(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Fourth of July Musings [1] ['Chitown Kev', 'Belinda Ridgewood', 'Bill In Portland Maine'] Date: 2026-07-02 On Juy 4th, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed. It was a radical document, declaring that sovereignty rests with the people, not with a king. This upended 2000 years of European tradition; the last representative democracy there was the Roman republic, which ended when Julius Caesar was declared dictator for life in 44 BCE 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.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.. Where did these revolutionary ideas come from? The model was all around the Founders. The Iroquois Haudenosaunee Confederacy governed through consent, balance of powers, and freedom from domination — a living example of liberty that stood in stark contrast to both European monarchy and American slavery. Benjamin Franklin worked closely with Haudenosaunee diplomats for decades. He printed their treaties, studied their political structure, and wrote: “It would be a strange thing if Six Nations of ignorant savages should be capable of forming a scheme for such a union… and yet a like union should be impracticable for ten or a dozen English colonies.” The U.S. Senate later acknowledged that the Iroquois Confederacy influenced the Constitution. Ben Franklin was one of the 56 signers (all men), of the Declaration of Independence. He is quoted as saying: “We must all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.” And in fact,5 of them were imprisoned, 12 had their homes burned, looted or destroyed, several lost fortunes, and some were killed or wounded during the bloody Revolutionary War that ensued. As we all know, the 13 New World colonies strung along the East Coast of North America did succeed in breaking away from the British monarchy. The fighting ended October 19, 1781: British General Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown. Two years later, the United States was officially recognized as independent, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. The colonists then spent 6-7 years hammering out the US Constitution. “We the People”- thereby asserting that sovereignty does not rest with a king, but with the citizens, who elect representatives to govern in a way that secures the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But the Constitution failed to live up to the ideals laid out in the Declaration. The female half of the population had no rights as citizens. Native Americans were not granted US citizenship until 1924. Full voting rights for all Natives were not ensured until 1965. And, of course, slaves had no rights at all. In fact, only 6% of the adult population in the original 13 states had the right to vote. These were white men over 21, in many states they were required to hold a certain amount of property. Only wealthy white men were citizens, Fortunately, the ideals expressed in the Declaration have never been forgotten. Several Constitutional amendments have extended the right to vote to all races, women, and people over 18. Now about 75% of adult US residents can vote. The current administration, with the help of the “originalists” on the Supreme Court, is trying to restore the 18th century situation. Gerrymandering, buying politicians, intimidating voters are all tactics designed to ensure rule by wealthy white men. The current president openly expresses his desire to be a king and repeatedly tries to act like one. As we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, let us recall the lofty sentiments expressed therein. Let us also recall the courage of the men who drafted and signed this foundational document. As We the People continue to fight for our right to sovereignty, for a government that considers us all equal and all entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, let us draw inspiration from the courage of from the Founding Fathers and hang together, so we that we don’t hang separately. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/7/2/800064202/community/fourth-of-july-musings/ Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/