Each July 4, Americans both at home and abroad, gather to celebrate. Under skies ablaze with fireworks, on streets lined with youngsters waiting for candy from passing floats or simply standing with family in front of grills smelling of seared burgers and hot dogs, we celebrate. We celebrate and remember the formation of a nation founded on the then unheard of idea of freedom. Each community, family and individual has their own traditions passed from one generation to the next. But beyond the music of the high school marching bands, the decorated bicycles and the blaring sirens of firetrucks as they crawl down our main streets, there lies something deeper … something more profound. Those 56 men could scarcely imagine their heroic actions on that hot July day in Philadelphia’s Pennsylvania State House, today known as Independence Hall, would create: the most powerful republic in history.

But as Spider-Man’s Uncle Ben once said, “With great power, comes great responsibility.” The Declaration of Independence, today as much as it did 250 years ago, serves as a reminder of the enduring responsibility that comes with liberty.

Jefferson’s writing was more than a political document. It was a statement of principle — that all people are created equal and deserve the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Those ideals were revolutionary then, and they remain powerful today. Of course, the American story has never been perfect. At the time the Declaration was signed not all people were considered equal. Roughly 20 percent of the population of the colonies were slaves, people considered less than equal and denied those very rights the signers felt so passionate about. It would take nearly 100 years and a horrific war to abolish that concept. And he ripple effects still being felt.

America has faced and endured, division, economic depression, injustice and hardships that tested and continue to test the very meaning of democracy. But our strength as a nation has always come from the ability to strive toward a “more perfect union.” Progress has often been difficult and is still not complete, yet each generation carries the responsibility of moving the country forward.

If you read the editorial pages and even letters to the editor in this very newspaper, you’ll find many who fear our nation is headed down a perilous path. That the very idea of democracy is being threatened. But on this Independence Day let’s remember, the Fourth of July is not merely a celebration of history. The Declaration is also a call to us living in America in 2026. Patriotism a living and constantly evolving concept. Is not measured solely by waving a flag or singing an anthem. True patriotism means participating in democracy, respecting one another, protecting freedoms, and working to ensure that opportunity exists for everyone.

In a time when political disagreements often overshadow any common ground we may have with our neighbors and even within our own families, Independence Day offers us a chance to reflect on what unites Americans rather than what divides us. Those freedoms that were outlined 15 years after the declaration was signed — among them, freedom of speech, the right to vote, equal justice under the law, and the ability to pursue dreams remain values worth protecting. But more importantly they’re worth protecting together.

As fireworks light the night, flags wave and parades pass by, please remember both the sacrifices that built this country and the responsibilities that are needed to sustain it.

Happy Independence Day.