MPAC · 250th Anniversary Campaign · 2026
250th Anniversary
We the People,
Advancing an Unfinished
Promise
MPAC is seizing this moment to shape the national conversation, ensuring that American Muslim voices, values, and contributions are not footnotes in this anniversary, but central to it. This campaign is rooted in a simple and powerful truth: American Muslims have always been part of the American story. From enslaved Muslims on colonial soil to public servants in the halls of Congress, Muslims have helped build, defend, and define this country.
The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence is an opportunity to affirm that truth clearly, proudly, and in our own words. We invite you to explore the resources in this toolkit and implement them in your communities throughout this anniversary year to spark meaningful conversations, uplift shared values, and help advance an America that lives up to its highest ideals.
The Declaration
“All men are created equal, endowed with unalienable rights.” Declaration of Independence · 1776
For American Muslims, the Declaration of Independence represents one of humanity’s greatest achievements in the long arc of civilization, a moment where moral insight and social understanding converged to affirm that all people are created equal and endowed with inherent rights. It stands as a powerful critique of colonial power and a declaration that freedom is grounded in natural law, not in domination.
At the same time, we must honestly confront its limitations: the Founders, shaped by their time, proclaimed liberty while failing to extend it to Native Americans, African Americans, and immigrants who were exploited even as they helped build the nation. It is precisely because of this tension that the Declaration remains alive today.
For American Muslims, our presence in this country is rooted in that original quest for freedom, and our responsibility is to help fulfill its promise, working toward a more perfect union where equality is real, justice is universal, and dignity is upheld regardless of race, faith, or background.
Twelve principles for renewing America’s promise
The Declaration of Independence laid down a moral principle that continues to inspire the world: that all people are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights.
Its genius was not that America immediately lived up to this promise, but that it created a standard by which every generation could challenge injustice.
America’s founding promise is still powerful
The Declaration laid down a moral principle that every generation can use to challenge injustice and move the nation closer to its own ideals.
America’s Founding: From Sectarian Conflict to Universal Freedom
The United States was shaped by communities who learned that religious coercion leads to division, while freedom of religion creates stability, a lesson the Founders encoded into a universal constitutional principle for all people, regardless of belief.
Honoring the Past by Expanding the Promise
To honor American history is to respect the role of early communities while recognizing that the freedoms they established were meant to grow beyond their original boundaries. Today’s diverse America is not a departure from the founding vision, but its fulfillment.
Muslims can help advance democracy through moral clarity
American Muslims can affirm the promise of the Declaration because Islam also teaches human dignity, justice, accountability, and freedom from domination. Muslims contribute to democracy by defending voting rights, civil liberties, religious freedom, free speech, and equal protection under the law.
What we have learned in 250 years
Democracy does not perfect itself. It requires struggle, correction, repentance, and renewal. Native Americans endured genocide, African Americans endured slavery, and immigrants were exploited, yet America’s greatness lies in building movements that confronted these injustices.
What we can celebrate as Americans
We can celebrate the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, freedom of religion and speech, due process, and the ability to challenge government. We can celebrate that people from every corner of the world can become American, not by race or bloodline, but by commitment to a constitutional covenant.
What we must improve
We must reject democracy for some and domination for others. We must confront racism, bigotry, anti-immigrant scapegoating, and any ideology that seeks privilege over pluralism, and move from symbolic inclusion to real power-sharing.
E Pluribus Unum: Are we living it?
“Out of many, one” remains America’s most urgent test. Pluralism does not mean erasing differences, it means protecting differences within a single constitutional framework. American Muslims strengthen pluralism by showing that Islam is not foreign to democracy.
Religious freedom is a foundation, not a favor
Religious freedom is not granted to minorities as an act of tolerance; it is guaranteed as a constitutional right. Muslims, Jews, Catholics, Mormons, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, and those of no faith must all be protected equally. When one minority is targeted, every faith community is made less secure.
America must not become what it rejected
The Declaration criticized Britain for domination, taxation without representation, and denial of self-rule. When U.S. foreign policy supports imperial practices, endless wars, or the denial of self-determination, it risks becoming the very power the Declaration resisted.
Islam’s contribution: freedom through the Oneness of God
Islam’s central principle, tawhid, the unity of God, carries profound democratic implications. If we submit only to God, no human ruler, empire, or nation has the right to dominate us absolutely. This spiritual freedom supports political freedom: accountability, justice, consultation, and resistance to tyranny.
Final message
American Muslims help democracy not merely by asking to be included, but by participating in the renewal of America’s moral meaning. We believe in the promise of the Declaration, and insist that the promise must apply to everyone. That is not only our civic duty. It is part of our faith.
Resources for your community
MPAC has developed a toolkit to educate our community, spark meaningful conversations, and encourage civic participation as we work together to advance the unfinished promise of the United States.
Download Toolkit Here- Plan an Interfaith Event at your Masjid or Community Center
- Guidance for Khatibs and Communities
- Sample Lesson Plan for K-12 and Sunday Schools