Free Republic

Black Lives Matter activists cite Douglass’s 1852 speech ‘What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?’ as proof America is evil. They utterly miss his point. Last week on CNN, as contributor Angela Rye accused White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnaney and President Trump of failing to understand the history of black America, she referred to the legendary Frederick Douglass. “Frederick Douglass said about Independence Day in this country, what to the slave is the Fourth of July?” she said. “And I would invite them to even start there, as a reading principle, to see how different we see...

Hollywood stars took to social media to send messages of doom, gloom, and resistance to President Donald Trump in honor of Independence Day. “To every country on the 4th of July. We’re sorry about our president. He doesn’t reflect all of our views — and we hope you know that the majority of us are ashamed,” wrote former Netflix talk show host Chelsea Handler. “We will rally each other and come back to the world one step at a time. #novemberiscoming #alsosorryabouthotdogs.” Left-wing documentary filmmaker Michael Moore offered a politically-charged message to his six million Twitter followers, “Happy Resistance Day!...

A Pennsylvania woman landed in hot water after a video of her urinating on an American flag on July 4th went viral. The shocking footage, which shows Philadelphia-native Emily Lance using a funnel to pee on a small American flag draped across a toilet seat, was eventually removed from Facebook. However, it has been reposted on multiple pages and can still be seen here (WARNING: viewer discretion is advised.)

The United States Embassy enjoyed its annual 4th of July celebration on Thursday, June 4, one month early, in order to respect the upcoming Ramadhan month, which will begin on June 17 and last for one month. US Ambassador to Indonesia Robert O. Blake and US Ambassador to ASEAN Nina Hachigian presided over the festivities, which involved brass band renditions of the Star-Spangled Banner and the Indonesian national anthem, Indonesia Raya. Blake explained that the theme of the event leaned toward “green” development, which supported the US’ focus on building and promoting a green economy and more environmentally sustainable development....

As we celebrate the Fourth of July, who can argue that our democracy is working the way the Founders intended? And who can deny that most of the blame for dysfunction must fall to the Republican Party? George Washington distrusted all political parties. He warned in his farewell address that, as they alternated power, parties would act in “the spirit of revenge” — rather than, presumably, in the best interests of the nation. The “disorders and miseries” that resulted, Washington feared, would inevitably threaten democracy. Whatever the motivation, Republicans have paralyzed our government in a way that would have shocked...

HGTV viewers are expressing outrage after the network suggested they use American flags as table cloths for Fourth of July celebrations, calling offensive, un-American and an insult to the American military. “Using an American flag as a table cloth dishonors all Americans who love Old Glory – especially those who gave their lives defending it,” one viewer wrote. “No one dies for a table cloth.” The HGTV website featured a segment titled, “Classic Fourth of July Table Setting Ideas.”The photographs show bowls of fruit and a jar of lemonade sitting atop Old Glory. They called the flag an “unconventional table”...