It feels like this is an odd July 4th.

There is a scene early on in the movie “Forrest Gump” where a gang of meatheads in a truck with a Confederate flag license plate chases down a kid with a learning disability. That movie came out in theaters exactly 31 years ago this week. The scene quickly tells the story of how this character with special needs has been a target his whole life.

In 1994, it was a pretty simple way to set the stage within the context of American history.