U.S. Celebrates 225th BirthdayMany Americans celebrated the Fourth of July and their freedom from work Wednesday by attending barbecues, parades and political speeches.Several of the holiday events took place in Philadelphia, considered the cradle of American democracy. President George W. Bush marked the 225th birthday of the United States by speaking at Independence Hall, where delegates from the 13 American colonies hammered out the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain in the summer of 1776. He and first lady returned to Washington for the annual fireworks display on the Mall. Similar displays were planned in U.S. cities from Boston, Massachusetts, to Los Angeles, California, as part of the holiday. Also in Philadelphia, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan received the city's Liberty Medal and its $100,000 honorarium. He said he would give his award money to the fund being created by the U.N. to fight AIDS around the world. The Liberty Medal honors an individual or organization for demonstrated leadership and vision in pursuit of liberty of conscience or freedom from oppression, ignorance or deprivation. Mayor John Street presented the award during a ceremony in front of the historic Liberty Bell. Other events accompanying the Fourth of July ranged from the annual Coney Island hot-dog eating contest in New York to numerous parades and concerts to the 10-kilometer Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta, Georgia. In Coney Island, 131-pound Japanese contestant Takeru Koayashi, who calls himself "The Tsunami," ate 50 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes, doubling the world record, according to Nathan's Famous hot dogs, which sponsored the event. In Atlanta, runner John Korir from Kenya crossed the Peachtree Road Race finish line first with a time of 28 minutes, 18 seconds. Among the women contestants the winner was Lornah Kiplagat -- also of Kenya -- coming in at 30 minutes, 57 seconds. America gained dozens of new citizens this holiday. Some were sworn in aboard the USS Constitution, an 18th century tall ship docked in Boston Harbor and the oldest in Navy commission, while others attended a ceremony at Monticello, home of the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, near Charlottesville, Virginia. More than 200,000 people turned out in Bristol, Rhode Island, for the town's 216th annual parade, the nation's oldest celebrated July Fourth parade. |
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