Divided Over the Declaration: How an Enduring Debate Sustains the Vision of America

On America’s 250th anniversary comes the story of our nation’s fiercest ideological struggle—over the Declaration’s true meaning— fought by the Founders, enslaved people, suffragists, civil rights leaders, and more, an enduring battle that has tested and reaffirmed the unifying principles of our democracy.

As America celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the nation remains divided over the true meaning of its most resonant words—equality, liberty, and unaliena...