Liberty and Equality

I am teaching a high school US History class. Its a new challenge. Afterall, by the time you get to high school, either you hate school or you love it. In college things may change...I get one day a week with them and its very unlikely anything is going to miraculously open up as a result of my personal fascination with the subject. But I'm trying.Today we looked at the Declaration of Independence. Such a masterful document. So well worded. And, for my purposes, perfect for breaking down one of the questions I want my enrichment class to struggle with.I have asked them if it was acceptable for colonists to break from a mother country. I asked what the acceptable terms would be. I asked if there was a reason that the mother country should refuse to allow the colonists to decide for themselves their own future.But mostly, I asked about the nature of government. They all seemed perfectly convinced that power is the basis of most governments--in fact they didn't even consider any other way. When I even asked them about the current government of their own nation, they dismissed that as also being one of the same--governments of power, withholding and threatening.So I talked them through the Declaration of Independence. I made them examine the ideas behind the principle that all men are created equal. Initially they interpretted it as being the same as saying all men are equal, a lie our society instills in children from their first educations. Eventually they saw that it means that all men, rich or poor, have equality in certain aspects--though obviously not all. ALL men have certain rights. Specifically, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Liberty being the most interesting of those three to these kids.What is Liberty? Are we actually free to do whatever we want? I told them, yes, we are. Anyone who says differently is opposed to the right to liberty common to all men. However, that doesn't mean that our actions have no consequences. Nor does it mean that there are no laws. Liberty refers to your right, as a free person, to chose. You can chose to make something of yourself, or to live in a van down by the river. You can chose to abide by the law, or disobey the law. The choice is yours...and so is the responsibility for the consequences that come with the choices you make. A free society founded on the belief that men must have responsibility for the rights that they enjoy. How far we have come. Then class was over.

I love US History.