(AFP) – Americans celebrated 250 years of independence Saturday with conflicting emotions as pride, hope, and patriotism battled with uncertainty and unease over the country’s direction. On Washington’s grassy National Mall, lined by monuments and museums, thousands sweltered in multiblock lines as temperatures neared 100F (38C). With National Guard troops — controversially deployed across Washington by President Donald Trump — imposing crowd control, forklifts dropped pallets of bottled water which crowds clawed through in scenes evoking a disaster response. Still, the mood was joyous, with chants of “USA! USA! USA!” breaking out in one set of lines near the National Gallery.
Nearby, Iowa state congressman Eddie Andrews was hanging off the back of a farm tractor draped with stars-and-stripes livery, shouting “God bless America!” at the top of his lungs to crowds headed toward the Mall. “Really this day, 250 years ago, really marked the new modern day of freedom, and it’s why America leads the world in so many areas,” he told AFP, between laps through downtown DC. A few blocks away, Donna Dasher and her husband Albert were trying to get a photo of the White House. “I think it’s just the greatest event in our nation’s history,” Dasher said. “President Trump is trying to do everything he can to make it the greatest celebration, and some people say, ‘Oh, it’s about Trump.’ No, it’s not.” The Dashers traveled from Richmond Hill, Georgia to celebrate both America’s anniversary and their own, adding that they were holding military veterans — including some members of their family — in their thoughts during the festivities.
As the afternoon sun continued to bake attendees, the National Guard rolled out more bottles of water. “Take two or three or as many as you guys want!” one soldier said. “You guys got any Stella?” one attendee joked. Inside the security perimeter, more lines formed — specifically for the air-conditioned pavilions of each state and the water stations dotting the vast lawn. The larger tents where companies like Micron and Mastercard have booths struggled to keep temperatures down. Underneath a large model of the proposed Trump Arch, dozens sheltered in the short midafternoon shadows as the roaring sound of military aircraft was heard overhead.
– ‘Long way to go’ –
While the crowd in the US capital may have represented America geographically, it did not appear to do so ideologically. Amid accusations that Trump co-opted the anniversary to celebrate his own achievements, his and his MAGA movement’s stamp was immediately clear on the clothing and accessories spotted around the Mall. In Atlanta, Georgia, music therapist Melissa Pate was far more somber about the holiday. “I guess in this current political climate, 250 years — it feels like we still have a long way to go,” she told AFP. “To think that we’re 250 years in and there are people in this country that are still not living in true freedom,” she added. “It’s kind of disappointing.” Yet she and her husband would still celebrate the holiday with a traditional barbecue — but later in the evening after the heat subsided.
Pate said recent Democratic wins in regional and local elections had given her “hope that the little people — the working class — maybe are being heard.” William-Jose Velez Gonzalez, a Washington resident who is originally from Puerto Rico, had similar thoughts, saying that he felt a certain “sense of grief with the way that things are being handled, with the way that the country is being run.” He was planning a small gathering with friends to watch the fireworks. In Dallas, Texas, Patrick Marshall spent the morning helping his parents prepare for their Fourth of July barbecue, which this year will include more than 100 guests. “I think this is still a very big, great experiment and everybody’s still trying to figure out what that means to them,” the lobbyist told AFP. “But I think you can look back and be reflective of loving America and celebrating its beauty while also being fair and calling the balls and strikes that need to be called out about the country.”
– Paul BLAKE
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