Who is Independence Day really for?

By Rodney Richardson

Most of the citizens of the United States casually celebrated the 4th of July last week as another American holiday that allows us time off from our jobs for a good cause. Barbeque grills were fired-up and fireworks were heard and seen across the night’s sky—oblivious to who Independence Day is really for.

According to the current descendants of European societies that “settled” here and illegally established themselves as “Americans”—the signing of the Declaration of Independence made them free from the oppressive British government. The “founding fathers” declared on that famous parchment—that “all men are created equal” except—the “merciless Indian savages.” Yes, it specifically states— “merciless Indian savages.” Those selected words are the centerpiece of our national problems regarding race.

The USA is in existence because the Europeans colonized this land using the Doctrine of Discovery as their free ticket to dehumanize, steal from, enslave, and even commit cultural genocide against indigenous peoples from both the “New World” and Africa. This document written and included in the Papal Bulls (courtesy of the Roman Catholic Church) in 1493 granted European nations that “discovered” non-European lands the right to stake claims in the name of God and country—regardless of any original habitants. The Europeans just “set up camp” 250 years ago here on Native American soil and we who are now minorities help to celebrate “their” freedom even though it was not originally intended for “we the minority people.” Every day Native Americans face the fact that this land, once theirs, was stolen and is so controlled by Euro-Americans.

African- Americans live with the fact that our thriving economy was built on the backs of slaves and that many aspects of the culture typical Americans adopted come from different races and ethnicities. The foundations of America were unjust. Native peoples, Africans, and many other minority communities have long been recipients of systemic racism. The roots of discrimination are there for the world to see, printed in many of our founding documents– like the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution with its many recently added amendments–making things a little more equal (that once were discriminatory). There are days that minorities can and do commemorate—that are as eventful as the 4th of July such as Juneteenth (last month) which marks June 19, 1865, as the official freedom from slavery in Texas and emancipation throughout the South. Mexican Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo, their Independence Day on May 5TH which in 1862 Mexican forces defeated the French armies.

This quote from George Erasmus, a tribal leader from Canada says a lot– “Where common memory is lacking, where people do not share in the same past, there can be no real community. Where community is to be formed, common memory must be created.” Some Native American Tribes such as the Navajo use the 4th of July to honor their Veterans who fought in our wars. Here is a statement from a Shawnee tribal member from Oklahoma: “No, I do not celebrate Independence Day, simply because the Declaration of Independence labels my people “our enemies, the merciless savages of our frontiers.” You notice they were already calling the frontiers “ours” when the land was not theirs. Just because I do not celebrate Independence Day does not mean I am not proud of our Native American veterans and soldiers. I am very proud of them and of the fact almost all Native American families have a family member who is a veteran and/or an active member in the Armed Forces.”