Letter from JAY FLEISHER

Read Declaration

Of Independence;

Then, Stand Up For It

To the Editor:

The Fourth of July has come and gone.  Mine was special.  It wasn’t the parade or the fireworks.  It was the reading of the Declaration of Independence by 46 community volunteers at the Shakespeare & Company facility in Lenox, Mass.

If you haven’t read the Declaration of Independence for many years (I sure haven’t) it was a real eye opener.  Phrase after phrase, line after line, document the reasons for why the 13 colonies chose to declare independence from the King of Great Britain, George III.  Each reason rang true with stunning clarity.

In this document our Founding Fathers enumerated multiple examples of oppression that sadly apply as well today as they did in 1776.  Reference to freedom of speech, equality for all regardless of race and religion, respect for the rights of immigrants, refusal to assent to laws, obstructing the administration of justice, cutting off trade with foreign nations, and excited domestic violence.

All of these oppressive acts continue today, and are defended by many current elected officials who function with a greater interest in their own political careers than that of the people and the nation they were elected to represent.

Do I sound angry?  You’re damn right, I am angry.  Angry with elected officials, Republican and Democrat, who ignore the principles and guidance of the Declaration of Independence.

If you haven’t read the Declaration of Independence recently, I encourage you, even challenge you to read it with an open mind, then ask yourself if America is currently living up to the tenets described by this historic declaration.

Stand proud by standing up for America – an America described by the Declaration of Independence.

JAY FLEISHER

Town of Milford