Declaring Independence: Then & Now

On Monday, April 30th, the Woburn Historical Society and Woburn Public Library, in conjunction with the Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area and the American Antiquarian Society, will present “Declaring Independence: Then and Now”, a 40 minute program in which a Narrator and Cast bring to life the Declaration of Independence, followed by a community conversation. The event, beginning at 7 pm at the Woburn Memorial High School Auditorium, is free and open to the public, and should be of particular interest to adults, middle school, and high school students.

What did the Declaration of Independence mean to citizens of 1776? What meanings does it hold for us today? This thought provoking public performance piece, Declaring Independence: Then & Now, seeks to explore these questions through an animated reading of our “American Scripture” by costumed living-history performers. As the 18th century words and ideas are spoken, a narrator probes their meaning and challenges the audience to consider their relevance and power for today.

Too often the Declaration of Independence is reduced to the single line, “We hold these truths to be self-evident...,” notes historian Mary Fuhrer. Yet the document is rich with meaning on many levels. It expresses what many Americans by 1776 had come to believe: that Britain’s king and Parliament had violated our fundamental rights, that we were justified in abolishing such a flawed government, and that we were entitled – and determined – to create a new and better nation. It also asserts truths that transcend time: that governments derive their power from the people, with the purpose of securing their liberty and guaranteeing their equality. The history of our nation has been, and continues to be, the story of our struggle to redeem and defend those promises for all.

Declaring Independence: Then & Now is part of a multi-year joint initiative of Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area and the American Antiquarian Society to engage citizens in the ideas and transformative potential of the Declaration of Independence. This initiative includes researching the ways in which independence was conceived and debated within colonial communities in the years leading up to 1776; tracing how the Declaration’s role evolved in American communities; and considering the challenges and potential of this living document for Americans today.

The performance in Woburn on April 30 opens the 2018 series of programs which will take place through July 4 at historical and cultural venues throughout eastern and central Massachusetts.

About Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area

The 994-square-mile Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area (FWNHA) includes forty-five towns and cities in Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire and is home to over 750,000 people. FWNHA connects people, places and communities through educational and interpretive initiatives that protect and promote shared resources and encourage residents and visitors to explore its landscape, history and culture. www.freedomsway.org.

About the American Antiquarian Society

Recipient of the 2013 National Humanities Medal, the American Antiquarian Society (AAS) is a learned society and a national research library housing the largest and most accessible collection of printed materials from the colonial period through 1876 in what is now the United States, Canada, and the West Indies. The Society sponsors a broad range of programs for constituencies ranging from school children and their teachers through undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, creative and performing artists and writers, and the general public. The Society’s web address is www.americanantiquarian.org