What is in a declaration? How do we declare our own values, thoughts, and ideas and share them with others? How do you declare who you are and what you stand for?

Embrace your inner patriot and write your own declaration with the Boston Public Library (BPL) community and Revolutionary Spaces! This Spring, four BPL branches will host Writing Your Own Declaration: A Writing Workshop as part of the “Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness” program series, a joint initiative between Revolutionary Spaces and BPL's Community History team.

Starting March 18th, this hands-on workshop invites participants to engage in deep self-exploration and public writing. Join us for an active learning environment where we will read, discuss, and draw inspiration from several pieces of declarative writing that emerged over the course of history. You will then be led in a writing session that asks you to reflect on your own values and compose your own “declaration of self.”

At the end of the workshop, patrons will have the option to loan their declarative writing pieces to an exhibition that will be on view in the Old South Meeting House and the BPL Central Library in Copley Square. More information will be given during the program.

This program is free and open to the public. See dates below to register. For questions, please contact communityhistory@bpl.org.

• March 18, 2026: 6:00 PM -7:30 PM at North End Branch
• March 24, 2026: 11:00 AM-12:30 PM at West End Branch
• April 7, 2026: 12:00 PM-1:30 PM at Lower Mills Branch
• April 23, 2026: 5:00 PM-6:30 PM at Brighton Branch

The “Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness” program series will continue throughout 2026 as part of this year of revolutionary programming. Join our email list to be notified of upcoming public programs! This series of programming is made possible by the generous support of the Lowell Institute.