Americans marked the nation's 250th Independence Day on Saturday with fireworks, parades and celebrations across the country, but the milestone unfolded against a backdrop of deep political polarization, extreme summer heat and renewed debate over the country's identity as President Donald Trump used the occasion to deliver a sharply political message.
The centerpiece of the celebrations was Washington's National Mall, where organizers staged what officials described as the largest Independence Day fireworks display in the country's history.
Trump expanded the traditional festivities with military flyovers and a campaign-style rally, placing his own imprint on the semiquincentennial celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
The anniversary arrived as much of the United States endured a punishing heat wave. Nearly 160 million people remained under extreme heat alerts, forcing communities to alter or cancel outdoor events.
In the nation's capital, temperatures were expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit), with the heat index climbing as high as 43 to 46 degrees Celsius (110 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit), prompting officials to cancel Washington's Independence Day parade.
Trump, who turned 80 last month, brushed aside concerns about the weather before taking the stage.
"It's going to be approximately 107 degrees out, and I'm going to go and I'm going to make a really long speech, just to show that I can do anything," he said before the holiday festivities.
For many Americans, the anniversary offered both celebration and reflection.
Patrick Thompson, a teacher from Alexandria, Virginia, said his family planned to celebrate with a traditional backyard barbecue but would skip the fireworks in Washington.
"We still want to celebrate the country and be patriotic and it's exciting," Thompson told AFP.
"But it's so weird because it's got this strange mar over it because of Trump and just like the 250 thing that turns out to not be what anyone hoped."
The president set the tone for the holiday a day earlier during a speech at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, where he praised America's history while warning that the country's identity was under attack from domestic political forces.
Speaking beneath the towering granite carvings of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt, Trump accused "radicals and extremists" of attempting to undermine American values and singled out what he described as a resurgence of communist ideology.
The remarks echoed a theme he has emphasized repeatedly in recent weeks as progressive candidates scored victories in Democratic primary elections.
"There has been an attempt to beat the American spirit out of us, alienate us from our history," Trump said.
While the speech stopped short of some of the harsher anti-immigration rhetoric that has characterized previous appearances, he again stressed loyalty to the nation's ideals.
"You do not have to be born here, but you do have to love what we have built," he said.
The anniversary also prompted contrasting messages from other world leaders.
Pope Leo XIV, the first American to lead the Catholic Church and a frequent critic of the Trump administration's immigration policies, said the American dream should embrace immigrants whose contributions have shaped the country since its founding.
"Defending human life also includes welcoming, protecting and assisting immigrants, whose hopes, sacrifices and contribution have formed part of the history of this country from its very beginning," the Chicago-born pontiff said.
Across the Atlantic, King Charles III highlighted the enduring relationship between Britain and the United States, saying the two nations would continue to defend their shared democratic values despite the centuries that have passed since American independence.
Beyond the nation's capital, cities across the country hosted commemorative events.
New York welcomed an international parade of tall ships, attended by Vice President JD Vance, along with military flyovers and one of the country's largest fireworks displays.
In Philadelphia, where the Declaration of Independence was signed, visitors lined up early outside Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell despite the intense heat. Concerts and community celebrations stretched from Boston to Los Angeles.
Yet the historic anniversary also underscored the divisions shaping modern America.
After 250 years marked by independence, slavery, civil war, global conflicts and expanding civil rights, public opinion remains sharply split over whether the nation lives up to the ideals proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence.
A Quinnipiac University poll found that 61% of Americans believe the United States is falling short of those founding principles, with Republicans largely expressing confidence in the country's direction while Democrats overwhelmingly disagree.
For Karisa Tavassoli, an Iranian American educator in Atlanta, the anniversary remained a reminder of the freedoms that continue to define the country despite its political challenges.
"I have safety, I have freedom of speech, I have freedom of religion, I can wear whatever I want as a woman," she said.
"There are many flaws here, but we have something very special that's worthy of protecting."
