Pondering America's Civic Season

Musings on freedom and its many meanings

I’m particularly reflective this Independence Day.

There’s a shit-ton going on all around us and it can distract from the significance of the anniversary. It is also the third year of a new American civic season: Juneteenth through July 4.

The two weeks between the Juneteenth and July 4 holidays provide a bookend for a period of reflection on the meaning of independence, a reminder that freedom and democracy is ever-evolving.

This year I’m again reminded that neither the Declaration nor the Constitution that followed applied to enslaved people, women, immigrants, Native Americans, the list goes on. 

Declaration of Independence, oil on canvas by John Trumbull, 1818; in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, Washington, D.C. Architect of the Capitol

Just as we celebrate American independence on July 4, Juneteenth commemorates the beginning of a new concept of freedom for African Americans. And if I’ve learned anything in public history, it’s that commemoration is important. 

But it’s important not to lose sight of why we’re commemorating freedom. And that’s the basis for an annotated playlist I compiled.