Unintended Effects of Independence

No American document has had a greater global impact than the Declaration of Independence. It has been fundamental to American history longer than any other text because it was the first to use the name “the United States of America”. Thus, The Declaration of Independence gave birth to what is known today as the United States of America, and is symbolic for American democracy and freedom. And, as the first successful declaration of independence in world history, its example helped to inspire countless movements for independence, self-determination, and revolution after 1776. Although the Declaration was at first purely designated to declaring independence from Britain, its influence has extended over centuries and throughout the world.

One of the most important statements made in the Declaration is as follows: "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". Of course, when this was written, "all men" referred to only white men, and more specifically those who owned wealth and property. The "unalienable Rights" were denied to everyone else - women, slaves, the poor. So the Declaration was merely a way to get a political message across to the King and Parliament without seeming too crass. However, this was not the impression that it gave off to the rest of the world, or even the rest of the country. 

The Declaration served as the bridge towards gender and race equality, and was a tremendous influence upon the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other movements for independence.One of the more immediate effects, even though it was 80 years later, of the Declaration of Independence was the emancipation of black slaves. Abraham Lincoln perhaps interpreted the Declaration in his own way and understanding, but perhaps the Emancipation Proclamation was another political move. Either way, it wasn't until a 80 years later, in the mid-1800's, that African Americans were freed. Starting in the early 1800's, the United States began to see a push towards gender equality, and in the early 1900's, the movement became officiated and, legally, all women were placed on the same level as men. One of the most important documents of the women suffrage movement was the Declaration of Sentiments, modeled directly after the Declaration of Independence. Right after the War for Independence was won, the Constitution and its Bill of Rights were drafted and applied, both of which had a basis from the Declaration. Finally, the Declaration has also left lasting effects upon other foreign nations, as it arguably incited the French Revolution, and became a model for the Vietnam's declaration of independence from France.