18 letter writers sound off on what America means to them
Wisconsin State Journal readers have sent in many letters to the editor about what America's 250th birthday means to them. You can join the conversations by sending your own letter to wsjopinion@madison.com.
(19) updates to this series since
In this 250th birthday year for our country, I am profoundly grateful to have grown up in this remarkable land. I am also extremely proud of what America represents and what we have accomplished.
As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, this moment should be more than a celebration. It is a time for reflection, education and renewed civic purpose. Few nations reach a quarter of a millennium without challenges and reinvention. America is defined not by perfection, but by its enduring commitment to liberty, opportunity and self-government -- even amid competing ideas and interests.
We’re living in the 250th year since our nation's creation. This is an amazing accomplishment when you consider how radical, dangerous and fragile the circumstances surrounding its birth were.
We celebrate America’s 250th anniversary this year. It should be with glorious pride that we celebrate our country’s birthday, but instead we are in full panic.
America has been my home for all of my years. Things can get messy, but eventually the dust clears.
As a child with both colonial and more recent immigrant roots, I was told America meant the freedom to be whoever I wanted to be if I worked hard. That view is tempered by the reality of a variety of "-isms" that built roadblocks and broke promises.
As we celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday, we the people should consider our origins, recognize how far we’ve come and focus on our future.
I miss the America we had just a few years ago, in which we were trying to improve our society, not set it back.
When people asked me years ago what I did in the Peace Corps in northeast Brazil in the 1970s, I said my job was being a nutrition educator. But what I really did was I get grateful for things I took for granted: public schools, libraries and transportation.
The Statue of Liberty is a revered symbol of America. It is our welcome for those who see this country as an opportunity for a better life. She has overseen the arrival of millions who have made valuable contributions to the progress, security and comfort we enjoy.
What does our country’s 250th birthday mean to me?
As we prepare to celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday, it’s important to reflect on how this grand experiment in governance began and what it has accomplished. However imperfect, it’s the best example of government of the people, by the people and for the people that has ever and likely will ever exist.
Celebrating America's 250th anniversary is truly a milestone and a special time to remember our unique heritage and be grateful for our many blessings.
July 4 is our celebration of freedom. At our founding, freedom meant freedom from a colonial oppressor, England. But 250 years later, it has come to mean all those freedoms we enjoy, notably freedom of speech and religion.
I believe most Americans can rightly celebrate our country’s 250th birthday because this country has proven to be one of the world’s sturdiest examples of democracy.
The Declaration of Independence was only the beginning, not the end, of the fight for our freedom. The bloody Revolutionary War cemented our independence from the British Empire five years later at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781.
We have so much to be grateful for as we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary. We’ve built a nation -- a superpower -- from scratch, based on the idea that we can govern ourselves.
This Saturday, on the 250th anniversary of our nation's founding, we should reflect on the ideals expressed in our Declaration of Independence, a proclamation of our freedom from monarchy and our commitment to self-government. We are now living in a pseudo-monarchy with a president, Donald Trump, who tramples our freedoms, disregards our Constitution and threatens our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
In this 250th birthday year for our country, I am profoundly grateful to have grown up in this remarkable land. I am also extremely proud of what America represents and what we have accomplished.
