Washington, D.C. – On Independence Day, pro-democracy leaders, artists, activists, executives, veterans, lawyers, legal scholars, and elected officials from across the political spectrum launched “We Hold These Truths” –  a groundbreaking, nationwide effort to promote freedom, equality, and democracy by providing Americans with clear, reliable, and accessible facts about the protections provided under the U.S. Constitution for all people and the work required to safeguard our freedoms and our nation’s ideals.

The launch included full-page ads in The New York Times, Arizona Republic, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Dallas Morning News, and San Francisco Chronicle, and an op-ed by U.C. Berkeley School of Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky and former Judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit J. Michael Luttig in the Los Angeles Times.

Within the first 48 hours of the launch, the initiative received more than 15,000 signatures from people in all 50 states, showing that the effort to share accessible principles and civic values that are increasingly under threat today unites Americans across communities and professional sectors. 

“We Hold These Truths” highlights enduring principles, including:

  • Personal Freedoms: Upholding free speech, fair criminal justice, and personal autonomy.
  • Equality: Guaranteeing equal rights and opportunities for every American, recognizing that freedom depends on equality for all.
  • Democracy and Elections: Supporting accessible voting, honoring election results, and protecting the peaceful transfer of power.
  • The Rule of Law: Limiting government power through equality before the law, due process, judicial independence, and accountability.
  • Separation of Powers: Ensuring no branch of government exceeds its constitutional authority, preserving checks and balances.

The public education initiative will include information to help people understand their rights, how to exercise them, and how to ensure that the rule of law is accessible to all.

– # # # – 

Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.