Joseph R. Pitts, July 4, 2003

We have had another challenging year. We have fought another major battle in the war on terrorism. And our economy is slowly recovering.

July 4th is a time to pause and remember that despite all of the challenges we face as a nation, we should be thankful for our freedom and the courage it took to declare it and fight for it.

Anyone who comes to the Capitol for a tour is sure to see the Rotunda. It’s the most familiar part of the Capitol with its towering dome and historic artwork. It’s in the Rotunda where John Trumbull’s famous painting of the signing of the Declaration of Independence hangs.

Trumbull painted his masterpiece in 1818. To make it as lifelike as possible, he had Thomas Jefferson sketch the room and where everyone was standing. He had each signer pose to ensure he got their features just right. The painting shows Thomas Jefferson handing John Hancock the Declaration for his famous signature. Benjamin Franklin and John Adams are standing with Jefferson.

There is a lot behind this painting that we sometimes don’t think about. To openly assemble to declare allegiance to anyone but the King was an act of treason. As a result, many of these men had a price on their heads.

Signing that piece of paper was an act braver than many of us can understand. The signing of the Declaration of Independence was the expression of a group of men who lived to breathe free air.

In fact, as he touched the quill pen to that piece of parchment John Hancock declared, "There! His Majesty can now read my name without glasses. And he can double the reward on my head!"

Such was the courage and audacity of these men.

John Adams understood what it would take to sustain such a declaration when he wrote the next day to his wife that, "I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory."

That is what we honor on July 4th. Not the easy way our, but a declaration of independence in the face of tyranny. The willingness of patriots to risk their lives in the cause of liberty.

Looking back on July 4th, 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote to John Adams that the "the flames kindled on the 4th of July 1776, have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism; on the contrary, they will consume these engines and all who work them."

His words are as true today as they were in 1821. The United States has stood for and advanced the cause of freedom since that day, outlasting the feeble engines of despotism.

Today, there are thousands of Americans who carry on this tradition. This week we celebrated the 30th anniversary of our all-volunteer military force. The men and women of our armed forces voluntarily put their lives on the line each day to make sure we continue to live up to what we declared 227 years ago.

But the military isn’t the only home for heroes.

While others move away from danger, our police, fire, and emergency medical personnel rush into harm’s way to protect the lives of others. On September 11th, local police officers and fire fighters led 15,000 men, women, and children to safety. Many lost their lives trying to save more.

Still more Americans are heroes not by virtue of their uniform but by their lives. These are ordinary Americans, like Todd Beamer, called to do extraordinary things when their country needed them.

America has always had heroes, and these heroes always made America great. They inspired the rest of us, and we follow their examples with our own achievements.

But just like Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, John Adams and others who gathered in defiance of tyranny, our heroes today do not fight for praise and glory, but to fulfill a duty.

They understand that there is a time to fight for freedom. That freedom demands great responsibility. And constant vigilance.

Congressman Joe Pitts represents Pennsylvania’s Sixteenth Congressional District, spanning all of Lancaster County and parts of Berks and Chester counties.