July 4, 1776: A Promise for the Future, If We Can Keep It
July 4, 1776, serves as a turning point in American and World history. On this day, the Founding Fathers birthed an experiment that ushered in an era of self-governance.
“The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” - The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776.
July 4th and our Declaration of Independence not only marks the birth of our Republic, but it serves as a cornerstone of our philosophy for government. 248 years later, our Republic represents the wealthiest and most powerful nation in the history of human civilization. Not even the Roman or British Empires, at their peaks, were able to achieve the height and success that America has seen in its brief history.
America from its inception has never been a ‘perfect’ nation, in fact, I would argue that no such state has ever existed throughout the course of human history. The ‘American Experiment,’ has however, represented the most unique and nearly perfect form of governance the world has ever seen.
On July 4th, 1776, after months of deliberation, our Founders committed an act of Treason by formally declaring their independence from the English Crown. If captured, this act of treason would result in each man’s death by hanging. Regardless, each man, fifty-six in total, willingly signed their name on our Declaration of Independence. Within the Declaration was an eloquent and assertive argument for self-governance that would form the foundation of our Republic. Each man present knew that if they failed to secure our independence, they effectively signed their own death certificate. Thankfully for us, they succeeded.
“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.” - The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776.
America from its founding has been a moral nation. Our Founders fundamentally understood that rights were derived from God, not from man, and that within each man was an innate desire for liberty. Similarly, our Founders knew that a government left unfettered would naturally seek more power and infringe upon these God-given rights. The Founders had witnessed first-hand the oppressive nature of a government that served to benefit the ruling class. Arguably, there has never in history been a group of men who so deeply understood the nature of government and its inclination toward tyranny.
To the best of their ability, our Founders shaped and molded our Republic in a way that curtailed a government’s innate desire to gain power. Principally, this has more or less worked for most of our Nation’s history. The ideals of liberty planted in our Declaration have largely persisted in our society today. The pages of our short history are filled will the blood of those who have willingly died to advance and protect these ideals of self-governance.
“The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be freemen or slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and destroyed, and themselves consigned to a state of wretchedness from which no human efforts will deliver them. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.” - George Washington, August 23, 1776
As a Nation, we must romanticize and embrace the founding principles that gave birth to our Republic. We must always recognize the moral altruism present in the ideals of liberty and self-governance. If our Nation is to survive the impending rise of global authoritarianism—in the West and abroad—we must cling to our God-given rights and our Republican ideals that protect them.
There are growing sects of our society that aim to subvert these ideals and discount them writ large. Whether it is the dramatized sense of victimization that leads individuals to despise our Nation, or the backwards belief that all men are not created in God’s image. What once existed on the fringes of our society has sadly seeped itself into the mainstream. The rise of these fringe groups did not grow independently of one another, in fact, they are deeply connected as they exist to dominate each other. The pervasive rhetoric and ideologies espoused by these entities are overtaking the otherwise rational debate that once existed in this country.
A Nation hellbent on its self-destruction will eventually cease to exist. We need not look deep into history to see what will appear from the ashes if this course continues. There is a false equivalency drawn between ‘course correcting’ our Nation and destroying the American system as we know it. This pervasive idea stems from a flourishing nihilistic movement that says society has never nor will ever be good. This movement directly reflects the neglect of our society—and its political leaders—to uphold and strengthen the moral fabric that birthed our Nation.
“A lady asked Dr. (Benjamin) Franklin, ‘Well Doctor what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?’ – ‘A republic,’ replied the Doctor ‘if you can keep it.” – Excerpt from James McHenry’s journal, September 18, 1787.
As Americans, we have a duty and responsibility to understand and uphold the ideals set forth by the Founding Fathers. We must revitalize a genuine interest in our Nation’s history and its founding philosophy of self-governance. If we lose sight of these founding principles—the proverbial pillars that our society is built upon—we will be reduced to nothing. If the United States slips into nothingness and tyranny, there will truly be nothing left in the world.
The Declaration of Independence was a promise from our Founding Fathers to our Nation that we would always enjoy our God-given rights. It was a promise that self-governance and lack of governmental imposition would usher in an era of freedom and prosperity. It is our responsibility to ensure that promise is kept in perpetuity for the generations of Americans to come.