Why we celebrate

July 03, 2009 08:47 am

— “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
— Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

The second line of the Declaration of Independence contains the most often repeated words of the document for good reason. Those words form the foundation and rationale for the action the signers declared should be taken.
We celebrate today the vision and dedication to human rights that that line entails. Whatever action we take in the future as a nation, whatever we attempt to do, Thomas Jefferson’s words should remain the foundation and end result.