In the Declaration of Independence, the founders of the United States laid out their reasons for separation from Britain. The opening lines state that all men are entitled to certain rights and freedoms. These cannot be abused by government. Among these rights is the ability of citizens to replace any government that fails to protect their rights. The Declaration goes on to list many ways in which Britain violated colonists rights and failed to protect them. The Declaration also says that colonial leaders tried to reach out to Parliament and the king to settle these issues peacefully. The authors say their petitions have been ignored and rejected. For these reasons, the colonies declared their independence from Britain them exercised their right to separate from Britain and for a new nation-the United States of America, Use the passage to answer the question. 20. Identify the steps to take when summarizing a text. Then, use those steps to write a short summary of the description. What is the main idea? 14