America's 250th birthday celebrations were underwhelming, according to Father Raymond J. de Souza, who notes that Canadians could have predicted the flop based on their own 2017 sesquicentennial experience. The event on the National Mall featured a third-rate state fair and a president imagining himself on Mount Rushmore, lacking the grandeur of past milestones.
Historical precedents of celebratory spectacle
The American Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876 showcased technological progress, including the typewriter, sewing machine, a 1,400-horsepower steam engine, and Alexander Graham Bell's telephone. Similarly, France built the Eiffel Tower for the centennial of the French Revolution in 1889, and the Statue of Liberty was a gift for the 1876 centennial.
The American bicentennial in 1976, despite economic crisis and political disgrace, was a rousing commemoration with tall ships in New York harbor, Queen Elizabeth II bringing a new bell to Philadelphia, and Rocky Balboa's cinematic triumph. CBS's "bicentennial minutes" connected communities nationwide.
Canada 150: A similar letdown
Canada's sesquicentennial in 2017 was a letdown compared to the 1967 centennial, which featured Expo 67 in Montreal—a months-long festival of Canadian achievement. By 2017, political divisions had drained patriotic fervor, with the left condemning the Canadian project and the right claiming the country was broken.
World Cup spectacle and cultural genius
The 1990 World Cup in Italy used Puccini's Nessun Dorma as its theme, with Luciano Pavarotti's soaring vocals. The Three Tenors concert at the Baths of Caracalla on the eve of the final had greater impact than the tournament itself. Pavarotti's final public performance at the 2006 Turin Olympics married opera and sport, ending with fireworks.
America 250's shortcomings
America 250 featured an algae-blooming pool, dodgy contracting, and fourth-rate singers, reflecting a decline over 50 years. In contrast, the bicentennial of the French Revolution in 1989 saw Jessye Norman singing La Marseillaise in a tricolore gown at Place de la Concorde—a true spectacle.
According to de Souza, bigger, louder, and longer does not mean more uplifting. The semiquincentennial missed the opportunity to inspire, unlike the 1976 bicentennial or the 1876 exposition. The event on the National Mall, with a young Trump supporter watching fireworks, failed to capture the nation's spirit.
