Celebrate America like a Philadelphian
Celebrate America like a Philadelphian
Nosotros are the place where freedom first rang out. Nosotros can exist the best at it
Jul. 04, 2019
Next fourth dimension you have the risk, take a walk over to Independence Hall, to the foursquare behind the old building, and pause for a minute to consider where you are: On that spot, nearly 250 years ago, Col. John Nixon outset read aloud the Annunciation of Independence to a oversupply gathered together by the ringing of the Liberty Bong four days later information technology was ratified, on the 4th of July.
It is an awesome and inspiring piece of Philadelphia history that it behooves us all to remember every once in a while. Yes, this city—like the country it helped to found—is often frustrating, worrisome, caitiff, irascible and a mess. Information technology is also the place where brilliant minds continue to solve problems (like, say, cancer), gather forces for good, create beautiful and moving art, build businesses and nonprofits that help people, innovate to save the planet—piece of work to change the world, really.
Similar that day in 1776, we have a long style to become to secure the freedoms nosotros need. Merely we tin kickoff by being the best American metropolis in the best America we can mayhap have—an America worth fighting for now every bit much as 250 years ago. It's been a hard year for America, but in many ways a hopeful one when you look at what our beau Philadelphians have done:
- While the refugee ending continues to unfold at America's southern border, James Pittman and Jeremy Peskin's 3-year-old startup, Borderwise, makes information technology cheap and easy to make full out complex citizenship paperwork—and only charges many Dreamers $1. Groups like the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians and HIAS work to resettle refugees locally and to aid immigrants with language, chore and instruction access. Both groups, and other similar organizations in neighborhoods all over town, demand volunteers to help new Americans notice their way to making a new domicile in Philly.
- Abbe Stern of Fooding Forwards, Evan Ehlers of Sharing Excess, and Megan Kulshreshtha of Food Connect all saw food existence wasted in a city where one in four people goes hungry. And then they stepped up to course nonprofits that work to connect backlog food to those who need information technology. Go hither , hither and here to see how you can help their efforts. Or, see what Philabundance is doing in your community, and how you can assist the region's largest hunger-fighting arrangement.
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- James Gaddy teaches yoga to students in Camden schools. Barbara Allen turns Philly school kids' artwork into valuable collectibles. David Bradley at LiveConnections and Ezechial Thurman at Colina-Freedman Globe Academy worked with students to record an album inspired by the Sound of Philadelphia. You lot don't take to be one of Philly's amazing teachers to practise for kids. Here are some ways yous can go involved, besides.
- Lisa Lord, Kelly Croce Sorg, and Erica Bleznak recognized that racial justice needed to beginning with people like them—white women. Along with Aurora Archer, they started x,000 White Women: Doing the Piece of work to beginning talking about racism in their communities and their lives. Fairness, equity, justice—all of it begins with each of united states of america. You can start by reading the book that inspired 10,000 White Women, White Fragility: Why It's And then Hard For White People To Talk About Racism.
- Lorene Cary, Thomas Quinn and a whole host of Philadelphians spent the terminal year working to get xviii-year-olds registered to vote—which helped to bring vii,000 new voters to the polls last November. And they're gearing up to do information technology again. You can do your function by voting in November, and again next May; past making certain your neighbors and family are registered; or fifty-fifty by joining the movement to secure 16-year-olds the right to vote.
- Madeleine Dean, Chrissy Houlahan, Susan Wild, Mary Gay Scanlon. Those are the four women who upped—by 4!—the number of women representing Pennsylvania in Congress when they won their elections last November. Helen Gym was the peak vote getter in the primary this twelvemonth, in a field brimful with women candidates all up and down the ballot. About 100 years after suffragette, women in Pennsylvania are finally—finally!—starting to hold political function in numbers that are non (equally) shameful. You can do your function by running for function, supporting women who do, and by voting for policies that make information technology easier for more people to run, vote and atomic number 82.
- Businesses similar Live Life Overnice, rePurpose, Penji, Sapient, and then many others are proving there is a style to do good while doing well. You can practise your part by looking for businesses that fit your values and and then supporting them. Hither's a good place to start.
- Ben Cake and Jason Sandman, a couple of local dads, found fatherhood made the most pressing issue of our time suddenly very real: Climate ending. So they started Climate Dads to inform and get together people to confront the issue and make change. You can bring together their motility, or start one of your own. The world is counting on you.
- Adam Kesselman set up out to solve two issues with Metropolis Vivid: Litter and homelessness. He pays homeless people to aid clean the streets for a couple of hours a week in exchange for $twenty, and a letter of recommendation to help them become jobs. Andrew Freedman, president of the Seger Park Canis familiaris Owners Association, launched "dogplogging" to encourage pet owners to pick upward trash while also picking upwards poop. Some fed-up Germantown residents bought their own street cleaning truck. What tin you lot exercise keep the metropolis clean? Simple: Don't litter. Pick up in front end of your house or business. And tell the City to do its part.
- Activists—from those urging the feds to shut the camps, to those raising money to support reproductive rights or protesting Planned Parenthood, to those fighting for better gun laws—are doubtless planning some event correct now. Selection an issue and get involved, non necessarily through protest, but with letters, calls, volunteering, and voting. Change doesn't happen from the sidelines.
- Anthony Fedele joined—and now runs—the local chapter of Vets on a Mission as a way to funnel his armed services-honed sense of civic participation. Bring together them on their service projects, or back up veterans as they render dwelling house.
- State Rep. Jared Solomon was the first—and 1 of the only—politicians to call for indicted Urban center Councilman Bobby Henon to resign. He's outraged near the corruption in City Hall—are you? Then follow his lead: Make noise, vote out those who don't care, let your elected officials know that yous want clean authorities.
- College freshman Hadley Ball helped organize a climate march on City Hall in March. Students from Parkway Center City Middle College led the effort to fill the Art Museum steps to describe attending to gun violence in Philly. Penn freshman Jay Falk spent her free time getting her peers to vote. Listen to young people. They intendance, and they should: The futurity is theirs.
Source: https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/celebrate-america-like-a-philadelphian/
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