KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – This Thursday brings with it our annual reminder of the inception of our great nation.  It began with a statement of unity, a gathering of citizens banding together to put a deeply American sentiment to paper. It was a declaration that our country, belonging to no one but its own citizens, would not quell before the threat of tyranny and of foreign powers.  On the fourth of July, we, a nation undivided, were willing to stand together in pursuit of our own freedom and the freedom of generations to come.

The signing of the Declaration of Independence was not the first step towards freedom, nor was it the last, but it serves even today as a resounding moment that the United States of America can still look towards for strength and guidance and remember the ideal of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.   It was a brief moment in history with an impact that can be felt even today, and together, as a nation, we celebrate the Declaration of Independence as a milestone, a reminder that the United States is not a country that can be divided.

On this Fourth of July, we as a nation celebrate that unity, that independence from those who would tear us apart.  We are America, land of the free and home of the brave.  In the words of former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr:

“One flag, one land, one heart, one hand, one nation forevermore.”

_ J. Douglas Overbey United States Attorney