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1848
Document
Antebellum Reform
Declaration of Sentiments
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Seneca Falls
"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal..."
About this source
Written for the Seneca Falls Convention, this document deliberately mirrors the Declaration of Independence to argue that women, too, are entitled to the rights it proclaims. The first major American document to invoke the Declaration on behalf of women's equality.
Why it matters for the project
The first great reinvention of the Declaration — women's rights claimed in the founding's own words.