Let’s call it a declaration of independence from billionaires. The Big Woods Declaration is a real answer to the core threat of our time: the corruption of America by extreme money.
On America’s 250th anniversary, the Big Woods Declaration of 2026 echoes our Declaration of Independence: 1,300 words, 27 dangers, and the defense of equal freedom against tyranny.
The BWD is offered as a First Amendment petition to the American people and our government.
The first print of the BWD was distributed across the country on January 16, 2026. Read the full text here:
PDF files for printing the BWD are also available.
The BWD was created without the use of any AI, opinion polling, or focus groups. It is not limited to any political party or group.
The BWD draws on many core American ideas as well as the work of Thorstein Veblen, America’s visionary from the Big Woods of Minnesota.
The BWD may be shared and reused under the terms of the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license. View a copy of this license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
The BWD will use the handle @BWDeclaration for any social media: https://linktr.ee/BWDeclaration
All photos in the BWD were taken in the Big Woods. The BWD was framed by Erik Christopher Sahlin with Alyssa Beth Wulf.
The Big Woods Declaration FAQ provides answers to questions like “Why the Big Woods?” and “Why the new language?”