Flags are pictured in grass near a banner depicting a portrait of President Donald Trump, Thursday, on Capitol Hill in Washington. [AP]
The 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America is a very big deal, indeed. The revolution of 1776 which is commemorated on the Fourth of July (when the Declaration of Independence was approved), changed the world. It showed that the subjects of a mighty empire could revolt and establish a self-governing state of free citizens.
Although that freedom did not apply to enslaved people, women, and the original inhabitants of the new state, it inspired people across the globe – in France, Haiti, and Greece, among others. It seems paradoxical that today the country that was the pillar of democracy around the world, the hospitable host of immigrants, and guarantor of the global system of government, should be marking this major anniversary during the second presidency of a man who consciously and persistently undermines the values and practices that America represented and defended.
And yet, perhaps Donald Trump’s presidency is most fitting: Instead of sitting and counting the achievements of the past 250 years, US citizens are called upon to understand that democracy and justice are not a given, that they demand constant vigilance, dedication and determination – they must be protected, and they must adapt. Trump is a daily reminder of the fragility of a civilization’s achievements, of how easily even a mature democracy can slide toward autocracy.
