All posts tagged: Independence

Jefferson, Independence, and Slavery | Annette Gordon-Reed, Fintan O’Toole

Jefferson, Independence, and Slavery | Annette Gordon-Reed, Fintan O’Toole

Published by Jenni Sidey

In the first episode of Endgame with Fintan O’Toole, the Review’s newest podcast, O’Toole welcomes Annette Gordon-Reed, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning history The Hemingses of Monticello, for a conversation about Thomas Jefferson, the legacy of slavery in the United States, the original preamble to the Declaration of Independence, and the fate of the Voting Rights Act.  Click the “Subscribe” link in the player above to follow this podcast on your favorite listening platform. Annette Gordon-Reed has been a frequent contributor to The New York Review for the last ten years. Her Pulitzer-Prize winning The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family revised our understanding of Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with Sally Hemings, and her pieces in the Review have ranged from W.E.B. Du Bois to Hillary Clinton to the history of Texas. She is the Carl M. Loeb University Professor at Harvard. Her latest book is Jefferson on Race: A Reader. New episodes from Endgame’s first season will appear every Tuesday, and will be available on all major podcast platforms. Visit here to subscribe. Source link

July 4th fireworks livestreams: See the best Independence Day fireworks live

July 4th fireworks livestreams: See the best Independence Day fireworks live

Published by Miika Tikkanen

Happy 4th of July, America. This year’s Independence Day celebrations are a little extra special as we celebrate the United States of America’s 250th birthday. Across the country, many people will spend the day at the beach or at a barbecue, capping the night off with a fireworks display. But, if you’re spending the night indoors, there are still plenty of ways to celebrate with an array of July 4th fireworks livestreams. Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks  Perhaps the most well-known of the Independence Day celebrations is the Macy’s 4th of July fireworks. If you live in NYC, you can catch them live. Otherwise, you can tune into NBC or Peacock at 8 p.m. on July 4th to watch the show. While the U.S. is celebrating its 250th, Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks is also celebrating a milestone with its 50th anniversary this year. PBS’s America Made in Virginia: 250 Years Together While many of the livestream options on this list will require a paid subscription to a particular streaming platform, PBS is airing its …

Declaration of Independence copy seized by British in 1776 uncovered in London

Declaration of Independence copy seized by British in 1776 uncovered in London

Published by Sam Flores

LONDON — A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence lost for 250 years has been discovered in London, where it is the only known example of its kind outside the U.S. Limited time: Save 25% on NBC News subscription Get exclusive reporting, live Q&As and ad-free reading. Printed in Exeter, New Hampshire, just days after the Declaration was adopted on July 4, 1776, the document was intended to spread news of American independence throughout the American colonies. The early copy remained tucked away in Britain’s National Archives until a volunteer cataloging records from the American Revolutionary War came across it in May among the papers of Royal Navy captains. Only 11 copies of the so-called Exeter printing are known to survive, and until this discovery, none had been found outside the U.S., Britain’s National Archives said in a news release Thursday. The copy of the “Exeter Declaration” found at the National Archives.The National Archives The Declaration was among a collection of papers the Royal Navy seized in December 1776 after it captured the American …

The Brits Should Declare Their Independence, Too

The Brits Should Declare Their Independence, Too

Published by Jenni Sidey

Authored by J.B. Shurk via American Thinker, British tyranny is globalism, and globalism must be destroyed. British tyranny is so repulsive that the British people owe it to themselves to overthrow their government masters.  It has been two-hundred-fifty years since America’s Declaration of Independence recognized the Crown system as a threat to Americans’ lives and liberties.  English-speaking peoples still suffering under the British yoke should follow suit. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a near-total ban on social media for children under sixteen years old.  Ten of the most popular social media platforms are now age-restricted, with the toxic-leftist Bluesky platform a notable exception.  The government claims to be “protecting children” from online harm.  That’s a lie.  If the British government cared about protecting British children, government ministers and police forces would not have covered up Islamic rape gangs targeting children for three-plus decades.  The British government would not censor online reporting of foreigners murdering young Brits.  The British government has systematically chosen to sacrifice the United Kingdom’s children. This online “safety” measure must be understood, then, as a ruse meant to expand the government’s control over online information.  Australia, New …

5 new quarters commemorate 250 years of American independence

5 new quarters commemorate 250 years of American independence

Published by Jenni Sidey

Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. While we’ve said goodbye to both the year 2025 and the penny, five new United States quarters will be finding their way into your pocket soon enough. The designs of each new quarter will honor the country’s 250th anniversary (aka its semiquincentennial). According to a press release from the U.S. Mint, the coins “commemorate 250 years of American Liberty by reflecting our country’s founding principles and honoring our Nation’s history.” They will only be available this year, which almost assuredly means they will be collector’s items in the future. Each will also be engraved with two dates: 1776–2026. Typically coins only bear the year in which they were minted, not two dates. In December 2025, the original designs for the “America 250” coins were abandoned and replaced with ones that commemorate some of the country’s founding documents and presidents. The original quarters approved by two official committees in 2024 honored Black Abolition, Women’s Suffrage, and Civil Rights, but were scrapped by …

How the timber rattlesnake became a symbol of American independence

How the timber rattlesnake became a symbol of American independence

Published by Jenni Sidey

Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of American colonies declaring their independence from Great Britain. One of the most enduring symbols of those “times that try men’s souls” is the bright yellow Gadsden flag. With its coiled timber rattlesnake, emblazoned with the infamous words “Dont treat on me” (without the apostrophe), the cryptic reptile slithered its way into the American imagination long before the bald eagle. “The next time you see a rattlesnake, or hear its warning rattle, consider it a reminder,” the United States Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) wrote in a recent blog post. “A reminder of where we came from and a reminder that American symbols don’t always soar. Sometimes, they rattle.” For American colonists, the snake became a symbol to leave them alone or face consequences. Benjamin Franklin even praised the rattler because while it never strikes first, it does not back down. Even before the Gadsden flag, Franklin published a 1754 cartoon in his Pennsylvania Gazette showing …