PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) \u2014 Dozens of mayors from around the country marched through Philadelphia\u2019s Historic District together on Thursday to celebrate the semiquincentennial.<\/p>\n
They marched around Independence Mall \u2014 making a symbolic pass by the President\u2019s House<\/a> exhibit \u2014 then around to Independence Hall and on to the Museum of the American Revolution for a program of speeches and reflections.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is an amazing day for our city,\u201d said Mayor Cherelle Parker. She said there was no better place for the mayors to observe the 250th anniversary of independence.<\/p>\n \u201cThe city tells America\u2019s whole story, no matter how imperfect,\u201d she continued. \u201cJust steps from here is the President\u2019s House site, where we are reminded that our nation\u2019s founding promise and its unfinished work have always existed side by side.\u201d<\/p>\n The mayor had sued to try to have the slavery exhibit at the President\u2019s House \u2014 the former home to Presidents George Washington and John Adams \u2014 restored in time for July Fourth, but lost in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals<\/a>. The exhibit remains half disassembled.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, Parker told the bipartisan group of mayors that the lessons remain.<\/p>\n \u201cThe U.S. Conference of Mayors has convened rural, suburban and urban America to come together here in the city of Philadelphia to recommit to our values and stand on our principles,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cTruth doesn\u2019t weaken us; it makes us stronger. \u2026 Patriotism is not pretending our nation\u2019s history is perfect. It is believing that each generation has a responsibility to build a more perfect union.\u201d<\/p>\n WATCH: 250 people form red, white and blue \u2018living Liberty Bell\u2019 at Independence Mall<\/a><\/p>\n Pomp and Parade<\/p>\n Following the mayors\u2019 march, the Red, White and Blue To-Do Pomp and Parade strutted its stuff through Old City in honor of July 2, 1776, the day the Second Continental Congress officially voted to approve independence from Great Britain.<\/p>\n The parade of marching bands, color guards, dancers and floats started at the National Constitution Center and ended at Carpenters\u2019 Hall \u2014 a shorter route than anticipated due to the heat.<\/p>\n This is the third year that Historic Philadelphia has hosted the parade, welcoming bands and participants from all over the country.<\/p>\n Thirteen volunteer-made floats were pulled by wagons, each depicting a unique outlook of America. <\/p>\n Sea cadets marched with flags representing all 50 states. They were accompanied by fife and drum bands, paying tribute to music that rang in the country\u2019s freedom.<\/p>\n