About DeclareIndependence.net
The Fourth of July exists because on that date in 1776, the founders of this nation declared their independence and the principles it would be built upon. Yet today, Fourth of July events — festivals, parades, concerts, rodeos — almost never include a public reading of that Declaration. We are celebrating the fireworks without remembering the fire.
This petition asks organizers of local Fourth of July events to restore what should be the centerpiece of the holiday: a public, spoken reading of the Declaration of Independence. If you'd like to take this further — petitioning your local government directly, or joining other public petitions already underway — see our Petition for Redress page.
To the organizers of [Event Name]:
We, the undersigned, respectfully petition you to include a public reading of the Declaration of Independence as part of your Fourth of July celebration. This document — the founding statement of American ideals — takes only about ten minutes to read aloud. Including it in your program would honor the true meaning of the holiday and give our community a shared experience of the values that unite us as Americans.
We ask that this reading be given a prominent place in your program — not tucked away, but presented as a central act of commemoration.
3 Signatures
- Charley Combs — Portland. OR Jul 4, 2026
- Laurie Essig — Portland, Oregon Jul 3, 2026
- William Essig — Portland, Oregon Jul 3, 2026
Add Your Name
Have a longer message for us? We're working on a direct contact option as well — in the meantime, see the "add a link to your petition" note on our Petition for Redress page.
Why This Site Exists
A note from the site's founder, July 2026.
A Wall Street Journal opinion piece this week, marking the run-up to the 250th anniversary, complained of a K-12 school system that fails to educate even half its students to minimal standards, and of a progressive university elite that treats America itself as corrupt and exploitative.[1] I don't disagree with the complaint. But the remedy it overlooks is close at hand: these days we mark the Fourth with parties, parades, concerts, and firework spectacles — and, more recently, UFC bouts — and almost none of these civic events includes a public reading of the Declaration itself. Public libraries, which might otherwise host one, are closed for the holiday.
Despite earning A's in high school and college, I read the Declaration for the first time in my life at age 39, on July 4, 2018, in the Portland State UniversityPortland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. Read more on Wikipedia ↗ (CC BY-SA) Library. Browsing the stacks that day, I found Jefferson's original rough draft — and its excised denunciation of slavery changed how I understood American historiography and race relations for good. It wasn't the Declaration's fault that I hadn't read it sooner; it was mine, and my schooling's. That gap, and the years it took me to notice it, is what started this campaign. I'd invite the Journal and its readers to close the same gap for themselves: declareindependence.net.
— Jared Essig, founder, Declareindependence.net