海角大神

Can a divided US celebrate its 250th together?

Preparations to celebrate the 250th anniversary of America鈥檚 independence, from small-town parades to and , have been in the works for years. But to many Americans tuning in now, the impression is of a last-minute scramble to mount a semiquincentennial stamped by the showmanship and preferences of President Donald Trump.

In recent weeks, , then canceled, a series of concerts on the National Mall after several artists dropped out. Contractors are building booths for a fair on the Mall that is supposed to invoke the grandeur of the 1893 Chicago World鈥檚 Fair but has yet to generate buzz.

The most visible symbol of a major celebration in Washington is erected on the South Lawn of the White House. On Sunday, which is Flag Day and Mr. Trump鈥檚 80th birthday, it will illuminate an eight-sided cage for a scheduled night of bouts organized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship before an invited audience of mostly military personnel.

UFC has for mixed martial arts. But聽 found only 16% of adults considered it appropriate to hold UFC fights at the White House. Even among Republicans, only 31% said it was appropriate.

Many celebratory events this summer could still prove unifying. Many states and localities will be hosting their own events to bring people together. There鈥檚 also the men鈥檚 soccer World Cup that the United States is jointly hosting with Mexico and Canada over the next month, which will offer a largely politics-free diversion.聽And against a backdrop of partisan rancor, economic uncertainty, and war in the Middle East, celebrating America鈥檚 250th in a way that pleased everyone was perhaps always a tall order.

Standing outside the Smithsonian Metro station near the National Mall, Georgia resident Pete Nelson says he hadn鈥檛 been thinking about the 250th anniversary until just a few days ago, while on a trip to Manhattan with his 12-year-old son, Dale. The two of them visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, which was America鈥檚 most active immigration station in the early 1900s.

鈥淭o see what all the immigrants went through coming into this country originally, and then listening to what we kind of complain about today 鈥� like, it鈥檚 slightly irrelevant,鈥� he says. The best way to celebrate the 250th, he offers, is to 鈥渢ry to learn as much of the history as you can.鈥�

A flotilla of ships

When the U.S. celebrated its bicentennial in 1976, the signature event , passing a newly refurbished Statue of Liberty. Operation Sail featured ships from 34 countries, including an Italian Navy sailboat聽鈥� the 聽鈥撀爊amed for the explorer from whose name America is derived. An estimated 6 million people watched the maritime parade. (The same nonprofit organizers are mounting .)

Back then, the nation also felt fractious, stressed, and war-weary, says Marc Stein, a historian at San Francisco State University and author of 鈥淏icentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970s.鈥� Crime was up. Energy prices were high. New York City, the flotilla鈥檚 host, had become a byword for urban dysfunction and debt. Some questioned whether it was even safe for Operation Sail.

President Gerald Ford, who had assumed office in 1974聽after Richard Nixon resigned over Watergate, was among those who 鈥渉oped to use the bicentennial to 鈥榯urn the page鈥� and 鈥榖egin a new chapter鈥� with a patriotic and unifying celebration,鈥� says Professor Stein via email. They largely succeeded, and many still remember the parties and parades held across the country.

This year, Charleston, South Carolina, is pulling out all the stops for the 250th: will cap an evening of music, speeches, and cultural performances. It鈥檚 one of five host cities for 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Block Party,鈥� that kicks off in New York on the night of July 3. South Carolina has even issued a new license plate that proclaims 鈥淲here the Revolutionary War Was Won.鈥�

Tom Bolling, a retired tech executive who lives in Charleston, remembers the spirit of 1976. He was studying in Paris, where he attended a bicentennial concert by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. As he reflects on that memory and the global image of America today, he starts to choke up.

鈥淭he rest of the world at that time looked at this 200-year-old republic and said what a wonder it was,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 not the sentiment today. Now, it鈥檚 a big bully.鈥�

Dueling commemorative committees

Some fault Mr. Trump both for politicizing the anniversary and creating confusion by setting up an organization, Freedom 250, that is operating separately from the bipartisan commission Congress created in 2016 to oversee the commemorations. The congressionally appointed entity, known as the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, even before Mr. Trump鈥檚 return to the White House 鈥� reflecting the broader challenge of finding common ground in a divided country, whose citizens Overcoming that distrust to retell a national story that ties the revolutionary spirit of 1776 to the present and future would challenge any political leader.

Throughout his career in politics, Mr. Trump has evinced relatively little interest either in historical narratives or lofty unifying rhetoric, in contrast to previous presidents who leaned into set-piece oratory. 鈥� to the past, writes Yale historian Samuel Moyn. 鈥淗e is a nationalist with little romantic investment in those who first launched the nation; to the extent that he鈥檚 nostalgic, it seems to be for the 1950s or the 1890s 鈥� not the 1770s.鈥�

Mina Dixon hadn鈥檛 followed the 250th buildup in Washington, which she visited this week as a tourist, though she plans to attend some concerts in her home city of Philadelphia. But when she tried to take a photograph of the White House, the UFC arena on the South Lawn got in the way, much to her irritation. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a waste of money,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e in Iran, and we鈥檝e got a fight at the White House.鈥� (According to organizers, the UFC is covering the $60 million-plus cost to stage the event.)

In addition to the UFC event, 聽in Washington in August. Initiatives outside the Beltway include the deployment of six mobile museums, or 鈥淔reedom Trucks,鈥� that are crossing the country that emphasizes its 鈥淛udeo-海角大神鈥� roots. The museums , whose leadership is close to Mr. Trump.

Mr. Trump has criticized the Smithsonian Institution and other cultural organizations that, in his telling, downplay America鈥檚 triumphs while magnifying negative chapters of its history. Over the past year, his administration has ordered national parks to remove offending exhibits, including a display 聽in Philadelphia about the lives of Black people he enslaved. A federal court ordered the restoration of the exhibit; the administration is appealing.

On the National Mall, tall fences and gates currently direct visitors away from the central grassy strip where the Great American State Fair is under construction. All 50 states and several overseas territories have been allocated space to build temporary booths, to participate, citing costs and logistics. Piles of wood and massive boxes are stacked high. On a nearby building, a large banner proclaims 鈥�250 years of freedom,鈥� flanked by images of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington.

Mark and Allison Karnes, who are checking out the activity on the Mall while visiting their daughter in Washington, say they鈥檒l be back home barbecuing in Muskegon, Michigan, on the Fourth of July. To them, the Trump presidency has made the 250th anniversary feel anything but uplifting.

鈥淚t鈥檚 so political instead of just a celebration of joy,鈥� says Ms. Karnes. 鈥淲e need to be celebrating our country and not a political agenda.鈥�

Trust in the system

While dark clouds hovered over 1976鈥檚 bicentennial, one key difference is that the public back then was upbeat about its ability to weather the storm, says Kevin Boyle, a historian at Northwestern University. Instead of feeling defeated by the country鈥檚 setbacks, including its retreat from Vietnam and the revelations about the Nixon presidency, many believed that America was uniquely capable of overcoming them.

In a Gallup poll taken in 1976, 4 out of 5 respondents said they had a 鈥済reat deal鈥� or 鈥渇air amount鈥� of trust in the U.S. system to handle its political, social, and economic problems. Another poll found that 77% thought America had lived up to the ideals of the Founding Fathers. This confidence made the divisions of 1976 seem less insurmountable, because voters felt that 鈥渢he system actually worked in a way they just don鈥檛 feel anymore,鈥� says Professor Boyle.

It wasn鈥檛 all clear sailing: who organized their own marches and rallies. Many Americans 鈥渨ere painfully aware of the gaps between the ideals [of freedom] that were being celebrated ... and the realities of the past and present,鈥� says Professor Stein.

Similar gaps loom today for Joan Davis-Wright, a Black veteran and retired high school history teacher who was on the National Mall this week. She doesn鈥檛 feel like celebrating the 250th anniversary under a president who she says is undermining the Constitution by weakening voting rights, pushing partisan redistricting, and removing memorials 鈥渢o people of color that have fought in every war since we started as a nation.鈥�

鈥淲e鈥檙e supposed to come together and love everybody [for the 250th],鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd he鈥檚 just not showing love. I think it鈥檚 all about him.鈥�

At Charleston Harbor鈥檚 Battery, where cannons still point seaward, Ray Wright, a road builder, has three rods in the water, baited with shrimp. 鈥淏irthday?鈥� he asks when quizzed about America鈥檚 250th. 鈥淲hat birthday?鈥�

He hasn鈥檛 paid attention to the anniversary, mostly because U.S. history doesn鈥檛 interest him. But also because 鈥淚t feels like that鈥檚 someone else鈥檚 history,鈥� says Mr. Wright, who is Black.

He鈥檒l likely be on hand for the fireworks on the Fourth, though, if only because they鈥檒l light up the night above his fishing spot at the Battery.

Simon Montlake reported from Boston, Caitlin Babcock from Washington, and Patrik Jonsson from Charleston, South Carolina.