Champaign Freedom Celebration 2013

Independence
Yesterday, July the 4th, we celebrated Independence Day. We were one of the first nations to name a day disconnected from any religious tradition, but devoted solely to our national identity. Unlike France's Bastille Day, to name one, ours does not celebrate a battle or a military victory, but a parlaimentary motion to approve a document.

In June, Richard Henry Lee submitted a resolution the Continental Congress to declare independence from the British Empire. Many of the delegates had not been given approval to vote for independence by their states, so the Congress decided to the let the situation marinate. In the meantime, they appointed the Committee of Five, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson, to draft a document justifying independence. Since the heavyweights in the committee were occupied by pressing work in more important committees, the work of drafting the document was shuffled down to the most junior member, the shy, lanky ginger nobody really knew, Jefferson. No one expected much from the declaration. Jefferson needed to slap some words on paper for filing purposes. Instead, he wrote one of the most brilliant and politically radical philosophical treatises in history.

Friday, June 28th (that's right, the 2013 calendar syncs up with the 1776 calendar), the Committee of Five presented Jefferson's declaration to the Congress. They spent the weekend chugging hard cider and haggling in back rooms and on Monday, July 1st, debates over Lee's resolution and Jefferson's document began in earnest. On Tuesday, the political ducks were in a row and the Congress approved Lee's resolution from the month before. The United Colonies were independent of the British Empire. John Adams went home and wrote to Abigail:

The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

After haggling over wording (about slavery) on Wednesday, the Congress voted to approve the final handwritten copy of the document (dated July 4th) on Thursday and they rushed it off to the printers. Historians disagree about who signed it when, but most agree that the final signed copy on display at the national archives was drafted (and signed by Hancock) sometime after July 19. The majority of delegates didn't append their signatures until August.

Independence wasn't a reality until Cornwallis' surrender in 1781 and the subsequent Treaty of Paris in 1783, but in early July 1776, the idea, long incubated, was born: the idea of a government instituted by the governed to ensure the inalienable rights of its citizens. And that's what we celebrated yesterday.

Three Point One
To celebrate, we ran the Freedom 5k.

Of course, we needed patriotic attire for the run, so we bought some 2013 Flag Shirts from Old Navy.

It started and ended in a grove of sycamores in front of Assembly Hall.

Here's the Before Picture (see how happy and naive we look):

And the After (see the exhaustion):

For the weary runners, watermelon:

After the race we met up with Sebastian.

His usual workout takes him on 10 mile runs. So, while we were happy that we came in under 30 minutes, he seemed ambivalent about coming in under 20. We consoled ourselves with a fattening breakfast of eggs, potatoes, and pancakes at Le Peep.

Fireworks
Even though the Freedom Celebration took place only half a mile from our apartment, we decided to drive, so we wouldn't have to carry our chairs that far. We were still tired. We ran a lot that morning. However, when we reached the parking lot, we realized it was about the same distance in the other direction. So we drove back home and walked anyway.

The festivities were set up on Stadium Terrace, a huge green area across from Assembly Hall. They had bounce houses for the kiddos, food vendors, and a 60s and 70s cover band. The band was pretty good when they were singing. Sometimes between songs, they made jokes. They weren't funny.

We arrived early and brought books. We wanted to enjoy the music, the weather, and some cold beverages from Friar Tuck's while we read and waited for the sun to set. However, the booth wasn't Friar Tuck's, local liquor store, it was Fryer Tuck's, local purveyor of fried foods. I looked around at the coolers brought from home and the dads furtively pouring their beers into nondescript plastic cups and I realized I had misjudged the situation. So I trekked off campus and bought beers and a cooler from Walgreens. Aine hassled the Fryer Tuck's staff for two plastic cups. Then we moved our chairs to the middle of the field, far from the roving police officers.

By that time, it was too dark to read. The sun was setting.

Shortly before the start of the fireworks, I had to go to one of the Port-a-Pottys to release some of the beer. I am generally horrified at the thought of public restrooms, so when exiting the little wigwam of feces, I took a generous helping of hand sanitizer. On the walk back, I found the hand sanitizer was taking an unusually long time to rub in. Also, it was strangely fragrant. Also, it foamed the more I rubbed.

I sat down and expressed my bewilderment to Aine.

She said: "You brainless scumbag. That's soap."

Apparently there were little motion activated sinks inside the Port-a-Pottys. I thought they were just really high urinals.

It was too late at that point. A local pastor said a prayer, a local choir sang the Star Spangled Banner, and Champaign Fire Department retired the flag while a bagpiper played Taps. Then the explosions began.

The first fireworks celebration for July 4th took place in Boston in 1777. So, when you watch fireworks on the 4th, you're participating in our second oldest national tradition. The first oldest is complaining about taxes.

Here are the obligatory blurry fireworks pictures.

Parting Shot
We were a stop on the Wedding Victory Tour!