An Important Part Of Being An American

The Fourth of July is a holiday that typically involves joyous events such as barbeques, family gatherings, and quality picnics. Additionally, it is a time that can draw those who have drifted apart closer once again. However, in the 19th century as the racial and social divide deepened, the effectiveness of this national holiday came into question. Although the Fourth of July was supposed to pull the nation closer, it actually inclined some to question their place in America. This was supposed to be a unification holiday that made the country stronger. Instead, the national holiday carved a deep divide between the various groups that made up the population at that time. Furthermore, in the 19th century the Fourth of July established division between groups, cultivated questions about America’s progress as a whole, and ingrained national confusion about the purpose of this holiday.

While it may seem like a great historical event that all Americans should celebrate it is only a recognized holiday of recognition in some states and does not have federal recognition.

Today most people think of the Fourth of July as a holiday to celebrate freedom. However, in

We as a people enjoy having our holidays off and it has been a recognized holiday since enacted by Franklin D. Roosevelt. It was celebrated in some aspect or another hundreds of years before then. We are celebrating a figure that has been romanticized about for so long even though the truth of the man is a very different story. If we dig further into the truth we will discover that it really makes no sense to why we have a day to celebrate this man. As a nation we may want to reconsider either a different celebration of this day or removing the holiday completely.

Along with any nation in the world, comes a variety of religions. The English founded this nation on Christianity; however, numerous people today denounce this monotheistic belief and instead have put their faith in beliefs brought to this country by foreigners. This assorted variety allows believers to choose a religion which better suits their beliefs and practices, and gives individuals a choice on spiritual fulfillment in their lives. These religious beliefs combined with the democratic state of the nation have led to public displays of religious celebration in America. Ramadan, Yom Kippur, Kwanzaa, Christmas, Cinco de Mayo, and Hanukkah have been a few of the celebrations brought to America via immigrants. Some of the most celebrated and famous revels include St. Patrick's Day and Mardi Gras (see Figure 1 and

The racial symbols are used in various ways, including holidays, representing people and movements. People assume that by having an Independence Day, every person has the right to be free while some people are still afraid when it comes to freedom. “The fact is, though, that most whites and lots of black folks rely on symbols to support their belief that black person has come a long way since slavery and segregation to the present time.” Black History month will be a great example, back then people were happy that those kinds of holidays

When veterans day comes around it always has me thinking what does being an american means to me? What being an american means to me is to be free. I say this because I have the freedom to go to school, I can go anywhere, and I am free to have whatever job I want. But I also know that in other countries there is not a lot of freedom, like in africa there are people starving, there are people who can't go to school, or even get the job they want. Also what being an american means to me is to be safe. The U.S of course has bad days but I know in reality we have a strong military to back us up. To me being an american is important and you shouldn't abuse it because ,as stated earlier, in other counties they don't have the same rights as US. An american to me also means to have freedoms.

Americans have observed the Fourth of July since the 18th century, but only recently, in 1938, did it become a national holiday. It is a day that celebrates America’s freedom from Britain during the Revolutionary War.

The dark history of this all-American holiday is well documented and anyone who wants to know the truth can easily find it. What I will present here are just a few of the facts. In 1637, English settlers moved into the Connecticut valley, home of the Pequot Indians. Then early one morning while the Natives were still asleep, the settlers surrounded, attacked, and set ablaze a town full of Pequot Indians. They burned entire families alive. Anyone who escaped the fire, was hunted down, tramped into the mud, and savagely hacked to pieces. In the aftermath of the massacre, these depraved English terrorists thanked God for the easy victory over helpless and innocent people. Then on the very next day, their degenerate

On holidays, we honor the great people who served our country, by hanging our flags in a memorial to them, a symbol of those who have passed.

In USA we have many national holidays for all sorts of things. These holidays often times in remembrance or too honor someone or something of importance. For example, not long before this was written Martin Luther King Jr. day arrived. It honors MLK and all he did for African American equality. There is another day that should be honored though, that currently isn’t. The Boston Tea Party, it played a large role in the revolution, is already well known but is a topic that could use more discussion, and it had drastic results. Yet, it still has nothing in its honor besides a few memorials.

Civic and political participation is essential because it helps to attain the roles in the government, support the system by obeying the laws and if they disagreed with the policies their abilities to challenge the unfair laws legally. Not only does it allow citizens to fight for justice and equality, but it will enable them to make a difference in their community. If the people of the nation disregard their civic duties and responsibilities, the government would be allowed to do anything even if doesn’t allow the citizens to benefit from them. One person that helped the world that deserves a national holiday is Lillian Wald. Lillian Wald was a social worker, nurse, settlement leader and Public health advocate.

Independence Day or more commonly known as the Fourth of July is the day where Americans show their pride of being an American more than any other day. Across America, families gather together to sit and enjoy each other's company as well as good food. Stories are told of past events or current ones important or not, to one another while drinking a beer or watching a game. Generations of family members get the opportunity to be in one place at one time, grandparents and their children along with their grandchildren almost like a reunion of sorts. After the day is out it ends with a bang as fireworks light up the sky with vibrant colors. The Fourth of July is such a beautiful day for Americans as it's a day of unity of family and nation, but for myself, it's a day where I feel no such freedom only the stark opposite.

“The Land of the Free” this saying has a very strong meaning that we often forget, this means that America is free. Free to say what we want, and most of the time do what we want. Everyone always overlooks how important holidays and historical events are and we get too caught up in the amusement of them. While some people believe that getting rid of all holidays and historical events is a good idea, no holidays should be eliminated because, they honor all different cultures and they help the economy by providing more public and private industry, they have shaped America one way or another, also these holidays and historical events make America diverse.

To my generation I think it is important to thank America because most of the kids these days do not know about the past and do know how good they have it. One of the holidays we celebrate in America is the 4th of July; we celebrate July 4th because it is the day when the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence.