Liberty / Rights

"Without Freedom of Thought, there can be no such thing as Wisdom; and no such thing as public Liberty, without Freedom of Speech." - The New England Courant, July 9, 1722 ...

Cato’s Letter #38, written on July 22nd, 1721, emphasizes the importance of the people’s ability to judge their government. The letter argues that the world is often misled by those who profit from deception, and that if people were honestly informed and restored to their senses, there would be no remaining errors. The letter highlights the need for individuals to be aware of their rights and capacities to judge their government. It cautions against those who would misrepresent the voice of the people in the political forum and proceed to plunder and oppress them. Instead, Cato advocates for the people’s ...

One of the overlooked sources for Jefferson’s early draft was a now largely forgotten pamphlet written by Judge Samuel Sewall in 1700 titled , “The Selling of Joseph: A Memorial.” It is a remarkable document, one of the earliest antislavery declarations published in the American colonies. It’s very much a religious essay. The odds are that Sewall, a prominent Boston Puritan, actually read it in his church, the Old South Meeting House, on Sunday, June 23rd, the day before its publication. Eight years earlier he had done something very similar, publicly declaring his repentance for his role in the ...

Slavery is not simply a historical phenomenon.. It persists to this day in modern forms, such as trafficking. Quakers have opposed it from very early on and still do. In the first few years after the Quaker movement began in 1652, slavery would have been outside the experience of most Quakers, as it was not much practiced in Britain. But in British colonies in the Caribbean and North America it was widespread. Britain was also heavily involved in the slave trade, as many of its merchants brought captives from African countries to the New World to sell to plantation ...

The Habeas Corpus Act 1679 is an Act of Parliament in England (31 Cha. 2 c. 2) during the reign of King Charles II. It was passed by what became known as the Habeas Corpus Parliament to define and strengthen the ancient prerogative writ of habeas corpus, which required a court to examine the lawfulness of a prisoner's detention and thus prevent unlawful or arbitrary imprisonment. Anthony Gregory, author of The Power of Habeas Corpus in America, gives us a better understanding of the act and what it means in America below: We know many things about habeas corpus. We ...

The English Civil War took place 1642 to 1651 between Royalist Anglican supporters of King Charles I and the Puritan Parliamentarian supporters led by Lord Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell. The Puritans won, and Oliver Cromwell had Charles I beheaded. Anglican ministers were demoted, including Rev. Lawrence Washington, the great-great-grandfather of George Washington. This led Rev. Lawrence Washington’s son, John Washington, to become a merchant and sail to Virginia in 1657. In 1658, Cromwell died, and a Royalist movement restored King Charles II to his father’s throne. Soon an intense period of retribution against the Puritans began. John Bunyan was ...

Anthony Johnson (AD 1600 – 1670) was an Angolan who achieved freedom in the early 17th century Colony of Virginia.  Johnson was captured in his native Angola by an enemy tribe and sold to Arab (Muslim) slave traders. He was eventually sold as an indentured servant to a merchant working for the Virginia Company. Sometime after 1635, Antonio and Mary gained their freedom from indenture. Antonio changed his name to Anthony Johnson. In 1651 Anthony Johnson owned 250 acres, and the services of four white and one black indentured servants. The black indentured servant John Casor (Casar, Cazarao and Corsala) demanded that Johnson ...

In 1645, while he was deputy-governor of Massachusetts, John Winthrop and his fellow-magistrates had interfered in a local election of a militia officer. When the dispute flared into a war of words, the magistrates bound over some of the dissidents to the next court and summoned others to appear. In this controversy the magistrates were accused of having exceeded their powers, and Winthrop was impeached. After a controversy of almost three months Winthrop was fully acquitted and some of his opponents fined. It was after this test and vindication that Winthrop made his famous "little speech" here quoted. I ...

The Articles of Confederation between the Plantations under the Government of the Massachusetts, the Plantations under the Government of New Plymouth, the Plantations under the Government of Connecticut, and the Government of New Haven with the Plantations in Combination therewith: Whereas we all came into these parts of America with one and the same end and aim, namely, to advance the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ and to enjoy the liberties of the Gospel in purity with peace; and whereas in our settling (by a wise providence of God) we are further dispersed upon the sea coasts and ...

Two of Charles I advisers drafted and persuaded the king to issue a document, His Majesty’s Answer to the Nineteen Propositions of Both Houses of Parliament, in which the king, eager to dismiss his image as a monarch, declared that England was a mixed government and not a condescending monarchy. The Answer was a critical turning point in constitutional history because in it the king proclaimed that England possessed a balanced government, not an absolute monarchy as the people predominantly considered the government under him to be. It was an admission that royalists immediately began pressing the king to retract ...