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Feb. 2, 2004 Volume 28, Issue 22 |
National Declaration of Independence tour to visit Colvard Union Feb. 12
An original copy of the Declaration of Independence will be displayed Feb. 12 at Mississippi State.
Now on a national tour, this most revered of American historical documents was drafted largely by Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and signed in Philadelphia, Pa., by 56 representatives to the Second Continental Congress. Delegates of the 13 East Coast colonies had gathered at the Pennsylvania State House to declare America's independence from Great Britain.
A part of the "Declare Yourself" campaign launched by television writer-producer and philanthropist Norman Lear, the Declaration of Independence exhibit is visiting fewer than 20 colleges and universities this year. In addition to MSU, the display will stop at schools in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina.
"This is a landmark occasion for our campus and will focus attention on our responsibilities as citizens of this state and nation," said President Charles Lee.
Open to all, MSU's 11 a.m.-3 p.m. viewing in the Colvard Union lobby will be accompanied by spoken-word performances and other entertainment on the Drill Field. Also on the Drill Field, staff members from the Secretary of State's office simultaneously will provide voter registration opportunities. (In case of inclement weather, registration activities and entertainment relocate to the union.)
The year-long "Declare Yourself" campaign is a nonpartisan effort undertaken in response to a 2003 national survey of 16-to-29-year-olds that identified "voter incompetence" as a major barrier to the electoral process. Fusing technology, entertainment and education, it is designed to energize young adults to vote in the 2004 presidential election.
Aimee Jasculca of the Chicago-based firm organizing the 2004 road trip said "Declare Yourself" is "among the largest voter awareness initiatives ever launched." Corporate sponsors include Home Depot and AXA Financial Inc., she added.
The document display features one of only a handful of the 200 surviving "broadsides"-newspaper-sized sheets-set in type and printed on the evening of July 4, 1776, at the Philadelphia shop of printer John Dunlap.
Declare founder Norman Lear is an Emmy Award-winning producer of such television hits as "All in the Family," "Sanford and Son" and "Maude," and the 1991 movie "Fried Green Tomatoes," among others.
For more on the national Declaration of Independence tour or individual state election information, visit http://www.DeclareYourself.com .