The bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence began early for many Americans. On a chilly December morning in 1973, a reenactment of the Boston Tea Party, sponsored by the City of Boston, transformed into protests over contemporary concerns. Barrels labeled “Gulf Oil,” “Exxon,” and “Shell” were tossed into the harbor to denounce environmental destruction. Marchers carried signs condemning the war in Vietnam and the then recent coup in Chile. Chants of “Down with King George” mingled with “Down with King Richard,” ensuring that President Richard Nixon, then facing the Watergate scandal and the resignation of his vice president Spiro Agnew, would not be forgotten.
The cheekily named “Boston Oil Party” was organized by the People’s Bicentennial Commission, an offshoot of the New Left and the antiwar movement that sought to deploy American cultural and political symbols for progressive ends. The commission emphasized the promises in the Declaration of Independence, arguing that its “message of equality and inalienable rights” was still relevant. Its demands included economic democracy and changes to the school curriculum to teach the “real history of the [American] people.”
The official bicentennial festivities began in 1975 and included the American Freedom Train — a museum on wheels that brought historic documents and artifacts, including George Washington’s draft of the Constitution, moon rocks, and the first American Bible — to every state during its staggering twenty-one-month tour. The Freedom Train was heralded by the aptly named Preamble Express, which was “dispatched to scout the route and court host city officials.”
Fireworks displays in major cities were broadcast nationally, and a…
Auteur: Luke Pickrell
