[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 20, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S3006]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                        RECOGNIZING MECKDEC DAY

 Mr. BUDD. Mr. President, I rise today in celebration of 
MeckDec Day. On May 20, 1775, exactly 250 years ago, the citizens of 
Mecklenburg County took a bold and unprecedented step by adopting the 
Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. This historic document, 
believed to be the first declaration of its kind, signaled the 
beginning of America's quest for independence from the oppressive rule 
of the British Crown. In the wake of the Battle of Concord, a committee 
of concerned citizens gathered and declared that Mecklenburg County's 
ties to Great Britain were hereby dissolved. Their courage laid the 
groundwork for the fight for liberty that would shape our Nation's 
future.
  North Carolina honors this pivotal moment in our history by featuring 
the date of the Mecklenburg Declaration--May 20, 1775--prominently on 
our State flag, alongside another key milestone: April 12, 1776, the 
date of the Halifax Resolves. The Halifax Resolves, adopted by the 
North Carolina Provincial Congress, marked the first official action by 
an American Colony calling for independence from the British Crown. 
This bold resolution laid the groundwork for the presentation of the 
Declaration of Independence to the Continental Congress less than 3 
months later, solidifying North Carolina's leadership in the fight for 
American liberty.
  On May 22, 2025, the Charlotte Museum of History in Mecklenburg 
County, NC, will officially celebrate the 250th anniversary of the 
Mecklenburg Declaration.
  The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence, issued in Charlotte, NC, 
on May 20, 1775, reads as follows:

       Resolved--That whosoever directly or indirectly abets or in 
     any way, form or manner, countenances the invasion of our 
     rights, as attempted by the Parliament of Great Britain, is 
     an enemy to his country, to America, and the rights of man.
       Resolved--That we, the citizens of Mecklenburg County do 
     hereby dissolve the political bands which have connected us 
     with the mother county and absolve ourselves from all 
     allegiance to the British crown, abjuring all political 
     connection with a nation that has wantonly trampled on our 
     rights and liberties and inhumanly shed the innocent blood of 
     Americans at Lexington.
       Resolved--That we do hereby declare ourselves a free and 
     independent people, that we are and of right ought to be, a 
     sovereign and self-governing people under the power of God 
     and the general Congress; to the maintenance of which 
     independence, we solemnly pledge to each other our mutual co-
     operation, our lives, our fortunes, and our most sacred 
     honor.
       Resolved--That we do hereby ordain and adopt as rules of 
     conduct all and each of our former laws, and the crown of 
     Great Britain cannot be considered hereafter as holding any 
     rights, privileges, or immunities amongst us.
       Resolved--That all officers, both civil and military in 
     this county, be entitled to exercise the same powers and 
     authorities as heretofore; that every member of this 
     delegation shall henceforth be a civil officer, and exercise 
     the powers of a justice of the peace, issue process, hear and 
     determine controversies according to law, preserve peace, 
     union and harmony in the county, and use every exertion to 
     spread the love of liberty and of country, until a more 
     general and better organized system of government be 
     established.
       Resolved--That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted 
     by express to the President of the Continental Congress 
     assembled in Philadelphia, to be laid before that body.
       Signers were: Abraham Alexander, Chairman, John McKnitt 
     Alexander, Secretary, Ephraim Brevard, Hezekiah J. Balch, 
     John Phifer, James Harris, William Kennon, John Foard, 
     Richard Barry, Henry Downs, Ezra Alexander, William Graham, 
     John Queary, Hezekiah Alexander, Adam Alexander, Charles 
     Alexander, Zaccheus Wilson, Waightstill Avery, Benjamin 
     Patton, Matthew McClure, Neill Morrison, Robert Erwin, John 
     Flenniken, David Reese, John Davidson, Richard Harris, Thomas 
     Polk, and Duncan Ochiltree.

  I invite you to join me in commemorating the 250th anniversary of a 
defining moment in our Nation's path to independence.

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