What If America Never Got Its Independence?

The Truth About Who Would’ve Paid the Price

Let’s go ahead and ruffle some flags real quick.

Because with all the talk online lately — from the Facebook debates to the X think-pieces — I’ve seen people saying,
“Cancel the Fourth of July. There’s nothing to celebrate.”

But let me make one thing real clear:
You can’t pay me to cancel America’s Independence celebration. Period.

Not because this country is perfect — it’s not.
Not because everything is fair — it’s not.
But because despite all its flaws, America’s independence is the reason any of us even had a shot.

And if we’re gonna talk about canceling something, we better first understand what we’d be left with if July 4, 1776 never happened at all.

???? No Independence? No Power — For Anybody

If America had never declared independence from Britain, we wouldn’t just be talking about a different holiday.
We’d be talking about a different world.

Black people wouldn’t just be behind — we might still be in chains.
Yeah, Britain abolished slavery before America did — on paper.
They ended the slave trade in 1807 and abolished slavery in 1833.
But don’t get it twisted: the British Empire still exploited, erased, and oppressed people of color across the globe — from Africa to the Caribbean to India.

And here’s the part no one wants to say out loud:
If America had stayed a colony, we’d all still be living in a system designed to keep “the standard” — white, wealthy, and connected to the Crown — at the top.

That’s who would’ve had the power.
That’s who would’ve made the rules.
That’s who would’ve decided your worth.

????????????? Who Would’ve Paid the Price?

If we stayed under British rule, everyone outside the elite circle would’ve paid — deeply.
Let’s be real:

• Black Americans likely wouldn’t have had the Harlem Renaissance, HBCUs, Civil Rights movements, or cultural dominance that shaped the globe.
• Poor white folks would’ve stayed poor — locked into a permanent working class, loyal to the monarchy with no social mobility.
• Asian immigrants? Used for labor and tossed aside when they were no longer “profitable.”
• Latinos and Indigenous people? Forgotten. Silenced. Their lands taken, their voices erased.

Under British rule, you weren’t building your dream. You were helping someone else keep theirs.

???? Independence Wasn’t the Finish Line — But It Was the Spark

Now let’s be honest — the America that signed the Declaration wasn’t signing up for equality.
They weren’t thinking about us.

But what they did create was a framework — a dangerous, powerful one — that said:
“All men are created equal.”

And while they didn’t mean us at the time…
We used that same line to fight back.
To demand more.
To build more.
To become more.

That line turned into lawsuits.
It turned into boycotts, marches, protests, policies, platforms, movements.

It became a spark.
And we used that fire to light our own path.

???? So No — I’m Not Canceling the Fourth

You want to cancel fireworks? Go for it.
Cancel cookouts? Eh, you’ll be hungry.
But cancel the meaning behind the fight for independence?
Not me. Not today. Not ever.

Because while America is still imperfect, still divided, still wrestling with the sins of its past — the fact that we get to question it out loud, protest it in the streets, and build our own lanes is because of that independence.

So when I celebrate, I’m not celebrating the lie.
I’m celebrating the fight for truth that came after it.

I’m celebrating the progress, the resistance, the rise.

???? Final Word: This Isn’t Just About July 4 — It’s About What Comes Next

Freedom isn’t a one-time thing.
It’s a fight.
It’s a fire.
And it costs something.

So don’t let the frustration fool you.
Don’t let social media convince you there’s “nothing to celebrate.”

Because if America never got its independence?
We wouldn’t even be in the position to have this conversation.

So today, I celebrate.
Not because we’ve arrived — but because we’ve endured.
Because we’ve built.
Because we’ve risen.
And baby, we’re still rising.