WHEREAS, citizens of the Commonwealth and the Nation join together as Americans to reflect and celebrate a unifying day in history that binds us under the ideals of freedom and justice for all; and,

WHEREAS, since the first settlers landed on the shores of Jamestown in 1607, citizens of the Commonwealth have cherished the principles of liberty and self-government, as well as the protections provided under the rule of law; and,

WHEREAS, our Founding Fathers belief in personal responsibility, fundamental rights and a desire for a limited and representative government precipitated extreme self-sacrifice in severing ties with the King of England, and thus, America’s War for Independence; and,

WHEREAS, the Virginia Convention proposed a Declaration of Independence at Williamsburg in June 1776 instructing its delegates "to declare the United Colonies free and independent States, absolved from all allegiance to, or dependence upon, the Crown or Parliament of Great Britain"; and,

WHEREAS, Virginian Richard Henry Lee introduced three formal resolutions on June 7, 1776 at the Second Continental Congress promoting independence from British tyrannical rule followed by Thomas Jefferson’s draft document declaring independence from Great Britain on June 11, 1776; and,

WHEREAS, the Virginia Convention proposed a Declaration of Independence at Williamsburg in June 1776 instructing its delegates “to declare the United Colonies free and independent States, absolved from all allegiance to, or dependence upon, the Crown or Parliament of Great Britain”; and,

WHEREAS, Virginia’s Declaration of Rights was Thomas Jefferson’s inspiration for the opening paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence, the model document for the other colonies, and the basis for the Bill of Rights; and,

WHEREAS, the Declaration of Independence, signed on July 4, 1776, conveyed governance established upon the existence of the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness — rights not derived from government, but from our Creator; and,

WHEREAS, citizens throughout the Commonwealth and the nation will gather on July 4, 2022 to celebrate our freedoms and to remember the rights and responsibilities intrinsic to the liberties affirmed by our Declaration of Independence;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Glenn Youngkin, do hereby recognize July 4, 2022 as INDEPENDENCE DAY in the COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA and call this observance to the attention of our citizens.