Church Cancels July 4th Celebration to Protest America
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A Nantucket church’s decision to cancel its annual Fourth of July reading of the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights is sparking outrage among patriots who say Independence Day should unite Americans — not be turned into a political protest.
The Second Congregational Meeting House Society, Unitarian Universalist, announced it “will not produce or host” the annual celebration this year, according to a letter Rev. Erin Splaine sent to the Nantucket Current.
Splaine said the decision was made “in large measure because of the recent gutting of the 1965 Voting Rights Act by the Supreme Court.” She also wrote that America’s founding documents have been “tragically, often violently, and unequally applied to fellow citizens who are not white.”
Critics blasted the move as yet another example of left-wing politics hijacking a cherished American tradition.
The Nantucket Current’s opinion page was quickly filled with pushback, including one letter titled, “Disappointed In Unitarian Church’s Decision To Cancel Fourth Of July Celebration.” The local Inquirer and Mirror also reported the church canceled the reading as a “political protest.”
Splaine defended the decision, writing that “a celebration without context and the centering of the fullness of our American Story only perpetuates the harm, injustice, and anti-democratic process.”
She said the congregation is working “to better understand our own whiteness” and how it can help change what she called “an inherently unfair system which has been in place for 250 years.”
The minister also made clear the church would not debate critics online.
“Neither she nor anyone from the congregation will respond to anyone who attempts to engage on any social media platform,” Splaine wrote. “Social media is not the place for important, tender conversations.”
Instead, Splaine said the church doors will be open July 4 from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. for anyone who wants to talk.
But for many Americans, canceling a public reading of the Declaration of Independence on the Fourth of July is not an act of healing — it is a slap in the face to the most exceptional nation on the face of the Earth.
The controversy comes as the nation prepares to celebrate America’s 250th birthday next year, a milestone many conservatives say should be marked with gratitude, patriotism and pride — not apologies.
“If this preacherette hates America she is more than welcome to pack her bags and go preach her heresy in some third world country,” said Newsmax host Todd Starnes.