proclaim liberty
many declarations, interwoven
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Happy Thursday! Since today is a national holiday here in the U.S., I thought I'd try something, using a base text with which most of y'all are probably pretty familiar. Let me know what you think?
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equalâ
And God created human in God's image, in the image of God God created them. (Genesis 1:27)
REAFFIRMING that indigenous peoples are original, diverse societies with their own identities that constitute an integral part of the Americas; (American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2016)
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Rav Yehuda said that Shmuel said... âYou shall keep My statutes and My ordinances, which a person shall do and live by themâ (Leviticus 18:5), and not that they should die by them. (Talmud Yoma 85b)
God will proclaim liberty for all God's children
And will keep you as the apple of God's eye
Pleasant is Your name and will not be destroyed
Repose and rest on the day of Shabbat. (D'ror Yikra, traditional liturgical poem by Dunash ben Labrat)
The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me...Would you have me argue that man is entitled to liberty? That he is the rightful owner of his own body? You have already declared it...To do so, would be to make myself ridiculous, and to offer an insult to your understanding. There is not a man beneath the canopy of heaven, that does not know that slavery is wrong for him. (Frederick Douglass, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" )
RECOGNIZING the urgent need to respect and promote the inherent rights of indigenous peoples, which derive from their political, economic, and social structures and from their cultures, spiritual traditions, histories, and philosophies, especially their rights to their lands, territories, and resources; (American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2016)
That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
To say now that America was right, and England wrong, is exceedingly easy. Everybody can say it; the dastard, not less than the noble brave, can flippantly discant on the tyranny of England towards the American Colonies. It is fashionable to do so; but there was a time when to pronounce against England, and in favor of the cause of the colonies, tried menâs souls. They who did so were accounted in their day, plotters of mischief, agitators and rebels, dangerous men. To side with the right, against the wrong, with the weak against the strong, and with the oppressed against the oppressor! here lies the merit, and the one which, of all others, seems unfashionable in our day. The cause of liberty may be stabbed by the men who glory in the deeds of your fathers. (Frederick Douglass, "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" )
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government... Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.
When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce [one] under absolute despotism, it is their duty to throw off such government... Such has been the patient sufferance of the women under this government, and such is now the necessity which constrains them to demand the equal station to which they are entitled. (The Seneca Falls Declaration of 1848)
We want freedom. We want power to determine the destiny of our Black Community.
We want full employment for our people.
We want an end to the robbery by the Capitalists of our Black Community.
We want decent housing, fit for shelter of human beings.
We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society. We want education that teaches us our true history and our role in the present day society.
We want all Black men to be exempt from military service.
We want an immediate end to POLICE BRUTALITY and MURDER of Black people.
We want freedom for all Black men held in federal, state, county and city prisons and jails.
We want all Black people when brought to trial to be tried in court by a jury of their peer group or people from their Black Communities, as defined by the Constitution of the United States.
We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable 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; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. (From the Black Panther Ten-Point Program, 1966)
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress...solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved...And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
CONCERNED that Indigenous peoples have suffered from historic injustices as a result of, inter alia, their colonization and the dispossession of their lands, territories and resources, thus preventing them from exercising, in particular, their right to development in a ccordance with their own needs and interests; RECOGNIZING: That the rights of Indigenous peoples are both essential and of historical significance to the present and future of the Americas; The important presence in the Americas of Indigenous peoples and their immense contribution to development, plurality, and cultural diversity, and reiterating our commitment to their economic and social well-being, as well as the obligation to respect their rights and cultural identity; and that the existence of the Indigenous cultures and peoples of the Americas is important to humanity; (American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2016)
And you shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof; it shall be a jubilee unto you; and you shall return every person unto their possession, and you shall return every person unto their family. (Leviticus 25:10)
You shall appoint magistrates and officials for your tribes, in all the settlements that God your God is giving you, and they shall govern the people with due justice. You shall not judge unfairly: you shall show no partiality; you shall not take bribes, for bribes blind the eyes of the discerning and upset the plea of the just. Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that the God your God is giving you. (Deuteronomy 16:18-20)
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