Equality: The Most Important Claims In The Declaration Of Independence

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In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson claimed that “all men were created equal, that they were endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these were Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness.” This was possibly the single phrase of the American Revolution period with the greatest cultural importance. It not only became a well-known statement on human rights, but a statement of principles through which the United States Constitution should be interpreted. Jefferson first used the claim in the opening of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, which announced that the thirteen American colonies were going to separate themselves from Great Britain and no longer be part of the British empire. This was one of the most important claims in the Declaration because it…show more content…
The phrase provided inspiration to numerous national Declarations of Independence throughout the world and has since been considered a signature statement in similar human rights instruments. We all know that the American government is fundamentally about these rights or liberty. These rights came from the equality of all men. The return of equality does not mean an equality of strength or character; nor does it demand a generic equality of results or condition. In fact, the Declaration’s idea of equality would oppose such a superficial focus of the naturally distinct human conditions. Although we all have our differences, there exists a crucial human agreement that no one is born to rule or be ruled. Jefferson tried to program the audiences mind into thinking that it did not matter what you looked like on the outside, but rather what the condition of your heart and mind was like on the inside (Source C). Equality in this sense therefore requires that the government be based on the approval of the one in
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