Let freedom ring

by Keli'i Akina, Ph.D., President / CEO, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii July 4, 2026

Happy Independence Day!

But this year isn’t just like any other — today we celebrate America’s 250th birthday.

Two-and-a-half centuries ago, the 13 British colonies along North America’s Atlantic coast unified to declare their freedom from Great Britain and create a revolutionary form of government based on the consent of the governed.

That might seem like common sense to us now, but we should not forget what a radical idea it was at the time.

In an age that still paid homage to royalty and the implicit power of the state, those 13 colonies dared to establish a representative democracy that derives its legitimacy from the people themselves. And their “American experiment” became an enduring example of freedom for the rest of the world.

Even today, many Americans can recite by memory that famous phrase from the Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Those words have echoed powerfully through the centuries as a constant reminder of the principles that hold us together as a nation.

As president of the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, it is my responsibility — a responsibility I hold very dear — to uphold those principles and make sure the love of liberty expressed by America’s founders lives on through our great work in the Aloha State.

Much of our mission has been focused on expanding freedom and protecting it from government intrusion so our community can flourish. Grassroot’s founder, the late Dick Rowland, was a tireless defender of liberty who had many mottos we all remember fondly, one of which was: “When government gets bigger, you get smaller.”

Grassroot has been championing America’s founding principles for 25 years, and we will continue to defend liberty so future generations can inherit a country as free and proud as the one that we celebrate today.

Thank you for being part of our effort to “secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity.”

From all of us at the Grassroot Institute, we wish you a safe and joyful celebration.

E hana kākou! (Lets work together!)

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