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CITIZEN
RESPONSIBILITIES
Voluntary Pledge Under
Freedom
AS CITIZENS of the United States of America we acknowledge, together
with all citizens, that through our national heritage we are individually
endowed with certain rights, including life, liberty, the pursuit
of happiness, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of
press, private property rights, and a host of other rights, all
guaranteed in the United States Constitution and mutually balanced
between the three branches of government; and
WHEREAS each of these freedoms requires constant vigilance to protect
the dignity of all citizens and the guests of our nation;
NOW THEREFORE we as citizens voluntarily pledge always to strive
for individual awareness of our citizenship responsibilities under
freedom including, among others,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to protect the lives and respect the dignity
of all citizens and guests of our nation,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to respect the rights of all citizens, especially
to mutually respect their rights to free speech and expression,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to understand learning as a lifelong journey,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to participate in honest endeavors with integrity
of intent and to deal truthfully with our fellow citizens,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to respect and preserve other citizens' public
and private valuables and property,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to understand free enterprise and the abundant
potential of its exercise,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to understand individual livelihood and to seek
to provide for ourselves and our families within a framework of
freedom,
THE RESPONSIBILITY to understand the importance of individual and
collective service to our families, our communities, our nation,
and those here and abroad who we serve through our work; and
THE RESPONSIBILITY to grow in understanding individual personal
responsibility as a perennial prerequisite for the free exercise
of our inalienable rights and liberties.
-- F. THOMAS JAMES
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