The US Declaration of Independence
"All men are created equal" — written by slaveholders
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The Declaration was both a legal rupture and a philosophical manifesto, heavily influenced by Locke and Enlightenment natural-rights thinking. The 1787 Constitution put separation of powers and written constitutionalism into practical form and was copied worldwide. It also excluded slaves, indigenous peoples and women from "we, the people". The tension between the principle and the practice has driven American politics ever since — from the Civil War to the civil rights movement.
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Thirteen colonies declared they would no longer be ruled by the king in England. They wrote that all people are created equal and have a right to liberty. At the same time several of the authors owned slaves — a contradiction that would define the United States for two centuries.
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Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org