Declaration+of+Independence+Writing+Project

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= Objective = Apply your knowledge and understanding of the**// philosophy of government expressed by John Locke and Thomas Jefferson //**, as well as your own political philosophy, to write a modern day declaration of independence for //__**ONE**__// of the nations listed at the bottom of this page (//__**or**__// if there is a different nation you would like to choose, use resources below to find out more information about that nation). The declaration should be based on the model set forth by Thomas Jefferson in the original Declaration of Independence as well as the following:
 * State your beliefs with regards to the **purpose of government** in society and **natural rights**.
 * Explain to the world why the people of your chosen nation are **justified in declaring their independence**.
 * List the **injustices and abuses of human rights** conducted by the current nation's government.
 * Provide **inspiration and motivation** to people of your nation and around the world so they will support your cause for independence.

=Requirements=
 * 1) Declaration of Independence outline (typed in MLA format)
 * 2) Draft presented on due date (typed in MLA format)
 * 3) Final Declaration of Independence (typed in MLA format)

=Persuasive Outline= Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence is essentially a persuasive essay meant to not only declare independence, but to also "...explain to the world why the colonies were choosing to separate from Britain" (Hart 83). Use the following outline based on the Declaration of Independence to organize your writing.

=Writing Guidelines=

• Conveys an accurate and in-depth understanding of the topic, audience, and purpose for the writing task.

• The order and structure of information is compelling and moves the reader through the text without creating confusion in the reader’s mind.

• A level of sophistication is evident in the writing as an attempt is made at using higher-level vocabulary and varied sentence lengths.

• Main ideas are paraphrased and written in the students’ own words.

• Ideas of from other sources are properly cited

• Proper grammar and spelling.

Grading Rubric

 * Peer Edit Page**

=Resources=
 * Declaration of Independence (Hart 470 - 473)
 * United States Declaration of Independence
 * Hungarian Declaration of Independence
 * Texas Declaration of Independence
 * The Chiricahua Apache Nde Nation Declaration of Independence

=Nations=

Myanmar (Burma)

 * 2010 Human Rights Report

North Korea

 * 2010 Human Rights Report
 * Human Rights in North Korea by About.com

Syria

 * 2010 Human Rights Report

Sudan

 * 2010 Human Rights Report

=Additional Resources= Amnesty International: http://www.amnestyusa.org/all-countries/page.do?id=1041024

Human Rights Watch: http://www.hrw.org/ http://www.hrw.org/en/news

UN Human Rights listed by country: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/Pages/HumanRightsintheWorld.aspx

List from UN Human Rights Council from latest (15th) Session -- Note - dense reading: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/15session/reports.htm

Article listing top offenders from 2010 says: http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1071156.html

Article from Human Rights Watch on Burma, Guinea and North Korea: (March 2010) http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/03/26/un-human-rights-council-positive-action-burma-guinea-north-korea

On Burma: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0603/Burma-tops-worst-of-the-worst-list-of-human-rights-violators