Why do we celebrate America's birthday on July 4th and not July 2nd when the Declaration was actually voted on, or 1775 when shots were fired at Lexington and Concord, or 1783 when Britain finally acknowledged our independence in the Treaty of Paris?
In this special episode, co-hosts Chris and Joia dive into why the Declaration of Independence—an act of speech—became the defining moment of America's founding.
"America began with an act of free speech," Chris observes, noting that this "shows how foundational speech is to freedom and to this country and why, therefore it was included in the First Amendment." The Declaration wasn't just theory—it was "planting a flag firmly in the ground," a statement that transformed British colonists into rebels declaring their identity to the world.
Joia and Chris explore how the Declaration served as both America's "vision and mission statement" (while the Constitution became "the business plan"), calling the founders "the ultimate entrepreneurs" who created something purposefully new. They argue that its endurance for 250 years—making America's government structure among the longest-lasting modern governments—proves the Declaration contains "fundamentally good ideas in accord with human nature at our best."
Drawing inspiration from Jefferson's inclusion of the people's right to change government when it oversteps its bounds, they see an "entrepreneurial spirit" that calls each generation to "constantly renew and experiment in new ways to better live up to the ideals it lays out."
Their challenge for this semiquincentennial year? According to Joia, "this is the year for declarations"—for each person to stake their own claim about timeless principles and announce to the world, "this is what matters, let me give you clarity on my identity." Because, as Chris notes, "we inherited this great gift and it's incumbent upon us to live up to those ideals if we're to preserve it for the next generations."
What we’re doing, thinking, reading…
Mark your calendars… We are doing a book club on Yasmine Mohammed’s Unveiled: How the West Empowers Radical Muslims. Throughout February we will start to roll out the 3 series book club that culminates in a livestream with the author. Link to the livestream forthcoming so be sure to sign up for our Substack to stay up-to-date. Start reading the book and join us on our journey. Also, if you have suggestions for a book club or want to join a book club, email Jen at richmond@ilvalues.org.
Pam Hayes-Bohanan
This Week in Banned Book News
Beginning February 1, inmates in Arkansas prisons will no longer be allowed to receive printed materials directly from family members, friends, charitable institutions, or book vendors. Books and magazines will only be accessible via prison libraries. All requests for new materials will be vetted before inmates may have access to them. The Arkansas Department of Justice says the new policy was implemented in order to keep drugs out of the prisons. According to PEN America prisons in the United States already have excessive restrictions on books and reading materials. PEN America further states that claims that books are a “conduit for drugs” are false.
Additional Information:
New Arkansas Prison Policy to Restrict how Inmates Receive Books Starting in February
New PEN America Report: U.S. Prisons Ban Staggering Numbers of Books
Jennifer Richmond
Jen has recently written several pieces on foreign influence in K-12 schools. In the Free Beacon she explored China’s influence operations and a the development of a new strategy to buy private schools after the Confucius Institute strategy went bust: China’s Influence Operation in US Education Was Supposed To Be Shut Down, But Did Closing the Confucius Institutes Only Make It Stronger?
In a Policy Brief she considers three bills that are designed to address foreign influence in the K-12 system: Fight To Keep China Out of U.S. K-12 Classrooms Comes to Congress. Will it be enough?
Zander Keig
In his latest Third Space Podcast, Zander and Grey Doolin discuss the oppressiveness of forced conformity.
Brandy Shufutinsky
The New York Post recently published Brandy’s article Activist educators are hijacking MLK Day — and Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy — with ‘Palestine teach-in’. What would MLK say?
Nafees Alam
Check out Nafees’ latest latest articles:
Good writing is cooked - Allegations of AI use are discouraging good writing.
WNBA’s roadmap to independence, equal pay
Point, counterpoint | Viewpoint diversity, AI, and nuance with social worker
NAVI
Our friends at NAVI just released Fairfax Education Association President Attends Anti-Israel Webinar Promoting “Civil Disobedience“ in the K12 Extremism Tracker.
James E. Petts
James creates our Liberal Concept Explainers. This week we are looking at Polarization.
Learn how polarization helps politicians to get away with corruption and abuse and what you can do to help to end it.
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