Linking our official independence with the adoption of the Declaration is entirely fitting. The Declaration did much more than merely announce a political separation; it established an aspiration that shaped the new nation, and continues to shape us today.

The Supreme Court’s decisions in both cases could provide important guidance to lower courts and public officials nationwide on the constitutional limits of government authority over families and religious practice.

Governments should not interfere with parents’ relationships with their children unless the parents are unfit. The Washington policy being challenged in this case turns that principle upside down. It assumes that certain parents are unfit without requiring any evidence that the charge is justified.

These types of cases arise when government officials do not understand, or perhaps ignore, constitutional provisions protecting the free exercise of religion.

Parents generally know best what their child needs to succeed academically, and policymakers at the state and local levels are more likely to create policy that reflects that.