­250 Jahre Unabhängigkeitserklärung – Amerikas Versprechen: Was davon gilt heute noch?

This summer marks the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the US Declaration of Independence. To mark this anniversary, we look back at the founding promises of the USA and ask what significance the ideals of freedom, equality and self-determination formulated back then still have today. Against the backdrop of current developments, we discuss how viable the political and constitutional foundations of the United States are in the 21st century.

What role do the principles of the Declaration of Independence play in the country's political self-image? How resilient are democratic institutions and civil rights in the face of increasing polarization? What has remained of the American promise? And what lessons can be learned for the future of democratic societies?

Rachel Tausendfreund has been a Senior Research Fellow with a focus on Transatlantic Relations/USA at DGAP since September 2024. Previously, she was a Senior Fellow in the Geostrategy Team of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. From 2015 to 2022, she also served as GMF's Editorial Director, overseeing the organization's research output and publication planning. She co-founded the GMF podcast "Out of Order". Rachel Tausendfreund researches and writes on US security, domestic and foreign policy, German foreign policy, transatlantic relations, and relations between the West and key powers in the global South. She regularly comments in German, US and European media, including NBC News, Bloomberg, NPR, Der Spiegel, Tagesspiegel, and Deutsche Welle. From August to November 2022, she was a visiting scholar at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and in 2014-2015 she was Editorial Director at the European Council on Foreign Relations. She is a proud Michigander and an extended board member of Women In International Security.

Seats will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Please reserve only as many seats as you need.

You do not need to print out your Eventbrite ticket. The name under which you have reserved your tickets is sufficient for admission.

The event location is barrier-free.

The event takes place in cooperation with the German-American Circle of Friends Paderborn-Belleville and is supported by the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia.