Independence Day is an annual celebration of our history, our heritage, and our highest values. It is a time to recognize the day our country claimed its freedom and to renew the promise of our founding.
For nearly 250 years, the Declaration of Independence has stood as a beacon of our greatest aspirations. Like our country, it was never meant to be a finished product or a final word. Rather, it was designed as a charge and a challenge to each of us, a reminder that progress is not linear and that we bear a solemn responsibility to expand the reach of our ideals of equality, justice, life, and liberty in our time.
Here at the Department of Homeland Security, we can draw a direct line from those days in Philadelphia in 1776 to our work today. We share the same commitment – to take part in the great project of preserving democracy, delivering justice, engaging in the constant effort of improvement, and defending our people and our values.
I am proud to serve with all of you – the people of DHS – who have devoted yourselves to protecting our homeland. Freedom has historically come at great cost, and I am grateful for your sacrifice.
This Fourth of July, as the fireworks cast a spectrum of color in the sky, please take the time to reflect on the birth of our nation and the precious legacy of liberty we enjoy. Please also reflect with great pride on your contributions to the endurance of our ideals.
Happy Independence Day.
Alejandro N. Mayorkas
Secretary of Homeland Security
With honor and integrity, we will safeguard the American people, our homeland, and our values.