What's Great About America
published: 07/05/2009 Parade.com
We Gave Birth to Independence
By General Colin Powell
Former U.S. Secretary of State
The older I get, the more I appreciate the Declaration of Independence, the great document that has driven America toward a more perfect union for over 230 years. One of its sentences in particular captures our essence as a new, free, and democratic nation and has inspired people around the world: “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.”
This beautiful statement was not the reality of 1776, but it set forth the dream that we would strive to make a reality. Our rights come from a Creator, not from man or man’s government. Governments belong to the people and exist to secure the rights endowed to every citizen.
I find new meaning in this sentence every time I read it, and I am so proud that we gave birth to this belief as the foundation of our great country. Every American should pause and read the Declaration every July Fourth.