Truth

NUMBER:30752

The Columbia World of Quotations 1996

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. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.ATTRIBUTION:Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), U.S. president. American Declaration of Independence (1776) published in The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 1, ed. Julian P. Boyd (1950).

It is unknown how much of these lines was Jefferson’s sole responsibility. In June 1776 he had composed a rough draft: “We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable; that all men are created equal and independent, that from that equal creation they derive rights inherent and inalienable, among which are the preservation of life, and liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

BIOGRAPHY:Columbia Encyclopedia.