Daily Herald opinion: Celebrating the ‘democratic project’: Illinois kicks off impressive plan for America’s 250th birthday

Your focus right now is probably on the approaching holiday season, but plans are underway to celebrate a major milestone next summer on the most American of holidays — the nation’s 250th birthday on July 4.

At a press conference Wednesday, Gov. JB Pritzker and others highlighted events and initiatives of Illinois’ yearlong celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. It’s an impressive, inclusive project, one that embraces the diversity of our state and the breadth of its history.

As our Marni Pyke reported, the Illinois America 250 Commission’s plans and partners will commemorate the occasion across the state, with 93 communities participating thus far and many museums and cultural sites hosting special exhibits and performances.

A number of suburban sites and individuals already have signed on, including Naper Settlement in Naperville, the Addison Historical Museum, the village of Winfield, Schaumburg Township Library and the Elgin History Museum in partnership with the Hispanic Heritage Project. And we encourage other communities and organizations to join the effort now, while there is still time to plan.

Among the many initiatives will be a passport program to encourage Illinoisans to visit historic sites, a youth art contest, public art projects, a statewide volunteering push and the Elgin project’s feature-length documentary and traveling exhibit focusing on Hispanic immigration. Illinois’ celebration also acknowledges the years before 1776, highlighting the stories of Native Americans.

In announcing Illinois’ plans and looking back on the nation’s history, Pritzker said that beliefs in equality and liberty were common, “but it was rarely said out loud anywhere in the world before these rebels put it into their declaration.”

“Illinois has been central to this democratic project,” he added. “From early native America tribes to the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement to today. Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama and Ida B. Wells — the story of Illinois has always been the story of America.”

There’s no question that the stories of Illinois and the federal government have taken markedly different routes in the past year. And the current direction of “this democratic project” in Washington, D.C., has many of us deeply concerned.

But that’s all the more reason to revisit the Founding Fathers’ vision, to acknowledge the full span of our history and to honor those who played a part in the American journey.

And Pritzker is right: Illinois — the Land of Lincoln — has a pivotal role in that tale.

If your town hasn’t started planning for next year’s 250th birthday, encourage officials there to do so — or launch an effort on your own. Flag-filled parades and expanded fireworks displays are one way to mark the milestone, but as the plans laid out Wednesday show, there are many others.

Let’s make our 250th year a great one.