Declaring Independence

 I believe that it is crucial to remember what it is that we celebrate here in the USA on July 4th and why. July 4, 1776 is the date the Continental Congress formally adopted the resolution on independence from Great Britain. The draft written by Thomas Jefferson can be found here and the revised text as adopted by the Continental Congress can be found here. For the purposes of this post, I will be pulling quotes from both versions of the document. Unless specified otherwise, all quotes in this post are taken from the Declaration of Independence. 

In the Declaration, a list of grievances is given detailing why the colonies decided that it was necessary to declare themselves a new nation and separate from the British Empire. I highlight some of those grievances here in order to portray why I believe we should neither take freedom for granted nor think of July 4 as a day to celebrate independence, but rather as a day to remind ourselves of how precious and fragile freedom is. History has shown us that time and again authoritarians will rise up and seek to destroy freedom in pursuit of self-aggrandizement.

In introducing this list of grievances Jefferson originally wrote these words

the history of his present majesty, is a history of unremitting injuries and usurpations, among which no one fact stands single or solitary to contradict the uniform tenor of the rest, all of which have in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. to prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world, for the truth of which we pledge a faith yet unsullied by falsehood.

and those words in the revised document, as passed by the Continental Congress, read thus

The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

The assertion is that King George III was a tyrant, an authoritarian who refused to rule in a way which was fair to the people of the American colonies. In order to demonstrate how history repeats itself, I wish to list some of these grievances and indicate how they have recurred.

he has refused to pass other laws for the accomodation of large districts of people unless those people would relinquish the right of representation, a right inestimable to them, formidable to tyrants alone:

Since 2012, Puerto Rico has voted 4 times to become a state in the USA, statehood getting 97% of the vote in 2017. This desire has been denied them, in essence denying those citizens the right to representation in Congress. 

he has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither; & raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands:

The current administration has made it its primary goal since inauguration to not only make it more difficult for foreigners to be naturalized here but also to deport them en masse regardless of their legal status. They have expired visas for people who were here on visa. They have deported documented immigrants and US citizens. 

he has erected a multitude of new offices by a self-assumed power, & sent hither swarms of officers to harrass our people & eat out their substance:

This administration established the Department of Government Efficiency, sent swarms of officers to harass various federal agencies, and even take control of government records. They had the self-assumed power of firing employees en masse and without notice. The purpose of this new department was clearly to make these government agencies incapable of completing their purposes. 

he has kept among us in times of peace standing armies & ships of war:

In June of this year, 4000 national guard troops and 700 marines were sent to LA. Our own military was deployed to combat our own citizens--during a time of peace--in order to bully and harass citizens who were exercising their First Amendment rights to protest peacefully. 

for imposing taxes on us without our consent;

Tariffs are taxes. They have been imposed on various goods being imported in the United States without any consent from Congress or from the People. 

for depriving us of the benefits of trial by jury; 

for transporting us beyond seas to be tried for pretended offences: 

We have been told by the current administration that some people do not deserve to have Due Process--that they deserve to be shipped off to an El Salvadorian prison without trial. He has invented claims of people belonging to gangs without any evidence that such is the case--making up pretended offenses.

I believe it would benefit all people to actually read the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States--in particular the Bill of Rights. I do not believe that those people who cry most loudly that they love these documents have read them or understand their meaning. If so, they would not be cheering for a government which is arguably at least as tyrannical as the British government was at the time of the American Revolution. I do not wish to have my rights curtailed, nor the rights of any person who is living within our borders. Furthermore, I believe that a violation of anyone's rights is a violation of all our rights--the moment they are violated they cease to become rights and instead become privileges afforded to some but not all. I cannot remain silent while I watch the erosion of freedom and individual rights.

The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution states "No person shall ... be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law." It does not state "no citizen". It does not state "No person that you aren't claiming is a member of MS-13." It says quite clearly "no person". It is literally unconstitutional to imprison someone (or deport them) without due process. It is a horrific and disgusting offense against human rights to do so, and this administration (as well as previous ones) is all too willing to commit these heinous acts and even has the gall to complain openly about it on television, moaning about how awful it is they're being told they need to follow the clear guidelines of the Constitution.

We have had an increasingly brutal police force, which seems all too happy to pull the trigger on people they are trying to detain or arrest. Every year, at least 1,000 people are killed by police officers in the United States. We are not a free society. We haven't been for a long time. We are a police state--an increasingly brutal one. We need law officers who are trained in de-escalating situations rather than escalating them, and ones who are not looking for reasons to kill people. 

Our country has a notion of a "free speech zone", where protestors are allowed to protest. This is obviously a restriction on the right to protest since it requires protestors to remain within the designated area. In 2012, Obama signed a law which expanded the power of the secret service to enforce free speech zones and make arrests. The freedoms we claim to support are being actively trodden on by the government. 

So, when I wish someone well on this holiday, I no longer say "Happy Independence Day" or anything that may lead to the assumption that I believe our country is free. I may say "Happy 4th", since I do generally wish people to be happy on the day. But I do not believe that we are free. I do not believe that our Constitution is upheld and protected. I believe it is violated with increasing frequency as time goes on, particularly with the current administration which seems to hold it in utter contempt.