Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson writing the Declaration of Independence.
Today is Independence Day in the United States. It is commonly called “the 4th of July” because it was on this date in 1776 when the Continental Congress (Founding Fathers) signed a document at the Pennsylvania State House (now called “Independence Hall”) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This document, called the Declaration of Independence, was a kind of “open letter” to King George III, ruler of England.
In the Declaration of Independence, the Founding Fathers listed their grievances with the king, and why the colonies were formally separating from Great Britain. At the heart of the matter were two issues: the tyranny of the king, and taxation without representation. Because the British monarch and his government repeatedly ignored these concerns of the colonies, the colonies wanted out from under the boot of Britain. So, the Declaration of Independence marked the birth of a new nation – no longer colonies subject to the rule of England, but now an independent nation, the United States of America.
Since this happened over 230 years ago, many people tend to forget the history behind the holiday, and focus instead on parades, fireworks, and getting a day off from work. However, it is said that history repeats itself (largely because people do not learn from history!), and once again the American people find themselves in a situation with conditions that parallel those of colonial America in the 1770s – they find themselves under a government that is becoming increasingly tyrannical, and they are being heavily taxed while their supposed representatives in Congress do the exact opposite of what the people want. It was this failure of government to acknowledge that its just authority and legitimacy was derived from the “consent of the governed” that drove the first American Revolution – if the current government continues to ignore the will of its citizens, it will bring about a Second American Revolution.
For over 200 years, Americans have always valued Freedom and Liberty over Tyranny and Oppression. We recognize that any government that attempts to take away our “unalienable rights” – among which are the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” – is an illegitimate government that must be opposed.
The day Americans forget this truth is the day America dies.