That mind-blowing document contained revolutionary insights. They could reappear.
This week marks the 246th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Over the years, it has served as a call to arms, a statement of purpose, a request for assistance, a treatise on humanity, a source of inspiration for the oppressed, and a warning to tyrants.
But this July 4, with our democracy under attack and the future of our nation in doubt, that amazing document must once more serve as a declaration of shared will. The success of the entire American project is at risk if not.
This initiative was established in Philadelphia in 1776, and its founding statement is remarkably straightforward: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
And it was radical. The notion that civil and human rights were inherent and independent of the whims of tyrants, and that government received its power from the people, changed the world. From Kosovo in 2008 to Haiti in 1791 and beyond, it helped spark revolution and provide autonomy around the world, and supported the U.S. civil rights and women’s suffrage campaigns.
The story could finish there, with most Americans in agreement with the founding principles of our nation, which were outlined in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776: a government chosen by the people, one in which minorities’ beliefs are safeguarded alongside our inalienable human rights.
That was the message that convinced the thirteen independent English colonies to put aside their diverse agendas and points of view and become the United States.
We hope that is the same as how most Americans currently think their country should be set up.
It might not be, though. There is no doubt that the fight to protect voting rights is ongoing as some jurisdictions try to restrict who can cast a ballot based on race and party.
Particularly after the Supreme Court shredded the Voting Rights Act when voting is frequently made difficult for Black individuals in the South.
But the campaigns to limit voting have intensified. Republicans in conservative communities increasingly view any votes cast by their political rivals as invalid, including elected officials and election workers. They are motivated to take action to prevent being counted because they feel empowered to.
All of this culminated in Donald Trump’s and his follower’s attempt to rig the 2020 election, which included rioting at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, as well as their plans to employ fictitious electors or “found votes” to maintain Trump’s hold on power even though he lost the election.
Republicans now firmly believe that an election was stolen in the months that have passed since that incident. In the upcoming elections, some of these conspiracy theorists are running for elected office to succeed where they fell short in 2020.
They are not hiding their desire to elect Republicans to office, whether or not the votes go their way. To stop them and prevent our elections from turning into a farce, the question is whether there will be enough Americans in the appropriate places.
Can we once more come together behind the notion that we are all equal and that we all belong to the same country?
