Chicagoans celebrate July Fourth with parades, barbecues and beach trips: ‘It’s really good to reaffirm the best things about America’
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Chicago’s largest Fourth of July parade kicked off in Hyde Park, much to the excitement of regular attendees and new faces.
For the first hour, dancers did cartwheels down 53rd Street, high school bands marched to the booming energy of the drum line, and children rode past on their bikes adorned in red, white and blue streamers.
City leaders including Mayor Brandon Johnson and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle waved to attendees sitting or standing in the shade. A cloudless sky made for bright and sunny conditions as the parade continued into the early afternoon.
Oakland neighborhood resident and artist Johanna Poethig, 67, loves the parade so much that for a mural she worked on in the Loop, she made sure to include depictions of two majorettes dancing in this parade.
She doesn’t usually come to big events like Tuesday’s parade but always makes sure to come to this one, known as 4th on 53rd.
“I think that Hyde Park, this neighborhood, exemplifies what a lot of what we hope for as a society and a country,” Poethig said. “I think it’s really good to reaffirm the best things about America and the United States.”
Chicago resident Penelope Ellis was wearing a long red dress, a scarf patterned with the American flag and a sparkly red, white and blue headband, something she does every year. Ellis had high expectations for her first time attending the parade and was there with her son and granddaughter.
“It’s a really big celebration in our family; we have a military background,” Ellis said. “I’m just excited to get to enjoy the tradition with them.”
Hyde Park resident Yvonne Warren has attended the parade for many years but stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was her first year back, and she was excited.
“I enjoy you know, being able to walk to the parade and talk to people along the route,” she said.
Hyde Park’s 4th on 53rd Parade began in 1992 as an informal event and has since grown into a community tradition that longtime resident Patricia Moore said has kept some of that original identity.
“I wouldn’t say organized is quite the word,” she said. “But we make it work.”
Moore and other community members decorated a car in bright tissue paper resembling blooming flowers to promote Hyde Park’s upcoming Garden Fair. Her favorite part of the parade is seeing all the diverse community groups that participate and celebrating the Fourth with everyone.
“All people are created equal and, you know, it’s great to celebrate the founding ideas,” Moore said.
Rod Sawyer, program manager for the South East Chicago Commission, said the growth of the parade over the years is a good indicator of growth in the community.
“There are definitely more new neighbors who we’re trying to help integrate into the community, as well as people who’ve been here, kind of like me,” Sawyer said.
The Hyde Park community not only comes together during large events like the Fourth but also “behind the scenes,” he said. They’ve been working on improving Hyde Park’s downtown space, for example.
“This neighborhood’s rekindling a lot of those conversations, some of them who got lost during COVID, and continuing those connections,” he said.
The parade ended at Nichols Park, where a festival featured sports areas for kids, horse rides, a petting zoo and live music.
Two marching bands, from Kenwood Academy High School and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. College Preparatory High School, participated in the parade, a highlight for a lot of attendees. Nichols Park hosted a “battle of the bands,” gathering a large crowd that cheered on both sides.
Nathalia Granger, a student at Kenwood, said her school’s marching band practiced by walking around the track yesterday, rehearsing songs like “About Time” by Lizzo.
Granger had never been to the parade before and wasn’t expecting it to be as big as it was.
“It’s nice to see everybody coming together and coming out to watch it,” she said. “Everyone’s like family.”
A few blocks southeast of the parade, beachgoers at the 57th Street Beach said it was a lot busier than usual.
Miriam Virto from Berwyn watched her two kids dig a hole in the sand while she tried to explain to family on the phone where they were located on the crowded beach.
Virto said it’s important to her that her kids learn about the significance of the Fourth of July, especially when it comes to being appreciative of how COVID-19 wasn’t as bad here compared with some other countries.
“I also felt like I heard on the news about how, like, people are unhappy with the way the United States is. But I’m proud,” she said. “I want the kids to remember celebrating July 4, as part of our heritage too, right. We’re Americans.”
Hyde Park resident Kristin Smith was lounging on the concrete steps near the waterfront, along with her dog who was inside a beach carrier.
“I feel like everybody’s out today because, you know, the last couple of days with like, torrential downpour. People were ready. They were, like, itching to get out,” Smith said.
She also said the smoke that lingered around the city for days last week was terrible, so she’s grateful for today and celebrating the Fourth.
“I feel like every day that I’m outside, I get to just relax and be in the sun in celebration, but I guess today is an extra special day,” Smith said.
