Declaration Project

Declaration (Proclamation) of Korean Independence (1919)

Editor’s note: On March 1, 1919, after 9 years of Japanese occupation, 33 primarily cultural and religious leaders of the Samil Movement (most political leaders were jailed or in exile) convened and drew up a proclamation of independence. This sparked a nationwide protest movement, called the March 1st Movement or the Samil Independence Movement, which featured widespread demonstrations to […]

Act of Abjuration – a.k.a. Dutch Declaration of Independence (1581)

Editor’s note:  Popularly known as ‘the Dutch Declaration of Independence,’ this document — formally entitled the Act of Abjuration — Plakkaat van Verlatinghe in Dutch (literally “placard of desertion”) — was the collective product in July 26, 1581 of leaders of a group of northern Dutch provinces who asserted their independence from Spanish rule. Though it is […]

Magna Carta – a.k.a. Declaration of the Rule of Law (June 12, 1215)

Editor’s Note: Often referred to as the ‘Declaration of the rule of law,’ the Magna Carta, or ‘Great Charter,’ was enacted in 1215, the culmination of the efforts of English barons to limit monarchical rule and enumerate rights for the people (especially people like them). In one of its most-known clauses, the Magna Carta states that “No […]

Act of Abjuration – Dutch Declaration of Independence, July 26, 1581

Editor’s Note: This is often referred to as the first modern declaration of independence, in which the people disown their king. There are many telling similarities between this document, and its compelling case for dispensing with what it perceives as monarchical tyranny, and our July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence — and to this day […]

Declaration of Workers’ and Farmers’ Rights and Purposes – 1933

Editor’s Note:  With our July 4, 1776 Declaration as its model, the Declaration of Workers’ and Farmers’ Rights and Purposes was the fruit of the inaugural convention of the National Unemployed Leagues, organized in Columbus, Ohio, by Dutch-born clergyman and political activist A.J. Muste, who spearheaded the Conference on Progressive Labor Action, and sparked as […]

Declaration of Independence of Venezuela – July 5, 1811

Editor’s Note:  July 5, 1811 heralded Venezuela’s formal break with the Spanish crown when its members of congress approved the Venezuelan Declaration of Independence, which was clearly influenced by our July 4, 1776 declaration. In establishing an independent nation, the Venezuelan “Firma Acta de la Independencia,” or “Signing of the Act of Independence,” aimed to create a society based on […]

Haitian Declaration of Independence (1804)

Editor’s Note: On January 1, 1804, after a protracted war with forces sent by Napoleon Bonaparte to quell its uprising, Haiti (formerly Saint-Domingue) declared its independence from France. It became the second colony in the Americas, following the United States, to make a formal break with its ruling country. Penned by Boisrond-Tonnerre — who composed it […]

Tea Party Nation Declaration of Independence (2010)

Editor’s Note: In February 2010, about a year after enter the political scene in a big way, Tea Party activists began disseminating a ‘Declaration of Independence.’ Evocative at last in some respects of our July 4, 1776 document, the declaration aims to be a means for clarifying their principles and purpose, for establishing their independence from the […]