Today we celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday. In a moment when our federal government is undermining basic American ideals – pluralism, due process, democracy – many of us struggle to articulate a patriotism that we can feel and own.
This afternoon, I had the honor of attending a naturalization ceremony at the Seattle Center, where 252 new citizens took their oath of allegiance. It was a moving reminder that the “American Dream” is alive and well. America has always been a country where people from the far reaches of the Earth come to seek refuge and opportunity and to build up, often from nothing, a life and a future for themselves and their children.
But reaching toward a better future is our national identity in more ways than one. America has always been propelled to progress through its contradictions: a new nation declaring liberty an inalienable right, when some people were enslaved by others; a democracy in which fewer than half its citizens could vote; a country of vast and growing wealth built on impoverished and exploited labor. For 250 years, social movements and remarkable leaders and ordinary people have fought to close the space between America’s ideals and their lived reality.
This story of collective striving is as central to our history and identity as the individual striving for opportunity and advancement. In this time when it feels like we’re losing ground, let’s celebrate the profound patriotism of all those who have dedicated and sometimes sacrificed their lives in this struggle. There is nothing more American than fighting for our country to become a better version of itself. Happy Independence Day, 2026!