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 […]
‘Declarations of our humble opinion respecting the most essential rights and liberties of the colonists’ (Declaration of Rights of Stamp Act Congress) — Declaration of Rights and Grievances, October 19, 1765
Editor’s Note: These resolutions are described by the First Continental Congress as tantamount to “declarations of our humble opinion, respecting the most essential rights and liberties Of the colonists, and of the grievances under which they labour, by reason of several late Acts of Parliament.” The aim is “to procure the repeal of the Act […]
New Hampshire Declaration of Independence (June 15, 1776)
Editor’s Note: With the inauspicious title of “Committee,” New Hampshire’s chambers declared independence “with the example of several of the most respectable of our sister Colonies before us for entering upon that most important step, of a disunion from Great Britain, and declaring ourselves free and independent of the Crown”, impelled as they were “by the […]
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, 1793
Editor’s Note: An expanded version of the 1789 French declaration, this revised version goes even further than its predecessor — it places greater emphasis on egalitarianism and endows all humans with even greater rights. Though it was never officially enacted, it nonetheless has been highly influential when it comes to advancing notions in the generation sto […]
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, 1789
Editor’s Note: If there was a declaration to be written in the years soon after the founding of our republic, who better than Thomas Jefferson to have at least have some hand in its composition? As U.S. minister to France, Jefferson at times leant his expertise and insights — in many ways the product of […]
Declaration of the National Anti-Slavery Convention (1833)
Editor’s Note: Written by the abolitionist, journalist and social former William Lloyd Garrison, this declaration of sentiments — published on December 14, 1833 in The Liberator — heralded the birth of the American Anti-Slavery Society, incorporating key passages of our Declaration of July 4, 1776 to advance its arguments. Declaration of the National Anti-Slavery Convention The Convention, assembled […]
American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man – 1948
Editor’s Note: Adopted in April 1948 at the International Conference of American States in Bogota, Colombia, this document represents the first attempt on the world stage — coming out eight months before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations — to set forth and enumerate the rights, and duties, of each […]
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Editor’s Note: Adopted by the UN General Assembly on 10 December 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was crafted in less than two years’ time — an amazing feat, especially given how divided among Eastern and Western factions the world was at the time as it emerged from World War II. Yet uncommon common […]
Inter-American Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (1995)
Editor’s Note: Iin 1989, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was asked by the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) to compose a declaration of rights of “indigenous populations.” This declaration was intended to have legal standing. In February 1997, this draft declaration was endorsed by the Commission. Our understanding is that it has […]
