As the US marks its 250th birthday, it operates an empire in all but name

There will be parades and speeches, fireworks and barbecues, and a healthy dose of patriotism. This Fourth of July, Americans celebrate the 250th anniversary of their country’s independence from the British empire. Many remain unaware of when their continental republic became an empire of its own. Neither will many of them know that at the turn of the 20th century, the founding principle of the Declaration of Independence was betrayed, despite impassioned opposition from some of the most prominent intellectuals of the day.The American Anti-Imperialist League counted among its members philosopher William James, industrialist-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and Mark Twain, perhaps the most popular writer of the age. For years they lobbied to preserve America’s founding values and resist the path of European colonialism. They failed in their short-term objective against empire. The Philippines became an American colony in 1898 and remained so until its own independence in 1946.Even so, they argued against government transgression more powerfully than anything heard at conferences today. The league’s official platform said that “subjugation of any people is ‘criminal aggression’ and open disloyalty to the distinctive principles of our government”, warning that an administration free to “organise a truth-suppressing censorship and demand of all citizens a suspension of judgment” would imperil representative government itself. If more Americans read this work, they might recall that patriotic dissent is the highest form of loyalty.