Declaring Your Independence

Your own independence is embedded in the life of the national culture, and the national culture is in the process of shaping (even curbing) your independence in very concrete ways: the coming impacts of tariffs and the rising of cost of consumer goods; the availability of labor in construction, agriculture, and nursing homes; the national debt, devaluation of the US dollar, and rising costs of borrowing; the now accelerating closures of rural hospitals and 12 to 17 million people who will lose their health care, to name a few.

The varying interpretations of your freedoms and your rights, who should have them, and under what conditions, has been at the core of our nation's struggles since our founding.

So we wonder: As an American and an individual, where have you struggled with your interpretations of your own freedoms and your own rights and the freedoms and rights of others?

Every day we continue both an internal conversation with ourselves and a dialogue with others as we consume social media and the news, spend our time and money, and choose where we belong and who belongs with us.

Our nation was founded on an idea, the first internationally recognized country that was not founded on subjugation to a ruler. Two-and-a-half centuries ago the United States broke the chains in the national mind that kept us subjugated to rule by the right of might and divine appointment.

The American Revolution which followed was our first civil war, in that it pitted Patriots against their Loyalist neighbors. To some degree, we have been fighting the same battles since the beginning of that long arc of those 249 years.

Certain words in the Preamble stand out to me as I write this and cause me to reflect on these times of great polarization:

This brings us to a fundamental question: What does it mean to pursue happiness not just for ourselves, but as a collective endeavor? The founders understood something profound—that individual liberty and collective wellbeing are not opposing forces, but interdependent realities.

Your pursuit of happiness is inextricably linked to your neighbor's ability to pursue theirs. When we hoard opportunities, when we build walls instead of bridges, when we choose comfort over courage, we diminish not only others' chances for breakthrough but our own as well.

Consider these questions as you move forward from this holiday weekend:

• Where in your life are you accepting limitations that no longer serve you or your community?

• What fears, assumptions, or inherited beliefs are keeping you from fully embracing your unalienable rights?

Perhaps you need to declare independence from:

• The belief that your voice doesn't matter in the larger conversation

• The assumption that systemic change is someone else's responsibility

• The fear of standing up for what you know to be true

• The comfort of staying silent when others are being marginalized

The work of creating a more perfect union begins in the mirror and extends to every interaction you have. It requires us to examine our own biases, to challenge our own comfort zones, and to actively participate in the ongoing experiment of democracy.

This is not passive work. It demands that we show up—in our families, our workplaces, our communities, and our nation—as agents of positive change. It asks us to see beyond our individual circumstances and recognize that our liberation is bound up with everyone else's.

As you reflect on your own declaration of independence, we invite you to:

• Identify one area where you've been accepting limitation instead of exercising your full rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

• Choose one action you can take this week to support someone else's ability to exercise their unalienable rights.

• Engage in one difficult conversation about what building a more perfect union means in your immediate circle.

The founders declared independence from a system that kept them subjugated. Today, we're called to declare independence from any system, belief, or practice that keeps us or our neighbors from experiencing the full dignity of human flourishing.

Remember: You are not just undergoing breakthrough—you are an essential part of creating the conditions for breakthrough in others. Your independence and your neighbor's independence are not competing interests; they are complementary forces in the ongoing work of building beloved community.

In solidarity and transformation,

Jackie and Xochitl

Positively H.U.B. - Humans Undergoing Breakthrough

P.S. We'd love to hear from you: What independence are you declaring? Reply and share your reflections with our community.