Today, the United States of America celebrates the 249th anniversary of its founding and independence. Just eight months ago (almost to the day), Americans overwhelmingly voted President Donald Trump back into the White House. While there were and are a number of reasons — rampant inflation, a crippling illegal immigration crisis, and skyrocketing crime rates come readily to mind — that Americans preferred Trump over his opponent, Democrat Kamala Harris, a lesser-discussed reason that Americans backed Trump is because he loves and respects American history, heritage, and heroes.

For (at least) the past two decades, Americans have been told to be ashamed of our history, heritage, and heroes. The brave men who crossed the Atlantic Ocean, left behind the familiarity and relative stability of the Old World, and pioneered and settled the New World have been derided as racist colonizers. Explorers and settlers like Christopher Columbus and Captain John Smith have been smeared as violent colonial agents. Our Founding Fathers, who boldly risked and (in some cases) gave up their lives to fight against tyranny and “secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity,” have been diminished to little more than hypocritical slaveholders. Larger-than-life legends like Daniel Boone and Davey Crockett have been recast as racist oppressors of indigenous tribes. Even men like William Penn, a Quaker known for his peaceful treaties with natives, or Junipero Serra, a Catholic saint and missionary nicknamed the “Apostle of California,” have been demonized.

The past several years have seen statues and paintings of some of America’s greatest and most prominent men — George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Francis Scott Key, Ulysses S. Grant, Abraham Lincoln, and countless others — toppled, torn down, defaced, and even destroyed. The memories of America’s national heroes have been besmirched, smeared, and character-assassinated ruthlessly. Instead of our Founders, our brave pioneers, our brilliant military leaders, and our brightest American minds, we have been told to honor a cast of modern miscreants: Marxist labor activist Cesar Chavez, LGBT activist Harvey Milk, and pro-abortion feminist Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg are lauded by the Left as examples of the ideal American.

As rampant illegal immigration threatens to replace the native population of America, the progressive, revisionist ideology of the Left threatens to supplant America’s history, its meaning, its values, and even its very definition. “What is an American?” is a crucial question these days, the answer to which has far-reaching, fundamental ramifications. Had Harris won November’s election, there is little doubt that historical examples of what an American is would have been all but scrubbed from the public consciousness.

Instead, the American public rejected the Democratic Party’s vision for America — and its contrived list of examples of Americans with it — and elected Trump. This Independence Day, Americans can celebrate their national heroes and legends, the men whose courage, iron will, and virtue forged this nation, established her identity, and set an example for ages to come in answer to the question, “What is an American?”

Our Founding Fathers brought forth a Christian nation by the people, of the people, and for the people, casting off the tyrannous shackles of what was then the mightiest empire in the world. George Washington led America to victory, with decisive tactical wins at Valley Forge and Yorktown, and had the wisdom and humility to reject the offer of a crown, instead serving his nation as president before peacefully passing the torch.

Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay, and countless others clarified the principles that this nation cherishes and which ought to guide her throughout the centuries. Men like Samuel Adams, Paul Revere, and Nathan Hale risked their lives (and, in Hale’s case, sacrificed his life, immortally intoning before his execution by the British, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”) to bring forth a new nation in the New World.

Daniel Boone bravely pioneered the Wilderness Road through the Cumberland Gap, establishing settlements in what is today Kentucky, and fought in the Revolutionary War. Israel Putnam bravely led his men at the Battle of Bunker Hill, embodying the citizen-soldier. Francis Marion’s novel guerrilla tactics, coupled with his fierce patriotism and indefatigable courage, played a key role in securing American independence. Through her care and craftsmanship, Betsy Ross gave the fledgling nation a single banner under which to march, a symbol of the unity of will which brought this nation forth.

Andrew Jackson was a war hero who, as president, embodied the American spirit and the force of will which this nation requires of her leaders. William Henry Harrison defended American settlers against attacks in the Northwest Territory, expanding American influence and evinced the resilience of the frontiersman. Zachary Taylor furthered American pride fighting in the War of 1812, the Black Hawk War, the Second Seminole War, and the Mexican-American War, before ascending to the White House, subsequently eschewing party politics to staff his administration with a host of those whom he considered representative of America’s geography.

John Frémont was a military hero and explorer who came to fame in the Mexican-American War before becoming the first Republican presidential nominee. Leaving home at the age of 16, Kit Carson became a mountain man and fur trapper, guiding travelers across the West before becoming a U.S. Army officer and a frontier legend. Abraham Lincoln is best remembered for abolishing slavery and presiding over the Civil War, but also averted war with Britain in 1861. Ulysses S. Grant led the Union on the hard road to victory during the Civil War, later becoming president himself.

Theodore Roosevelt defied political labels, championing American strength, conservation, economic might, and national pride. John J. Pershing solidified America’s power on the world stage, leading the American Expeditionary Forces to victory in the First World War. George S. Patton, Douglas MacArthur, and Dwight D. Eisenhower were critical players in winning the Second World War, with Eisenhower then becoming president, further bolstering America’s international prominence. Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins became the first men to land on the moon, beating the powerful Soviet Union to the feat. Artist Norman Rockwell’s iconic paintings immortalized the beauty and virtue of American life and values for generations.

Such as these are America’s heritage. They are heroes — imperfect, of course, as are we all — but they embody the courage, spirit, zeal, and virtue unique to these United States. They are not to be shunted to the side, shut up in a box, or — as would be more likely under a subversive, progressive, Marxist-aligned agenda — reviled, repudiated, and eradicated from the nation’s memory. They are to be honored, appreciated, and held up boldly in answer to the question, “What is an American?”