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Celebrate & Protect Your Freedom
By Don Bates, APR, Fellow PRSA
Copyright 2018, 2019
What do you believe? What do you think?
What do you know? What do you uphold?

The Greeks Started the Fire
Of all its contributions to humanity, the greatest of ancient Greece is democracy, which in Greek means "people
power." Democracy in city-states such as Athens embodied legal equality, personal freedom, and governance by
the people. Here, Socrates (orange) and Plato (blue) discuss Plato’s so-called Allegory of the Cave, which
represents how philosophers (and we) gain knowledge and understanding. Socrates compares appearance vs.
reality, education vs. ignorance.

PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE
Freedom is not an option; it’s a must. But it’s not
guaranteed; it must be honored, respected, argued,
protected. It must be promoted and shared – with
everyone, everywhere, always. It must be the law of all
lands, the right of all people regardless of their color,
creed, national origin, sexual orientation, social or
economic circumstances.

PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE
Freedom is the power or right to responsibly act,
speak, or think without political hindrance or restraint.
Different degrees of freedom are granted by different
kinds of governments. The most freedom is in
democracies. The least is in dictatorships. The U.S. is
currently viewed as the most democratic country on
earth but several European nations would disagree.

The Bad Boys of Boston Stoked the Flames in America (December 16, 1773)
The so-called Boston Tea Party was a protest by the Sons of Liberty against the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, which
allowed the British East India company to sell tea from China in American colonies without paying taxes other
than those imposed by the Townshend Acts. American Patriots dumped the entire shipment of tea from three
British ships into Boston Harbor. The act precipitated the American Revolution.

WHAT DICTIONARY SAYS
Freedom includes:
• Absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in
choice or action
• Liberation from slavery or restraint, or the power
of another
• Quality or state of being exempt or released from
something usually onerous
• Boldness of conception or execution
• Constitutionally protected rights

Congress Read the Tea Leaves and Acted: Declared Independence
The Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) listed grievances against the British monarchy and summarized
a philosophy of liberty held by the Continental Congress. Written mainly by Thomas Jefferson, it contained
ideas expressed by many Founding Fathers as well as European philosophers such as John Locke.

DECLARATION PREAMBLE
• 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…as to them shall
seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

PREAMBLE EXCERPTS
• WE, therefore, the Representatives of the UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the
Supreme Judge of the World for the Rectitude of our
Intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good
People of these Colonies, solemnly Publish and Declare…
• That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be, FREE
AND INDEPENDENT STATES, that they are absolved from all
Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political
Connection between them and the State of Great-Britain, is
and ought to be totally dissolved…

The Tea Leaves Come True:
U.S. Constitution (signed September 17, 1787, ratified June 28, 1788
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic
Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty
to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish the Constitution of the United States of America.”

FIRST AMENDMENT
Bill of Rights
Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.

WHAT CONSTITUTION ISN’T
Not set of laws per se*
Rather, it has enumerated powers or guaranteed
rights. There are limited powers given to the
government, and guaranteed rights to citizens
throughout all states. The Constitution also includes
the Bill of Rights.
*But laws are made based on the Constitution.

WRITE FOR FREE COPY
Download U.S. Constitution:
https://thefederalistpapers.org/wp-
content/uploads/2012/11/The-Constitution-of-the-
United-States-of-America.pdf
Download other country constitutions. How free are
people in other places? Are their words backed by
credible actions? What can you do to help them
obtain or protect their freedom?

Tea-Leave Readers United on Mount Rushmore
National Monument (symbol of freedom’s history) in the Black Hills, South Dakota, features 60-foot (18 m)
heads of Presidents George Washington (1732–1799), Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), Theodore Roosevelt
(1858–1919), and Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), chosen, respectively, to represent the birth, development,
and preservation of the United States. Carved 1934-1939, construction ended 1941 when funding ran out.

FREEDOM’S MANIFESTATIONS
• Autonomy
• Emancipation
• Enfranchisement
• Independence
• Liberty
• Free press
• Free elections
• Right to vote
• Self-determination
• Self-governance

THEN: The Civil War (1861-1865)
The American Civil War was fought by the North and the South of the United States. Largely the result of the
long-standing controversy over enslavement of black people, war broke out when secessionist forces attacked
Fort Sumter in South Carolina, just after Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated 16th U.S. President. Although the
Union won, upwards of 10 percent of the then U.S. population died in combat or from wounds and disease.

NOW: 44th U.S. President Barack Obama (January 20, 2009-January 20, 2017)
Barack Obama (D) was 44th President of the U.S. The first non-white president, he was elected for the full two
terms allowed by the U.S. Constitution. Today, he is considered one of America’s greatest leaders despite his
youth and the recency of his years in office. Born Aug, 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii.

BELIEFS ABOUT FREEDOM
• For every man who lives without freedom, the rest
of us must face the guilt. Lillian Hellman
• Freedom and not servitude is the cure of anarchy.
Edmund Burke
• Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath
of life. Mahatma Gandhi
• Freedom would be meaningless without security in
the home and in the streets. Nelson Mandela

BELIEFS ABOUT FREEDOM
• Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not
for themselves. Abraham Lincoln
• Power, intelligently directed, can lead to more
freedom. Mary McLeod Bethune
• Freedom? We were free before you came. Native
American (anonymous)

We the People, Another Kind of Tea Party
Whether you speak, write, assemble, march, vote, volunteer, organize, intern, fundraise, lobby or otherwise
advocate for freedom of speech and freedom of the press, do it joyfully and encourage others – those you
know, those you don’t – to do the same. We are all in this together. Freedom is not a given; it must be
promoted, publicized and protected.

DUTY TO PROTECT AND EXTEND
Make freedom a priority in your life:
• Read the U.S. Constitution (it’s short)
• Know your rights under the law (e.g., right to
habeas corpus, right to privacy, right to no
unwarranted searches and seizures)
• Advocate for freedom – yours and others
• Join groups fighting for freedom
• Vote and take part in free elections

What Athens Knew
“We alone consider a citizen
who does not partake in politics
not only one who minds his own
business but [one who is] useless.”
Thucydides, 460 BC-395 BC

Marches on Washington
In the U.S., marches on the nation’s capitol are regular occurrences, organized by private and public groups to
make their voices and the voices of their constituencies heard by Congress and the media. This march was
against Donald Trump’s actions. Famous marches from the past include the 1963 March on Washington led
by Rev. Martin Luther King as part of the fight to gain equal rights for all Americans.

FREEDOM MANTRA
One man, one vote. One vote, one hope.
One hope, one step toward greater
freedom – for us and for others.
Declare. Uphold. Commit.

Freedom must be fought for sometimes; human oppression must be denied
“…from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full
measure of devotion that this nation…shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people,
by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address,
November 19, 1893, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

FREEDOM FIRST AND ALWAYS
Don Bates, author of this slide presentation, conducts
public and private PR-writing workshops in the U.S.
and abroad. He also teaches PR and business courses
at New York University, and is senior counselor
on PR-agency management and M&A at Gould+Partners.
Previously, he was a journalist before he became a PR
professional, consulting firm owner, and freelance writer.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
--New York University: db155@nyu.edu
--Bates Consulting batesdon1@msn.com
--Gould Partners: donbates@gould-partners.com
--WritingRX Blog: www.writingRX.tumblr.com

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