Among all the people having fun this Fourth of July are others who say they are worried this year. San Diego is still grappling with increased deportations and economic worries, and like the rest of the country, dealing with political division.
On a holiday rooted in patriotism for the United States of America, some San Diegans found themselves reflecting on what this July 4th means to them.
For some, in Escondido, it meant showing up.
“We’re fighting for the people who can’t,” Jasmine Franco, an Escondido resident, told NBC7.
She was part of the hundreds who participated in a peaceful gathering on Valley Parkway, who were part of a pro-democracy demonstration, emphasizing their support of immigrant communities as raids and deportations sweep the nation.
“Independence should be for everybody, and we’re taking away people’s freedoms. It’s not who we are. Well, it’s not who we should be,” Lora Birdsall, who was also in attendance, said.
A recent June Gallup poll completed before the U.S. military mission in Iran revealed a record low of 58% of American adults say they’re extremely or very proud to be an American. A nine-point decline from the previous year. Victor Clark, a professor of Latin American Studies at San Diego State University, weighed in on the change.
“With this aggressive policy, migration policy against a large segment of the society who among them many are undocumented, obviously have created an uncertain atmosphere among these populations who live in conditions of daily fear of what is going to happen, not in the future, but in the near future, in the next minute, in the next stage,” Clark said. “So obviously, among those communities, the quality of life can deteriorate.”
Historically, the holiday has been a fun one for Chris Lowman and her family, but this year, she says it feels different.
“It doesn’t feel so fun now,” Lowman said. “We’re still going to try and make it fun because I have grandchildren. And we will go to the pool, and we will watch fireworks, and we will have carne asada. Not hot dogs and hamburgers.”
For Scripps Ranch resident Angela Law, she’s leaning into her faith and her family on a day that, for her, is founded on tradition.
“I just pray for peace,” Law told NBC7.
Law has been coming to the Scripps Ranch Fourth of July Parade for more than three decades. This year was not different.
”I thank god for this day, I’m able to see another 4th of July.”
The youngest generations, like Logan Wilhite, are finding meaning in the day, too.
“It’s just like fun to go and see people, it’s like a good time,” Wilhite said while standing behind his popsicle and lemonade stand.
At the coast, Friday was a time for longtime Coronado resident Lowell Billings to reflect on the military men and women who sacrifice their lives for the freedoms he has.
“We have so much in this country to be thankful for, and every Fourth of July is a time where we can feel blessed and recognize all the benefits of the United States of America.”