250th Anniversary of U.S. Declaration of Independence 1776
An Opportunity for Discussion on
Modern Definitions
On the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, 1776, U.S. President Trump, presenting himself as a historiographer of what took place in 1776 and its meaning, said that the U.S. revolution is continuing today, that he is the leader of this U.S. revolution and that, on July 4, 2026, there will be a great celebration of this current revolution. Some people say he is the face of fascism, racism and blackest reaction. Others, presenting what they call a peoples' history, say that 1776 was a counter-revolution. Others revel in events such as the Boston Tea Party, 1773, and stories of heroism, as well as betrayal and their reenactment. While there is evidence of counter-revolutionary actions among those opposing the British during that period and, certainly, the U.S. Constitution is counter-revolutionary, the emphasis is flawed as it misses the aim of this counter-revolution which was to block the people's struggles at that time for democratic revolution.
When it comes to celebrating the U.S. Declaration of Independence there are people embarrassed to do so, given the rulers' unjust wars, atrocities and total disregard for humanity taking place. The feeling of humiliation is also considerable. For those who want to speak to how bad counter-revolution is, their starting point might well be the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. But that is the type of limited thinking concerning both revolution and counter-revolution historically that today finds so many people at an impasse, blocked by the constitutional veil and other veils related to genocide, concepts of intentionality and "We the People."
People are feeling all the pressure of historical debts, the wars going on 10,000 kilometres away, unending news cycles constantly trying to read Trump's incoherent mind. There is a problem of reference point. Specifically, the lack of a reference point that serves the interests of the people while constant reference is made to the two famous documents that are said to have made the people in the U.S. "We the People" – the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
This content of just who and what comprises "We the People" is important to discuss seriously. But many do not engage in this discussion as the documents are most often dismissed as hypocrisy because the people who wrote the words were slave-owners, or complicit in the system of slavery. Or, it is said, the documents are attached to counter-revolution and thus their significance is not worthy of analyzing in a manner that merits drawing warranted conclusions which serve us today to set a course guided by Necessity for Change.
Who is the "we" in "We the People"? What is "a people"? How are "a people" created and defined? What is their role in making history? By and large, none of this is considered worthy of discussion. Nonetheless, given its significance, it is precisely what the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) will do on this 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. CPC(M-L) is of the opinion that the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence presents an opportunity to hold conversations on the significance of this Declaration, 1776-2026, then and now, as well as on the significance of the U.S. Constitution signed in 1787, ratified by the required number of states in 1788, becoming law in 1789, to give life to the principles declared in 1776.
Most importantly, this anniversary is an occasion to discuss modern definitions and why they are needed. Given the pressure the U.S. "model" of democracy puts on the peoples of the United States and countries all over the world since the 18th century and especially following World War II, discussion on modern definitions will serve the peoples everywhere who, like the peoples within the U.S., are all fighting valiantly and with great defiance for peace, freedom and democracy.
Starting today, TML is using the occasion of this anniversary of U.S. independence to publish a series of Conversations held by CPC(M-L)'s Ideological Studies Centre (ISC) on problems which present themselves during this particular historical juncture when principles such as those in the U.S. Declaration of Independence, 1776, and old forms, such as those enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, 1787, have passed away and new forms have yet to come into being.
We start with Conversations held in August and September 2025 which are now available in a book titled Recognizing the "Great Upheaval of Humanity" As Our Own – Considering the Analyses, Perceptions and Insights of W.E.B. Du Bois. The book is published to honour the life and work of Dr. Du Bois at a time the thought material he gave rise to is much wanted.
The second series of Conversations is titled Lifting the Veil, held from May to June 2026. The need to lift the veils, which are an integral part of bourgeois historiography depriving the peoples of the outlook needed, is discussed in detail. The aim is to elaborate our own historiography, based on our own vantage points which recognize the peoples as the makers of history. It is the peoples through their resistance, their own strivings to humanize the social and natural environment, who not only affirm themselves as peoples, but also establish rights by virtue of being human.
The third series of Conversations, published under the title Counter-revolution, is comprised of conversations held by ISC from December 2025 to May 2026. They identify the aim of the counter-revolution taking place today as a block to the transition to a classless society and the elimination of human enslavement. Spearheaded by U.S President Donald Trump, the current counter-revolution is not his alone. It is indicative of the path the rulers in the U.S. and other countries are taking when faced with repeated failed attempts to restructure the state in a manner which favours them. Having resorted to the use of extreme violence to destroy whatever they cannot control, they are escalating from using destruction as a weapon to outright obliteration.
These dire circumstances represent the darkness which comes
before
the dawn. They urge us to heed the call of history to activate
the
human factor/social consciousness and give rise to the
new. This
new is already manifesting itself in acts which throw aside the
veils
which deprive people of the outlook they require to see the
world
around us with lucidity -- the profound clarity, understanding
and
direct perception revealed on the basis of the modern
definitions
called for in this period of transition in which old forms have
passed
away and new ones are yet to come into being.
The work of elaborating modern definitions is to experience the
reality
around us for what it actually is, in a clear, unambiguous and,
at
times, radiant manner.
The Conversations identify peoples' resistance against obliteration of history's peoples as the birth of the new world humankind is striving to give rise to.
This article was published in
Volume 56
Number 4 - July 2, 2026
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/TML2026/Articles/TS56041.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca