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Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. "John Locke."

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/

Locke, John. Two Treatises of Government. 1689.

https://www.yorku.ca/comninel/courses/3025pdf/Locke.pdf

Jefferson, Thomas. Declaration of Independence. 1776.

https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript

AVOCADO 🥑

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Natural Rights - Life, Liberty, and Property

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Natural Rights - Life, Liberty, and Property

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John Locke believed that there are natural rights, rights that people are born with and that cannot be taken away (life, liberty, and property). He also believed that governments existed to protect these rights, and if they failed to do so, the people have a right to overthrow them.

This heavily influenced Thomas Jefferson when he was writing the Declaration of Independence, except he replaced property with the pursuit of happiness.

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Social Contract - Consent of the Governed

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Social Contract - Consent of the Governed

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Another belief of John Locke that influenced the Declaration of Independence was that any authority is unjust if the citizens do not give permission for their leaders to rule. A government's legitimacy comes from the consent of the governed, which is mentioned in the Declaration.

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Governments, according to John Locke, are formed through a social contract. Individuals give up some freedoms in order to protect their remaining rights. The US Constitution, which outlines the powers given to the government, and the rights retained by citizens, is based off of this belief.

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If a government becomes tyrannical and fails to protect the natural rights, John Locke believed that the people have the right and duty to rebel and form a new government. This idea was used directly by Thomas Jefferson when he wrote in the Declaration of Independence that people can "alter or abolish" unjust government.

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John Locke promoted religious tolerance, and believed that government should not interfere with people's individual beliefs. His writings supported the idea that church and state should remain separate. The influence of this belief can be seen in the US Bill of Rights, in the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of religion.