About this Event
“the july 4th demos went exceedingly well. ours, the true july 4 coalition drew upwards of 50,000 people (not including police,provocateurs, etc.)-- it was a beautiful scene of solidarity–it started pouring buckets in the middle and people refused to leave the field--they were dancing in the rain and finally huddling under wet banners. but when it could-be stood no more and people started exiting i heard stories of community people offering others refuge in their homes until the storm passed.” - anonymous Sin Colonias march participant, 1976
On July 4, 1976, as the United States celebrated its 200th anniversary, a massive multiracial alliance—led by Puerto Rican and Native American activists—took to the streets of Philadelphia, calling for a “Bicentennial Without Colonies (Sin Colonias) - Freedom for All Oppressed Nations” The 40 to 50,000 who marched on that day demanded social and economic justice, illuminating forms of U.S. oppression that remained alive and well in the late seventies.
Now, in 2026, as the U.S. celebrates the country’s semiquincentennial with events in Philadelphia and across the nation, a group called the July 4th Sin Colonias Coalition has come together to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Sin Colonias (counter-Bicentennial) march to present a series of events and a traveling archive throughout the year, to re-member this forgotten history and, as the movement work sought to do in 1976, advance efforts to imagine alternative futures today.
“A beautiful scene of solidarity: Re-membering Counter-Bicentennial Movements of 1976” is a panel that brings together historians Marc Stein and Alyssa Ribiero, long time nonviolent activist and educator George Lakey and community leader Pedro Rodriguez (the latter two were active in 1976), to provide scholarly and “on-the-ground” perspectives on the counter-Bicentennial movements of 1976, and what it might mean for us today.
Moderated by Edwin Mayorga.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Singer Hall, Room 033, Whittier Pl, Swarthmore, United States
USD 0.00
