As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence this weekend with baseball, barbecues, trips to the beach, and even a World Cup tournament, local residents say a celebration of patriotism is proving complicated.
Political ideologies have splintered voters. Conflict in the Middle East is resonating worldwide. Gas prices have jumped to four-year highs, and while the unemployment rate ticked down in June, wage increases aren’t keeping up with inflation.
“A lot of people are thinking, ‘Do we have anything to celebrate?’” said Katherine Huppert of Hunter, outside Tannersville’s Dollar General store. “At this point, I think both sides, whether you’re left, whether you’re right, we’ve all been disappointed in the last, I would say, at least 10 years.”
Others, like U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Nathan Hendrick, 43, of Hurley, were more optimistic.
“Yes,” the nation has a reason to celebrate, he said on Thursday, days before deploying on a monthlong mission to Papua New Guinea.
“We’ve accomplished so much in the amount of time that the country has been in existence,” he said, striking a patriotic pose in uniform in front of an American flag at the Stewart’s in Hurley.
Nicole Roessner, 36, of Saugerties, was planning a family barbecue with hamburger meat from Smokehouse of the Catskills in Veteran, which is partly owned by her husband, John.
While America should be celebrating, “I do believe that we have become very divisive as a nation,” she said outside Sawyer Ice Cream Co. in Saugerties. “I don’t think we should be. It’s turned into politics instead of celebrating the freedom and democracy we do have. I think politics should stay out of it.”
Even so, “We should be celebrating the nation that we are,” she said. “This is the place we live.”
Patty Smith, 71, of Phoenicia, said Americans should be proud of the country’s 250 years.
“We’re America,” she said outside Phoenicia’s post office. “We’re strong.”
Yet even Smith had a caveat. Asked what the Founding Fathers would think of the state of the nation, she replied, “They would cry.”
Samuel Butcher, 49, of Boiceville, was more direct. Asked while awaiting a bus at the IGA in Boiceville whether the U.S. had anything to celebrate, his reply was succinct: “No.”
Edward Dyjak of Windham, a U.S. citizen and native of Poland who fled Soviet rule four decades ago, said the U.S. should celebrate because of “its very important history.”
“The U.S. is still powerful,” he said.
Jake Jamison, 54, of Woodstock, took a big-picture approach.
“Every day is a gift, every day is a celebration, every day is a blessing,” Jamison said outside the Bank of Greene County in Woodstock. “If you’re lucky to be alive, then there’s hope.”
Photography by Michael Sofronski for The Overlook.
John W. Barry is a reporter for The Overlook. Reach him at john@theoverlooknews.com.
