US Embassy Celebrates America’s 234th Birthday
San Jose-July 2, 2010
“This is my first July 4th in Costa Rica, and my first opportunity to welcome you all here on behalf of President Obama to share this celebration of freedom with us, the 234th anniversary of U.S. independence,” stated Ambassador Anne S. Andrew in her opening remarks at the US Embassy’s official Fourth of July reception. During the reception, Ambassador Andrew took time to speak to representatives from nine U.S. companies who exhibited displays that demonstrated their contributions to corporate social responsibility and renewable energy.
The participating companies included Bridgestone Firestone de Costa Rica, Coca Cola, Wal-Mart, HB Fuller, Dole, the Centro Cultural Costaricense, Sykes, 3M and Intel. Ambassador Andrew also formally recognized Costa Ricans who participated in the world-wide Democracy Video Challenge; an online video competition that asked citizens from around the world to create short videos that complete the phrase, “Democracy is...” in an effort to enhance the global dialogue on democracy. Five Costa Ricans participated in the challenge and had their videos featured at the official reception.
The Ambassador quoted one of the video challenge participants, Luis Gamboa, who summed up democracy in these words, “Democracy is more than a word, it is a text against injustice. It is a text for development. For freedom, equity, solidarity, for life, for the smile and the hope. Democracy is an ongoing effort.”
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