As the Fourth of July approaches, preparations have been underway for this upcoming weekend celebration across the United States. On top of wasting $14 million worth of taxpayer dollars to renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and cover it with algae, the Trump Administration recently announced a “Tribute to America” rally that will take place at the National Mall. And this year is supposed to be especially notable, as 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The United States is bound to celebrate reaching its semiquincentennial, but given the nation’s current sociopolitical climate, what is there really left to celebrate of a country whose citizens are repeatedly demoralized and disenfranchised? Can Americans truly embrace the patriotic spirit when their President uses their country’s anniversary to further sow division and spew out propaganda to his loyalists?

The main example of the current administration seeking to spark controversy is in the very way it has decided to celebrate the United States. When you try researching upcoming events and projects surrounding Independence Day 2026, you are likely to encounter these two initiatives during your search: America250 and Freedom 250. America250, the earlier of the two, is a nonpartisan nonprofit that was established within the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission by Congress in 2016. Their mission, according to their site, is to “engage every American in commemorating the 250th anniversary of our country,” with the multi-year effort meant to be “an opportunity to pause and reflect on our nation’s past, honor the contributions of all Americans, and look ahead toward the future we want to create for the next generation and beyond.” Sure, that sounds fine, but then you may have a reasonable follow-up question: why, if there was already a nonpartisan project underway to celebrate America, are there two Fourth of July government-driven initiatives showing up on your search-engine results page?

The answer is both egregiously inflammatory and lamentably predictable: Freedom 250 likely only exists because a nonpartisan project doesn’t serve to benefit or boost Trump’s ego. 

When you first open the link to the Freedom 250 site, you are greeted by three images looping in an endlessly rotating carousel banner. The first, a picture of the Washington Monument towering against a backdrop of blazing white fireworks bursting in the night sky, has a “Salute to America 250 Celebration & Fireworks” headline; presumably, this is the main event taking place in the National Mall on July 4th. The second (and my personal favorite): an AI-generated image of Trump glaring at the viewer with his signature squinting frown, standing in front of the White House lawn, which has been transformed into a rickety country fair. The scene is complete with pixelated crowds and a textureless marching band, military aircraft heroically flying overhead, an approximate U.S. flag (with the Freedom 250 logo replacing the fifty stars) waving proudly on the left corner across from the Ferris Wheel and an imitation of France’s famous Arc de Triomphe. The title connected to that image reads, America is Back: A Kick-Off Celebration for the Great American State Fair. Finally, the last component of the carousel is simply emphasizing the “Great American State Fair” again, apparently happening on June 25th. 

By the time you are reading this article, the latter two “celebrations” previously described will have already taken place. But for now, there is little that truly explains what these events entail, only that the Trump Administration is proud to stand behind them. Everywhere you look on the site, there is the glorification of American patriotism: calls to “Celebrate the Triumph of the American Spirit”, an invitation to “Pray for America”, stars and stripes plastered on every other thumbnail, airplanes soaring over Washington, DC landmarks, paintings of George Washington furrowing his brow with noble assertiveness. But all of these visuals are mere display pieces as the Trump Administration continually ignores its plummeting approval rating, works to erase the legacy of Black Americans, violates the dignity of immigrants, endangers the rights and lives of women and LGBTQ+ individuals, among other marginalized communities… The list goes on, and yet the American people are supposed to rejoice about a vapid “celebration” that speaks of the “greatness” of the United States by destroying and demeaning the very people who helped create the country that treats them with hostility. 

This is not to say that you should not have pride in America or your citizenship. But these superficial ceremonies are not, and should not be considered, true representations of what the United States deserves to uplift. I close with this: being patriotic does not mean draping yourself in the stars and stripes while you ignore the harm being done by its leadership, both domestically and on a global scale. To be truly American is to understand the history of the nation, taking into account both its triumphs and its horrors so we can work towards becoming better people who embody the values of liberty and justice that the nation was meant to uphold. So, this coming Fourth of July, consider reflecting on what America means to you—and don’t let a narcissist’s itinerary dictate it for you.