The objective of the Declaration of Independence was to proclaim the original thirteen United States Colonies as "free and independent states," from the consistent cruel treatment they endured while being ruled by the British Crown. Although it was drafted by Thomas Jefferson, this influential document, created by powerful American political figures made important revisions. John Adams and Benjamin Franklin both amended the document before it was sanctioned by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The beginning of the Declaration of Independence illustrates movement toward the Enlightenment period's natural rights by saying that "all men are created equal" and "endowed by the creator with certain unalienable rights" such as "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." This section also states "that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government." These are two of the most powerful statements in this section because they provide an expectation of the treatment of citizens, identify performance expectations of the government and highlight the significance of change when those expectations are not met. In the next section of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson presented descriptions of the many injustices that citizens in post-free colonial America were subjected to while under the tyrannical British rule. These offenses which included cutting off trade, imposing taxes without consent, deprivation of trial by jury along with many others, were in direct opposition to the natural rights mentioned in the previous section. Jefferson indicates that efforts made by citizens to seek reprieve from the oppressive behavior were "answered only by repeated injury. After calling attention to the lack of regard for natural rights denial of requests to extend them, Jefferson clearly labels the British regime