This July 4th, take a quiet moment in the morning to thank our Founding Fathers (and Mothers) for their sacrifices in gaining our nation’s independence.
And then stay home. Fire up the grill. Char those burgers and brats. Lay into that potato salad and coleslaw with a vengeance, as if it offended you somehow.
That’s how I plan to celebrate The Fourth of July, and that would be my advice to you, too.
Oh, I know, some of your hackles got raised when I didn’t call the holiday “Independence Day.” Because, after all, that’s what we’re celebrating, right? All those explosions in the sky are supposed to remind us of the bombs and bullets our Founders used to wrest our freedom from the bloody British a couple centuries ago.
But given the path that our nation has traveled to get where we are today, we might be a whole lot better off if we’d all keep our focus on the burgers and brats, rather than the bombs and bullets.
I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer on this festive occasion, but research from Northwestern University criminologist James Alan Fox shows that violent crime rates — particularly gun violence and mass shootings — increase on July 4th in the United States.
Since 2014, the United States has seen 58 mass shootings on July 4th that resulted in four or more people injured, many of them severely enough to die.
In the past 18 years in America, five Independence Days resulted in mass killings by gunfire on July 4.
Just last year, Chicago alone saw 100 shooting incidents over the 2024 week of July 4th, with 11 fatalities. The rest of the nation saw another 22 firearm fatalities on that same day.
And those numbers actually reflected a decline of recent July 4th gun violence. In 2021 alone, over 230 people were fatally shot in America over the Fourth of July weekend.
According to Fox, “July 4th ranks annually as the most violent day of the year in terms of mass killings and mass shootings.”
Of course, although it is true that we Americans embrace gun ownership far more than any other nation on the planet, it would be over-simplistic to blame all that July 4th gun violence on an anniversary that celebrates bombs, bullets, and “the rockets’ red glare.” There are countless other reasons that might spur a gun owner to violence on that day, including long hot days, humid nights, and crowded gatherings with total strangers (or estranged family members you only see on holidays).
In any case, there is a lot more to Independence Day than guns and murder, so let’s move on. Don’t stop reading now just because of all those depressing firearm statistics.
Because even without the guns, there is plenty of July 4th pain to go around.
Take all those festive fireworks, for instance.
On Independence Day in 2023, there were an estimated 9,700 fireworks-related injuries serious enough to require professional treatment. Each year, in the days leading up to and immediately following July 4th, approximately 45,000 people visit US emergency rooms for fireworks-related injuries.
And why?
Well, let’s face it, a lot of those gun and fireworks injuries can be linked directly to alcohol.
Even without the guns and fireworks, alcohol racks up impressive numbers when it comes to senseless violence, especially on this holiday. Year after year, there are more alcohol-related car accidents on July 4 than any other holiday — even New Year’s Eve.
In 2022, forty percent of traffic fatalities during the July 4th holiday period were caused by drunk driving.
Guns, fireworks and booze — a trifecta that’s sure to keep emergency rooms (and morgues) full. Because unfortunately, July 4th seems to be a day when large chunks of America agree with Homer Simpson when he toasts: “To alcohol: the cause of — and solution to — all of life’s problems.”
So there you have it: Some sobering thoughts on a festive holiday.
But look, since it’s a holiday, and you might be taking a break from your weekly Planet Kerth Discussion Group, instead of photocopying my column and sending it to all the group members, I’m fine if you just call them this time and have them Google this question: “What is the most dangerous day of the year?”
Go ahead. I’ll wait.
Guess what the answer will be. They’ll get the point, in a lot fewer words.
But are you still here with me? If so, what’s wrong with you? With such a joyous holiday upon us, why would you read all the way to the end of a gloomy column like this?
If it’s because you’re looking for a way to have a festive time on the Fourth of July and still wake up on the Fifth, you didn’t have to read this far. I told you the answer right in the beginning:
After a moment of quiet reflection, stay home.
Fire up the grill.
Char those burgers and brats.
Then lay into that potato salad and coleslaw with a vengeance, as if it offended you somehow.
TR Kerth is the author of the book “Revenge of the Sardines.” Contact him at trkerth@yahoo.com
