City of Orlando Apologizes for Negative July 4 Message

The City of Orlando, Florida, issued an apology over the weekend for posting a negative Fourth of July message, in which it said it “can’t blame” people for not wanting to celebrate America when there is “so much division, hate and unrest.”

“A lot of people probably don’t want to celebrate our nation right now, and we can’t blame them,” the city wrote in a July 1 update. “When there is so much division, hate and unrest, why on earth would you want to have a party celebrating any of it?”

“But in all seriousness, you know in your heart, Fourth of July fireworks are amazing, especially when you are standing in 90° heat, 100% humidity, next to 100,000 of your closest friends. In that moment, something takes over and we all become united in an inexplicable bond. Yes, America is in strife right now, but you know what… we already bought the fireworks,” the city continued, using a shrugging emoji and inviting residents to join the city for Fireworks at the Fountain 2022.

However, the City of Orlando posted an apology the next day for offending some residents.

“The City of Orlando sincerely regrets the negative impact our words have had on some in our community,” it wrote.

“We understand these words offended some of our residents, which was not our intent. We value the freedoms we have in this country and are thankful to the men and women who have fought and continue to fight for those,” it continued.

“We take pride in celebrating the 4th of July to express our gratitude to those men and women and honor the country we live in,” the city added:

“It is an affront to the brave men and women who sacrificed it all to protect the freedoms and individual liberty we enjoy today,” the Florida GOP said of Orlando’s original post.

“We live in the greatest nation in the world and it’s a shame some of Orlando’s leaders don’t understand that,” it added:

State Rep. Anna V. Eskamani (D), however, was among those who did not think the city needed to apologize.

“Y’all do not need to apologize — your first email captured the tone of how many Americans (and Orlandoans) are feeling right now,” she tweeted. “It’s ok not to be ok”: