A Declaration of Liberty and Order
MyDeclaration The primary responsibility of a government is to provide for the common defense, maintain social order, promote liberty, provide for the equal treatment and protection under the law, and to ensure economic and social opportunity for its citizens. These rights extend to all citizens, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sex, sexual orientation, or […]
“What is required is a new declaration of independence” — President-Elect Obama, Jan. 17, 2009
Editor’s note: On January 17, 2009, just three days before his first inauguration, President-elect Barack Obama called for “a new declaration of independence.” This isn’t the only time he’s harked back to the Declaration. ” In calling for the legalization of same sex marriages on June 4, 2013, he said, “It’s something that can be traced back […]
The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense Ten-Point Platform and Program — “A combination of a Bill of Rights and a Declaration of Independence” (1967)
Editor’s note: This document is characterized by Huey P. Newton, co-founder in 1966 with Bobby Seale of the radical Black Panther Party, as a “combination of a Bill of Rights and a Declaration of Independence.” Officially called “The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense Ten-Point Platform and Program, it was crafted and then published by the […]
Declaration of Rights of the Women of the United States (July 4, 1876)
Editor’s Note: Not everything went according to the carefully planned script during our Centennial celebration of the Declaration of Independence, held at Independence Square in Philadelphia. At the proceedings, five of our nation’s most prominent women’s rights activists –Matilda Joslyn Gage, Phoebe W. Couzins, Sara Andrews Spencer, Susan B. Anthony, and Lillie Devereux Blake — interrupted the […]
An Initial Declaration Towards a Global Ethic (September 4, 1993)
Editor’s Note: The first draft of this declaration was composed by the Swiss Catholic priest and scholar Dr. Hans Kung — known for his rejection of the notion of papal infallibility — and then was further worked on by approximately 200 scholars affiliated with many of the world’s principal faith traditions. It aims to set forth a global ethic […]
The Declaration of the Rights of the Negro Peoples of the World (1920)
Editor’s note: On August 13, 1920, this declaration of black grievances, rights and principles was drafted and adopted at a convention of the Universal Negro Improvement Association, presided over by Marcus Garvey, a leading advocate of Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism. Garvey had a sizable following of disenfranchised black Americans — as demonstrated by the more than 20,000 […]
Declaration of Equality, by Fredric K. Schroeder, National Federation of the Blind (July 5, 2007)
Editor’s note: This declaration of equality, composed by Fredric K. Schroeder, First Vice President of the National Federation of the Blind and a research professor at San Diego State University, draws upon our July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution, and Lincoln’s Gettysburg address in making its stirring case for equal rights for the blind. […]
Declaration of Sentiments of the American Anti-Slavery Convention, 1833.
Editor’s Note: The prominent abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison asserts in this declaration, the composition of which he spearheaded, that slavery is a moral evil and that “every American citizen, who detains a human being in involuntary bondage as his property, is, according to Scripture, (Ex. xxi. 16,) a man-stealer”. Garrison’s, whose deeds matched his rhetoric, co-founded the […]
A Declaration for Childkind
MyDeclaration In our founding era, our nation’s youth often were front and center in the Revolutionary war effort. They even put themselves in harm’s way to enlist and serve as soldiers, most often, as drummers in the thick of battle, helping convey critical signals to American troops that could prove decisive. Yet our youngest are rarely part of […]
Declaration of Montréal on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Human Rights (2006)
Editor’s Note: This declaration was approved on July 29, 2006 at the International Conference, the largest ever gathering, on LGBT Human Rights in Montreal. It is described by organizers as a conference “attended by 1500 people from more than hundred countries in the world.” The declaration itself “was drafted by the Co-Presidents of the Conference…and unanimously […]
