We’re approaching the biggest celebration of the Summer – July 4th – American Independence Day!! At AMS we are happy to look at our company and our employees and appreciate the progress that has been made in the US toward every one of us being included in this inspiring Declaration.
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.
We will look at some history and celebrate the fact that the concept of “all men” has evolved, through long and difficult battles, to actually include All Human Beings. We cannot say that the evolution is complete, as there are still battles to be won, but yes, here in the US and around the world we do see an inclusive and just movement taking place and we are proud to be a part of it as a corporate family and as a B Corporation.
We will begin by sharing excerpts an article from the Smithsonian Magazine.
“On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass gave a keynote address at an Independence Day celebration and asked, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” Douglass was a powerful orator, often traveling six months out of the year to give lectures on abolition. His speech, given at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, was held at Corinthian Hall in Rochester, New York. It was a scathing speech in which Douglass stated, “This Fourth of July is yours, not mine, You may rejoice, I must mourn.”
“In his speech, Douglass acknowledged the Founding Fathers of America, the architects of the Declaration of Independence, for their commitment to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness:”
“Fellow Citizens, I am not wanting in respect for the fathers of this republic. The signers of the Declaration of Independence were brave men. They were great men, too, great enough to give frame to a great age. It does not often happen to a nation to raise, at one time, such a number of truly great men. The point from which I am compelled to view them is not, certainly, the most favorable; and yet I cannot contemplate their great deeds with less than admiration. They were statesmen, patriots and heroes, and for the good they did, and the principles they contended for, I will unite with you to honor their memory.””
Please click HERE to read the full article.
We also note that the Declaration did not say “all men and women.” An article from the National Archives blog asks, “Have you heard of the Declaration of Sentiments?” Here below is an excerpt from that article:
“The Declaration of Sentiments was written at the first women’s rights convention in American history at Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. Organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, and other women’s rights and anti-slavery activists, the meeting attracted more than 300 participants including abolitionist Frederick Douglass.
“The language in the Declaration of Sentiments was inspired by the Declaration of Independence. In proclaiming that, “we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal,” the Declaration of Sentiments replaced colonists’ grievances against a tyrannical king with the injustices women endured. These included women’s inability to control property, stating “he has taken from her all right in property, even to the wages she earns,” as well as severely limited educational and professional opportunities and—most controversially—the right to vote.”
Please click HERE for the full article.
We have come a long way toward individual freedom and democratic government, and yet there is much left to do. Happy Independence Day to ALL and let’s keep at it!