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.

It's hard for us to imagine how radical these words from America's Declaration of Independence

were in 1776. Throughout history,

people had believed not inequality, but in its opposite, inequality. Some people were regarded as

superiors and others as inferiors. That most people supposed is just the way things are.

Speaking for the American people, however, Thomas Jefferson and our country's other founders

proposed a new course to build a republic on the principles of equality and liberty.

Liberty?

Yes.

As equals, people have the right to lead their own lives without being constantly told

what to do by their governments. The principal role of governments, rather, is to secure

unalienable rights, such as the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

But what did the founding fathers mean by liberty, As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration

of Independence and our nation's founding, we should reflect on that question. A synonym for

liberty is freedom. Philosophers sometimes distinguish two types of freedom, namely, freedom

from and freedom for. Mere freedom from, the freedom to do

what one wants, whatever one wants, is what our founders would have rejected as mere license,

not true liberty. True liberty is freedom for people to pursue honorable and righteous ends.

Here's an example.

Our Constitution, in its First Amendment, recognizes the right peaceably to assemble

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