‘Party like it’s 1776’ wasn’t such a great prom slogan
May 22, 2018, 7:21 AM
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
It seemed like a perfect slogan. A New Jersey high school holding its prom at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia two blocks from Independence Hall printed up prom tickets which read “Party like it’s 1776.”
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But when black students got their tickets some of them said: wasn’t there slavery in 1776, including in New Jersey?
The school principal immediately apologized and said the tickets would be reprinted.
But then that got the principal in trouble on the internet. A New Jersey talk show host said this:
“Shame on the principal of Cherry Hill High School East. What an embarrassment. I had no idea that the Fourth of July — all of a sudden — became divided along racial lines!”
But if you look it up, one of the reasons the founders signed the Declaration of Independence was because the year before the British Governor was threatening to free their slaves!
That’s not exactly a secret. In fact, it was a clue on Jeopardy just last night.
So, no, 1776 wasn’t a party ‘til much later. But the good news is, the principal’s apology was accepted, prom will go on, and the Jeopardy contestant who knew his American history won $14,000.
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