While Americans broadly view the anniversary as a time for unity, Black respondents were significantly more likely to say the country has yet to fulfill its promise of equality and justice.

As borrowers weigh their options ahead of the changes, a new analysis from Credible points to growing interest in student loan refinancing, particularly among consumers with strong credit profiles who may qualify for lower interest rates than those attached to their current loans.

Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration of Independence’s assertion that “all men are created equal” while enslaving hundreds of people at Monticello. The Constitution established democratic principles while permitting slavery. After the Civil War, formerly enslaved Americans were promised 40 acres and a mule as part of an effort to build economic independence, only to see those commitments abandoned.

I thought about that recently while listening to speeches celebrating the nation's 250th anniversary, watching politicians wrap themselves in flags and founders, and hearing Michelle Obama stand before thousands at the opening of the Obama Presidential Center and describe it as "a living testament to the power of choice" and "an urgent call to go out there and do it again."

But for many Black Americans, the anniversary has become something else entirely. Rather than celebrating 250 years of freedom, they are asking whether the nation has fully delivered on promises made in 1776 while millions of Africans remained enslaved and generations of their descendants continued to fight for rights guaranteed to others.

A country that once made it illegal to teach enslaved Black people to read is now arguing over whether Black history itself belongs in classrooms.

Gregory Davis, a resident dean and African American studies scholar, was removed from his position after years-old social media posts were revived by far-right outlets and amplified during Donald Trump’s second presidency. Harvard confirmed Davis was no longer serving in the role and moved quickly to close the matter, even as Davis and his family were given ten days to vacate university housing during winter.