A 17th-century letter considered the blueprint for religious freedom in the United States was displayed for the first time in seven years at the New York Public Library on April 8.
The Flushing Remonstrance, signed by 30 settlers and opposing a ban on Quaker worship, will be on display through April 10.
The “Flushing Remonstrance: Let Everyone Remain Free” exhibition celebrates the 60th anniversary of the New York City Landmarks law. For the occasion, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, which selects landmarks and historic sites, partnered with the New York State Archives to display the highly protected document.
“I always look for some symbolic project to start the anniversary,” said historian Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, an organizer of the event and chair of the New York City Landmarks60 Alliance.
A preservationist, Diamonstein-Spielvogel thought this forgotten episode of New York’s history would be a perfect fit.
“I was thinking of something worthy. And of course, I think this document is hallowed,” she said of the 1657 letter widely considered to have inspired the religious freedom clause in the First Amendment.
‘Piece of American history’
Though most people know about the First Amendment, few outside of Colonial history enthusiasts know of the Remonstrance, noted Brent Reidy, director of New York Public Library’s research libraries.
The exhibition is a “fantastic opportunity to share a piece of American history that is so vital but maybe is not forward in people’s minds as it could be,” he said.
“Something of this magnitude and rarity is really a special occasion for our public,” Reidy added.
The Flushing Remonstrance was sent by residents of that community — now the Queens borough of New York — to Peter Stuyvesant, the administrator of New Netherland, and condemned his ban of Quaker worship in the Dutch colony.
In 17th-century Colonial America, Flushing stood out in the New World for its tolerance toward religious minorities. In 1645, the Flushing Charter, an agreement between the first English settlers and the Dutch West India Co., granted “liberty of conscience” according to the “custom and manner of Holland” to the new residents of Flushing.
The religious openness attracted European immigrants fleeing persecution, including French Huguenots, Swedish Lutherans and Portuguese Jews.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Fiona André and originally published by Religion News Service.
