competition stirs growth, but it also breeds disharmony.

So as we celebrate the 4^th, consider for a moment hanging a World Flag outside of your porch. I’m ordering mine today. 

 
* according to online sources, there are dozens of “international days.” These include, of course, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and April Fool’s Day (yes, they’re celebrated worldwide) plus less notable entrants: Thinking Day (February 22^nd), Friendship Day (August 5^th), International Talk-Like-a-Pirate Day (September 19^th) and Inventor’s Day” (in 1983, President Ronald Reagan declared February 11^th as National Inventor’s Day – Thomas Edison’s birthday, for those keeping score).  In addition, the UN’s 39 international days include: International Day of Peace (September 21^st), International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (October 17^th), International Day for Tolerance (November 16^th) and Human Rights Day (December 10^th).