Our Declaration

After presenting a brief chronology of events leading to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Allen lays out her primary interpretations of the Declaration and her concern that most people, including political philosophers, misunderstand the document. She insists that the Declaration is committed to a view of human progress in which equality matters as much as freedom. The text is also an argument for and demonstration of the value of language in political and social life. While political practices like voting are important, and economic justice is a key facet of social stability, citizens must also “use language effectively enough to influence the choices we make together” (21).

Most political philosophers insist that human equality and freedom are mutually exclusive—we can only have one by sacrificing the other. Much of American public conversation in recent decades, Allen argues, has focused on defending freedom, especially freedom from government overreach. Presidents and presidential candidates from both parties participate equally in defending freedom at equality’s expense. She provides a recent example from the 2012 presidential debates, where one candidate used the Declaration to defend his vision of limited government. She insists, however, that the parties do not matter to her point. Mitt Romney may have presented freedom as the most important aspect of the Declaration and of American progress, but Barack Obama did not resist this interpretation of the Declaration and defend equality.