Inspired by Patrick Henry’s unyielding stand for liberty, these Resolves declare that Alaskans will protect our rights, our resources, and our communities. Government exists to serve the people, not the other way around, and we commit to holding it accountable. These resolves pledge practical leadership, personal responsibility, and the defense of freedom for our families and future generations.

On May 29, 1765, Henry introduced a series of resolutions asserting Virginia’s exclusive right to tax its own people. He originally drafted seven resolutions, but they were debated intensely:

• The first four were relatively moderate, affirming that the colonists brought with them the rights of Englishmen, including taxation only by their own representatives, and that Virginia’s General Assembly alone had the power to levy taxes on Virginians.

• The fifth resolution boldly declared that any attempt by Parliament to tax the colonies was unconstitutional and destructive to British and American liberties.

• The sixth and seventh were even more radical: The sixth stated that Virginians were not bound to obey laws taxing them without their consent, and the seventh called such taxation “illegal, unconstitutional, and unjust” while urging resistance. These last two were too inflammatory for the assembly and were ultimately rejected.

After heated debate, during which Henry reportedly warned of potential treason charges by invoking historical examples like Caesar and Charles I being assassinated for overreach, only the first five resolutions were officially adopted on May 30, 1765. However, newspapers later published all seven, amplifying their impact across the colonies.

Enjoy. This was fun to research and is for imagination and entertainment only.

Resolved, That the first settlers of these United States brought with them, and transmitted to their posterity, all the liberties, franchises, and immunities as free-born Englishmen; and that the same, by compact and by the Constitution of these United States, and the State of Alaska remain inviolate to this day.

Resolved, That citizens of Alaska, by the unalterable laws of nature, and the several charters and constitutions of these United States, and Alaska, possess the exclusive right to be governed only by laws to which they, through their representatives, have given consent; and that no power on earth has authority to impose obligations upon them without such consent.

Resolved, That the people of Alaska, having, through their ancestors and themselves, at immense cost in blood and treasure, established and defended this Union, possess the sole and exclusive right and power to develop their resources, and that every attempt by any external authority to limit them without the consent of their state legislatures or the people directly is illegal, unconstitutional, and tyrannical.

Resolved, That the current general government and bureaucracy of the United States has, through repeated past usurpations, exceeded its constitutional bounds and now exercises powers never granted to it by the people or the states, thereby destroying the balance and harmony that ought to exist between the federal government and Alaska.

** — particularly in the areas of currency, speech, arms, privacy, education, medicine, resources, and waters.

Resolved therefore, That any act of the federal government which assumes a power not expressly delegated to it by the Constitution, whether through executive order, regulatory agency, judicial fiat, or legislative overreach, has no matter how long continued or widely acquiesced in, is void and of no force; and that obedience to such acts is not loyalty, but slavery.

Resolved, That the doctrine introduced by certain previous federal officers and agencies; that the people of Alaska must submit to unlimited surveillance, limited speech, potential disarmament, medical mandates, and the flooding of their communities with unvetted foreign nationals without their consent, is wholly repugnant to the principles of free government, destructive to liberty, and tends to reduce the people to a state of abject dependence.

Resolved finally, That the people of Alaska, and of these United States, not only have the right, but are in duty bound, to interpose for arresting the progress of such evils; to refuse compliance with unconstitutional edicts; to nullify within their borders all acts that violate the Constitution and natural rights; and, if necessary, to defend with their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor the liberties bequeathed to them by their forefathers.

Resolved, That whosoever shall maintain that the people must submit to such usurpations without resistance, or that they are bound in conscience to obey laws and decrees manifestly contrary to the Constitution, is an enemy to this state, to liberty itself, and unworthy of public trust, and ought to be held in detestation by every friend of freedom.

“Is meek compliance of the states now our only option? Is rampant submission of the state’s citizens the price of their peace? I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!”

Originally published on Substack: https://kevinjmccabe.substack.com/p/patrick-henrys-resolves-reimagined