The Declaration of Independence reaching far beyond the United States

• The Declaration of Independent worked to set the colonists free from the tyrannical rule and unjust impositions from the British. The document gave life to the birth of new nation and set its values on “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Although its original purpose is set precedent for many other oppressed peoples and served the greater purpose of setting a standard of values for not only the United States but also the rest of the world. Shortly after, the nation of France was inspired to pursue independence and once attained they based their new government on the same ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence.  Other European nations admired the values and discrete call to action against tyranny expressed. the nineteenth-century Hungarian nationalist, Lajos Kossuth described it as“the noblest, happiest page in mankind’s history”. It was not only a Declaration of Independence for the colonies but a basis for values significant to the rest of the world. Its message carried weight throughout the rest of the world as well as in the future of the nation. Various countries in Africa and other continents used the same values and rights of man expressed in our Declaration in the making of their nation. The document was used in advocating for the rights and equality of Americas people that did not experience the valued America so heavily prided themselves on. How could one right of such a marvelous country valuing “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” yet only white men were guaranteed those rights. Thats was the backbone of arguments during the civil rights movement and women’s suffrage movements in which ultimately they succeeded. The declaration of Sentiments was modeled and paralleled the exact structure of the Declaration due to the power it carried with it as a founding document. All in all, the declaration did much more than merely declaring independence from Britain but set a standard of values for mankind and future generations.