Before I quit teaching, I was lucky enough to be able to teach a class that I feel truly passionate about -- American Literature. One piece of American literature that really moves me is the Declaration of Independence. I used to tell the kiddos in my class that it was probably one of my top ten favorite pieces of literature to teach because once everyone understands what is being said, the brilliance and beauty of the document starts to emerge more clearly. I had a student tell me last year that he learned more about American history from my forty-five minute Declaration of Independence lecture than he did in his history class. Always a good day when you hear that. Anyways, in honor of America's birthday, I figured what better way to celebrate than to re-visit this magical piece of Americana. Hopefully it gives you jazz hands (and spirit fingers) the way it does me. My teachable moments (and helpful definitions) are in [brackets]. Enjoy!
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When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel [push] them to the separation.
[Right off the bat, notice that the Founding Fathers (from here on out: FF) didn't beat around the bush. They say that this separation is necessary, not just desired. This is not just a political temper tantrum. (More about that later.) They also clarify that by getting rid of these political ties, they are taking on a new role as a group of people -- a separate but equal role. This suggests they were under England before this Declaration was declared.]
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, they they are endowed by their Creator [the Christian God] with certain unalienable Rights [that is, they can't be taken away], that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving [obtaining] their just powers from the consent of the governed,--That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter [change] or abolish [get rid of] it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect [achieve] their Safety and Happiness.
[A couple meaty sentences, for sure. First of all, notice that the FF clearly stated that the Rights which make us equal were given to us by our Creator. Government is not the last word on Rights; God is. Now, in order for those Rights to be protected, governments are put into place and the powers (even more, the "just powers") of those governments come directly from the people. I can remember a student asked me once if what the Colonists did was actually wrong since they weren't respecting and fearing the government, like the Bible says we should. I told him that part of what makes the Declaration of Independence so brilliant is that it was the last resort for the Colonies. They did what they could to try to change how they were being treated in the form of petitions, letters, boycotts, and peaceful demonstrations. After they were rebuffed enough times, it was time to take action since the Rights they knew were given to them by God were being violated. However, instead of just saying, "Screw it, let's just shoot some guns," the Colonies decided to let King George know exactly why they were doing what they were doing. They had tried to "alter" the government before they chose to "abolish" it. And their central goal was simply to be protected! It wasn't just that they didn't feel like following the rules. The king was not holding up his end of the government bargain by treating them unfairly.]
Prudence [caution], indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient [fleeting] causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn [has shown] that mankind are more disposed [apt] to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations [seizures of power], pursuing invariably [always] the same Object evinces [reveals] a design [plan] to reduce them under absolute Despotism [tyranny], it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains [forces] them to alter their former Systems of Government.
[Just a side note: every time I read "it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government and to provide new Guards for their future security"...I get chills. Nerdy teacher, I know. But think about how this document changed the course of history! It's incredible when you really stop to contemplate it.]
[In this section, I so appreciate that the FF noted that most people are willing to put up with being treated badly as long as being treated badly is bearable. They were using a basic understanding of human nature to strengthen their cause. People will often complain about things, but they, more often than not, won't attempt to make a change for the better. So, in essence, the FF are saying, "Even we--with our human tendency to 'put up' with abuse--can't take this anymore and demand to be treated more justly." The Declaration says here that the FF believed King George's eventual goal was Absolutism. Obviously, that was (and is) a conflict with the Rights they believed God had given every person, and, thus, they were declaring it their "right" and "duty" to create a new government that would protect them from tyranny.]
The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations [you already know what this means!], all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
[In the following section, the FF literally make a list of all the ways King George has violated them and their freedom. I am going to summarize in my own words to make it go a little faster. I usually skipped this part when I was teaching it...But what makes it important is that, again, the FF wanted to make it clear that they weren't just throwing a political temper tantrum. They had very specific reasons for declaring a separation from England. You could probably skim it and still get the major gist of why America did what she did.]
1. He won't approve laws that would uphold the public good.
2. He won't allow his governors (in the Colonies) to pass important laws because he wants to approve them himself, except he ignores the laws once he receives them.
3. He won't pass laws to help large districts unless they agree to no longer be represented in the legislature.
4. He has made legislation difficult in an attempt to bully people into doing what he wants.
5. He has gotten rid of representative houses who oppose his invasions on the rights of the people.
6. He has stalled elections and left states without anyone in charge.
7. He has tried to keep people from migrating to America through unfair laws.
8. He has obstructed justice by not passing laws to create judiciary powers in the Colonies.
9. He has made it so judges' length of tenure and payment of salary depend on him.
10. He has created offices (and sent officers) to harass the people and cause them problems.
11. He has kept standing armies in times of peace.
12. He has made it so the military is independent of (and superior to) the civil powers in the Colonies.
13. He's tried to force his legislation on the states, even legislation that contradicts state constitutions.
14. He is housing large groups of soldiers in our midst.
15. He's protecting those soldiers from being prosecuted for murdering colonists.
16. He has cut off our trade from the rest of the world.
17. He has taxed us without consent.
18. He has deprived us of trials by jury.
19. He has taken people away from the Colonies to be tried for fake crimes.
20. He has established an arbitrary government by getting rid of English law in a nearby Province and then has used this Province as an example of what will happen to the Colonies after he takes over completely.
21. He has taken away our charters and laws and has changed our forms of government.
22. He has suspended our legislatures and used them to his own ends.
23. He has said we are no longer under his protection and has waged war against us.
24. "He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people." [I didn't feel I could summarize that any better...]
25. He is sending large armies and mercenaries to carry out his acts of death, destruction, tyranny, and cruelty which don't line up with his station as the head of a modern nation.
26. He has taken captives on the sea and forced them to fight in his army against their own countrymen.
27. He has caused uprisings among us and has incited the "merciless Indian Savages" against us. [What's in quotes is a direct quote from the Declaration.]
[I think most of these are pretty self-explanatory. Like I said, they are summaries, so if you want to read the real wording, check out the Declaration yourself!]
In every state of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress [remedy] in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
[Again, we see that the FF wanted to confirm the fact that they weren't just kicking and screaming about having a ruler over them. They had tried the calm approach through their "petitions", but those had been completely disregarded. Not only was it disregarded, but the problems they were trying to deal with in the first place actually got worse. They were fighting against oppression and tyranny in its most palpable form.]
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren [brothers]. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction [unfounded power] over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity [generosity], and we have conjured [influenced] them by ties of our common kindred to disavow [reject] these usurpations [they really liked this word], which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity [common ancestry]. We must, therefore, acquiesce [give in] in the necessity, which denounces [speaks out against] our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
[Part of what I think is so smart about this Declaration is how all-encompassing the FF were. They covered all their bases, including how to deal with the people in their midst who certainly wouldn't be okay with separating from Britain. And they even have the beginnings of a foreign policy here: "we...hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends." Nice work, FF.]
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world [the Christian God] for the rectitude [right-ness] of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; they they are Absolved [freed] from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy [start] War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence [the Christian God], we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
[I love that the FF came full circle with their Declaration. They acknowledge at the beginning of it that God is one Who gave them their rights. So, it's only fitting that here at the end, they also check in with Him to be sure that what they're doing has a moral basis. Furthermore, they ask for His protection as they send this little mail-bomb. However, they don't take themselves out of the equation and just hope that God will protect them. They pledge each other their lives, knowing that some of them would likely lose their lives in the conflict that was to come. For them, it was an all-or-nothing kind of thing. But so were their Rights!]
I am reading Democracy in America with a couple friends of mine, and one point Alexis de Tocqueville makes in his intro is that you can see what a nation will become by going back to see how it started. I've thought a lot about that this past week for a variety of reasons. There are times where I fear that our country has strayed so far from the place it started that it will eventually become unrecognizable. Perhaps that will happen. But I find a great amount of comfort when I read documents like the Declaration of Independence because I know that this nation started as a place where an Idea can triumph over tyranny. Might does not make right. No matter what happens, where we come from is solid. Buildings can crumble but still stand the test of time when they have strong foundations. You've just read one small part of ours.
For more pieces of the foundation (or just good stuff to know), I challenge you to read some of the following:
The United States Constitution
Daniel Hannan, The New Road to Serfdom
Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, & John Jay, The Federalist Papers
Thomas Paine, Common Sense
John Locke, Two Treatises of Government
Happy Fourth of July!
