Over 250 years ago, Great Britian was, quite simply, making life miserable for the 13 colonies. The Continental Congress convened to express grievances and appeal to Parliament. Their requests were not well received. The Continental Congress drafts and signs the Declaration of Independence and “Viola!”. The United States is born.  The rest is history. Right? We can only celebrate this 250th milestone because the colonists won the war with Britain. I can’t imagine the punishment they would have suffered from Britain if they hadn’t. And if the colonists had not won, how many more rebellions would it have taken to get us to where we are today? Would we ever have gotten here? 250 years later, we could still be living in a state of unrest. And think about how smart our forefathers were in setting up our democracy. How well they worked together to hammer out a document that only includes 4,400 words that sets up a government that has withstood the test of time. It’s only been amended 27 times in 230 years. Is the Constitution easy to amend? No. In some instances, it has taken rioting and bloodshed to get things to change. But it can be done through the people who vote for our elected officials. Is our democracy perfect? Also no. There seems to be a lot of ugliness between those with different political views. But, I think, this has always been the case. We are just in a day and age where we are more aware of what is being said. Alot of things have changed in 250 years. You have to remember what was common and socially accepted then is not now. These white, male, slave owners risked being punished for treason because they had a vision for a brighter future. For us. Celebrate how far we have come, where we are today, and where we are heading. Here’s to another 250!

Have a safe 4th of July!

Erin Hensel

Auxiliary President