This Fourth of July Feels Different—and We Need to Talk About It

🎇 This Fourth of July Feels Different—and We Need to Talk About It

By a 30-Year Military Veteran

Every year on the Fourth of July, I used to stand a little taller. I believed in the promise of this country because I wore the uniform to defend it—for three decades. I never imagined I’d see a time when I’d feel compelled to say this, but here it is: our independence is being chipped away right in front of us.

I am not a political person. I’ve spent most of my life saluting the flag and believing that no matter how divided our politics became, we’d never lose sight of our shared rights and freedoms. But this year, I can’t stay silent.

Here are some facts—verifiable, documented realities—that show why this Independence Day is unlike any other.

Women’s Rights Are Being Rolled Back

Since the Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022, which overturned Roe v. Wade, women in over 20 states have lost or severely restricted access to abortion care—an unprecedented rollback of rights they had for 50 years. The Supreme Court’s decision returned the power to regulate abortion to individual states, resulting in new bans and severe restrictions.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, millions of women are now forced to carry nonviable pregnancies, endure dangerous medical situations, or travel hundreds of miles for care. That’s not freedom.

Attacks on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

More than 30 states have introduced or passed laws restricting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs in public universities and government agencies. For example, entire offices dedicated to DEI have been shut down in Texas and Florida, affecting everything from anti-discrimination training to the recruitment of underrepresented students.

Education Week reports that these measures are part of a broader effort to limit discussions about race, gender, and history. When you eliminate DEI, you’re telling millions of Americans that their experiences and identities don’t matter.

Medicare and Medicaid Under Threat

Despite being the backbone of healthcare for over 150 million Americans, Medicare and Medicaid have faced repeated proposals for cuts or funding rollbacks.

In 2023, the House Budget Committee advanced plans to raise the Medicare eligibility age and cap Medicaid spending. At the same time, the “Medicaid unwinding” process after the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency led to over 20 million Americans losing coverage, often because of paperwork errors. The Kaiser Family Foundation reports that many of these people were children, seniors, or disabled adults. When the most vulnerable citizens lose healthcare, it is not independence—it is abandonment.

Book Bans and Free Expression

As of 2024, more than 4,000 books have been banned or challenged in school libraries and classrooms across the country. Many of these books were targeted simply because they acknowledge race, gender identity, or historical truths.

PEN America has documented this wave of censorship, noting that book bans have become a political weapon to silence perspectives some find uncomfortable. If we can’t even read or teach our own history, what kind of freedom are we celebrating?

Voting Rights Are Being Restricted

Since 2020, hundreds of new voting restrictions have been proposed or enacted in 49 states. These laws limit early voting, restrict mail ballots, and reduce access to polling places, disproportionately affecting seniors, working families, and communities of color.

According to the Brennan Center for Justice, these restrictions are some of the most sweeping efforts to undermine voting access in generations. Our democracy only works if everyone can participate—without obstruction.

Deportation of Immigrants and U.S. Citizens

This country has seen a surge in deportations—not only of undocumented immigrants but also of long-term residents and American citizens who were wrongfully detained or deported because of paperwork errors or racial profiling.

The Government Accountability Office has confirmed that U.S. citizens have been mistakenly deported, sometimes with no chance to appeal in time. The ACLU has reported cases where veterans and tax-paying parents were treated as disposable. That’s not freedom or justice.

Why I’m Speaking Out Now

I didn’t serve for 30 years so we could slide backward. I didn’t salute the flag for decades so that politicians could decide whose freedoms matter and whose don’t.

You don’t have to agree with me on everything. You don’t have to be a Democrat or a Republican. But if you believe that the Fourth of July should mean liberty and justice for all, then you can’t ignore what’s happening.

Freedom isn’t something you inherit and assume will stay. It’s something you defend, over and over again—even when it’s uncomfortable to speak up.

This year, I’m choosing to say out loud that our independence is in danger. And if we stay silent, next year could be worse.

The Big Beautiful Bill

Supporters of these measures call them progress. They say they protect vulnerable youth and ensure no child slips through the cracks. But what they don’t tell you is that these bills hand unprecedented power to the state and to unrelated adults—power that used to belong only to families.

The so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” approach is a patchwork of laws and proposals that quietly redefines parental rights. Under AB665, a child as young as twelve can legally leave home and check into a residential shelter without even a courtesy call to their parents. No hearing. No verification. No due process. Just a box checked on a form. If that doesn’t alarm you, it should.

Then there’s AB223, which lets an unrelated adult apply to change a minor’s birth certificate, and AB495, which allows an adult to sign custody paperwork simply by claiming a parent is “unable to be located.” This means that someone with no blood relation can decide a child’s medical care, education, and living situation. These are decisions that used to require court orders and rigorous oversight, now reduced to a few signatures.

Finally, AB727 mandates that schools promote resources like The Trevor Project’s online spaces, without requiring age verification or parental involvement. While many families respect the mission of these organizations, it raises serious questions about how young children are being introduced to adult-run chat rooms and topics like age regression, sexual identity, and even witchcraft.

This is what happens when sweeping legislation is packaged as compassionate reform: rights get traded for convenience, and parents find themselves on the outside looking in. Whether you support or oppose these measures, you should know what’s in them—because they’re already reshaping childhood in California.

What You Can Do

• Read reporting and research by reputable organizations such as the Supreme Court of the United States, the Kaiser Family Foundation, Education Week, the Brennan Center for Justice, PEN America, and the ACLU.

• Pay attention to your local and state elections.

• Talk to your family and friends—especially those who don’t see the urgency.

• Support organizations fighting for civil liberties and voting rights.

• Remember: democracy does not sustain itself.

If you’re feeling like this Fourth of July is different, you are not alone. It is.