The Declaration of Independence – July 4, 1776
Editor’s Note: In American Scripture, eminent scholar Pauline Maier characterizes the July 4, 1776 Declaration originally as “a workaday document” that came to be “in the grubby world of 18th century politics.” Maybe so, but it has long since come to be seen as “a statement of values that more than any other expresses not why we […]
Declaration of Independence — Reported Draft, Submitted by Committee of Five to Second Continental Congress (1776)
Editor’s note: This draft of our Declaration of Independence is the one submitted by the Committee of Five — John Adams of Massachusetts and Roger Sherman of Connecticut; Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York; and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia — to the Second Continental Congress, which then made significant changes. A […]
Declaration of Energy Independence (2010)
Editor’s Note: This declaration, issued on July 4, 2010, is a response to the calamitous BP oil spill. It charts a vision for energy use for the future that’s based on widespread use of renewable energy sources, and of technological innovations to help achieve this. Declaration of Energy Independence From the Green Collaborative of New […]
Declaration of Independence by the People of the Free State of Jefferson (2013)
Editor’s Note: In many respects, this declaration seems to be more one of autonomy rather than secession that would lead to outright independence. Since this declaration is not widely accessible on Internet, it’s uncertain if it represents the views of many (or any) of those seeking to realize the republic, or state (some want a republic, others […]
A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace (1996)
Editor’s Note: This declaration was crafted by John Perry Barlow, a founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an international nonprofit that focuses on fair use of digital rights. It was issued as a paper, and was widely released online on February 8, 1996. In many respects the declaration is a response to (and against) the U.S. Telecommunications […]
Declaration of American Energy Independence (2011)
Editor’s Note: According to this site, this declaration, which in structure and rhetoric at least in part was inspired by our July 4, 1776 document, was signed in August 2011 “during several Energy Patriots events held in Fort McHenry in Baltimore, MD; York, PA; and Philadelphia, PA. The event was sponsored by AmeriGeen, a Manheim-based biofuel […]
Declaration of Independence — Commonwealth of Liberia (1847)
Editor’s Note: Liberia’s declaration, issued on July 26, 1847, is modeled after our July 4, 1776 document. It asserts that Liberia is a “free, sovereign, and independent state” and that “all men certain [have] inalienable rights; among these are life, liberty, and the right to acquire, possess, enjoy, and defend property.” Liberia distinguishes itself as the first […]
Republic of Lakotah (2007)
Editor’s note: Until he passed away in October 2012, Russell Means, co-founder of the American Indian Movement, was a prime mover and shaker behind the effort to establish the Provisional Government of the Republic of Lakotah. Those who carry the torch for the movement do not see this as secession but rather as a “withdrawal;” they consider […]
Declaration of Continuing Independence – First Indian International Indian Treaty Council (1974)
Editor’s Note: This declaration emerged out of a growing activist movement among Native Americans to re-establish their autonomous rights of government, their rights under existing treaties, and their continued grievances with the U.S. government and how their rights have been continually subverted. Nearly 100 indigenous tribes and Nations took part in the 1974 gathering at Standing […]
