Dear Friend,
Independence Day is meant to underscore our personal freedoms and serves as an opportunity to learn and reflect beyond annual cookouts and booming fireworks.
Today we hold space for our country’s history and acknowledge not only the liberties we have, but the ones we have lost or are at risk of losing, too.
When the Declaration of Independence stated “all men are created equal” and entrusted with the rights of “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” this vision did not initially apply to Black or indigenous people nor women or those without property.
As we acknowledge Independence Day, we are simultaneously confronted with troubling realities on voter suppression, attacks on democracy, LGBTQ+ equality and reproductive rights. The recent legislative session in Florida coupled with this summer’s SCOTUS decisions have set many of our rights back, too.
In these moments of stress and uncertainty, it is easy to slip into a spiral of doubt and hopelessness. However, it is essential we stand together now as a community to reinforce our shared values and lead with empathy and hope over despair and fear.
Independence Day is a reminder of the work leaders before us have done to achieve true freedom for all, as well as the work still in front of us. It’s a reminder of how the pursuit for happiness is a constant struggle only accomplished through consistent persistence and endless solidarity alongside those yearning to be free.
We invite you this holiday to recognize Independence Day across Central Florida in ways that are meaningful to you. Click here for a few local events, and click here for information on today’s rally.
Onward,
Rep. Anna V. Eskamani