January 28th, 2026
When’s the last time you read the Declaration of Independence?
This isn’t a flex or a question of condescension; I don’t actually know if I had ever read it and our Constitution front-to-back in my life until this week. (I found this cute pocket version at my local Barnes & Noble.)
It is an elegantly styled and brilliantly written document, meant to be amended and to grow with the people and the times. But its core principles, the ideals that we have come to know as American ideals, are all there: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Human rights have been a part of the document (if not the country itself) since nearly the beginning. (The Bill of Rights is actually just the first ten Amendments.)
I didn’t know there was a “second half” to the Declaration, but I love it; it’s just a laundry list of complaints the people had against Great Britain, a giant “eff you” to King George III.
And wouldn’t you know it: the list of grievances is almost identical to the landscape we find ourselves in today.
The Declaration of Independence also has a really helpful reminder: when the government becomes destructive to its people, it is our right to alter or abolish it. And here’s another reminder: anyone on United States soil has the same rights that everyone does. Being a criminal doesn’t diminish your human rights, either; what a concept! If anyone loses their rights in America, so do you.
I attended an ICE Watch training class tonight. I learned so much; I want to be a better neighbor and this is a step in the right direction. The class I took was well-attended and, by all accounts, gave us the same information that everyone who participates in an ICE Watch class gets.
They repeatedly stress things that I think it’s important for the public to know. For example: they tell us to not interfere with enforcement, to keep our distance from officers, to remain calm, and to de-escalate at all times. Those are actually among the most important rules to follow.
Is ICE getting the same training?
Anyway, I was so proud listening to these organizers, most of all because their love for their neighbors and of community was so full and real. Authoritarians use fear; they want us disconnected from our neighbors, locked away in our homes and behind our fences, doomscrolling for infinity. We have forgotten irl community.
But once you get face-to-face, lend a hand, see a smile, share a meal: you remember. You know what is to be human again.
Pick up a copy of the Constitution. Know your rights. Get excited about community and the American Dream again. I’m about to (try to) read We The People by Jill Lepore, a 600-page tome about the creation of our founding documents. What can I say? I’m a nerd. A nerd who loves you all and wants you to stay safe out there.
The Den 