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WASHINGTON, July 4: Amid unprecedented security, Americans marked the first Independence Day holiday since the Sept 11 suicide hijack attacks, waving flags and marching in parades on Thursday as President George W. Bush urged them to go out and celebrate.
Military jets patrolled the skies above several major cities and thousands of police and security officials watched over crowds who turned out to enjoy firework displays, concerts and such traditional events as New York’s annual Coney Island hot dog eating contest.
There had been widespread jitters following unspecific official warnings that there could be more terror attacks, but for many Americans a more immediate challenge was how to cope with a heat wave sweeping Washington, New York and other cities.
Bush kicked off his celebrations with a visit to small town America, telling the residents of Ripley West Virginia — population 3,400 — that he is ready to use the nation’s “overwhelming power in the defence of freedom” around the world.
Bush exhorted Americans to celebrate despite worries about further attacks after Sept 11 and pledged to wage his war on terrorism relentlessly.
“The anniversary of America’s independence is a day for gratitude, and a day for celebration,” Bush told the citizens of Ripley.
Speaking of the “war on terrorism” that the United States declared after Sept 11, Bush said: “Once again, history has called America to use our overwhelming power in the defense of freedom. And we’ll do just that.”
While US officials say they have no specific, credible information suggesting attacks were planned for July 4, many Americans were on edge.
The White House on Thursday said it had heard of no unusual events to spoil the nation’s celebrations, which range from picnics and backyard barbecues to parades and fireworks.
Bush appeared to revel in the small town celebrations, shaking hands, signing autographs on T-shirts, a baseball and a newspaper, and walking hand in hand with Mabel Chapman — an 81-year old woman who mowed her vast backyard to provide a landing zone for the presidential helicopter.
In Washington police fenced off the Mall, near the Capitol, with a huge security cordon, making people pass through checkpoints on their way to the celebrations.
In Boston, a crowd expected to reach half a million gathered along the banks of the Charles River for the city’s fireworks display.
People filed quietly through checkpoints and donned security issued wristbands before staking out territory on the lawn near the stage where a concert was to be held.
MEDICAL CREWS: Medical crews were ready to treat heat ailments and city officials warned concert goers to drink a lot of fluids and stay out of the sun.
In Atlanta, a heavy presence of police, county sheriff’s deputies and FBI agents, both undercover and in uniform, patrolled subway stations and parade routes as about 250,000 Georgians flocked to the annual Peachtree Road Race and the nighttime fireworks display.
In Chicago, a massive lakefront fireworks display set to patriotic music in Grant Park came off without a hitch on Wednesday night, attracting about a million people.
In Philadelphia, Secretary of State Colin Powell called on Americans to live up to their national ideal of liberty by confronting poverty, bigotry and inequality as the nation pursues its “war on terrorism”.
In a message delivered outside the 18th century hall where America’s founders declared independence from Britain on July 4, 1776, Powell avoided references to US foreign policy and instead focused on Thomas Jefferson’s vision of a democratic system designed to correct injustice.
“As Jefferson did in his time, so too must we recognize that America is not yet perfect,” the first black secretary of state said after receiving the Philadelphia Liberty Medal.
In Pennsylvania, the tiny borough of Shanksville, where the hijacked United Flight 93 dived into the earth on Sept 11, pulled out all the stops to celebrate Independence Day for the first time in its 173-year history.
“Definitely, definitely it’s bittersweet,” Shanksville Mayor Ernie Stull said. “I’ve said it many times; this is a terrible way for the little town of Shanksville to be put on the map.
On Sept 11, Shanksville was thrust into the national spotlight. After three hijacked airliners crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Flight 93 plunged into a reclaimed strip mine after some of the 40 passengers and crew onboard mounted an apparent revolt against the hijackers.—Reuters
