Close Event “The Declaration of Independence in 1776 and Beyond: a Roundtable”

In July 2026, the United States will commemorate 250 years of independence. Many today identify the Declaration of Independence with the “self-evident” claims that “all men are created equal” with rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” But what did the Declaration of Independence originally mean? How did political decisions and military and diplomatic challenges shape the document on July 4, 1776? How did its authors deploy history and natural law to reconcile their lofty views on equality and liberty with the inequalities they maintained in their time? And how did readers, from Philadelphia to Paris, convert the Declaration’s philosophical premises into political promises?

Time 17:00 – 18:00 CET

Campus Paris Center

Location The University of Chicago John W. Boyer Center in Paris

Audience Public

Cost Free