The Fourth of July is upon us. Having adopted other American special days and holidays - Valentines Day, Halloween – we may well end up celebrating it in Oz one day.
Independence Day is a non-event in Australia but a meaningful celebration and holiday in the US. It is their celebration of the founding of the republic, of gaining independence in 1776, yet in a recent poll 26% of Americans polled didn’t know that the country from which independence was gained was England. Of that 26%, 20% didn’t know which country and 6% nominated other countries, the nominations being France, China, Japan, Mexico, and Spain. Bear in mind, however, that the poll included persons originating from other countries and from groups with lower educational opportunities and qualifications.
Looking at a pic of the American Declaration of Independence, the document rather than the event, I recalled the signature that gave rise to a colloquial term for signatures generally, that of John Hancock.
