Indivisible Day

July 4

Governor Jess Ventura has declared Independence Day to be Indivisible Day in the state of Minnesota. The holiday is in recognition of the necessity for the separation of church and state.

His proclamation is as follows:

Indivisible Day Proclamation

Whereas: The unique features of this nation at its foundation was its establishment of a secular Constitution that separated government from religion – something never done before; and

Whereas: Our secular constitution has enabled people of all world views to coexist in harmony, undivided by sectarian strife; and

Whereas: President James Madison made clear the importance of maintaining this harmony when he said, “The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the endless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries”; and

Whereas: The diversity of our people requires mutual respect and equal protection for all our citizens, including minority groups, if we are to remain “One nation, indivisible”; and

Whereas: It is the unfettered diversity of ideas and world views that have made our nation the strongest and most productive in the world; and

Whereas: Eternal vigilance must be maintained to guard against those who seek to stifle ideas, establish a narrow orthodoxy, and divide our nation along arbitrary lines of race, ethnicity, and religious belief or non-belief.

Now Therefore, I, Jesse Ventura, Governor of Minnesota, do hereby proclaim that Thursday July 4, 2002 shall be observed as: Indivisible Day In the State of Minnesota.