A major selling point for why some people may say America is one of the greatest countries is the civil liberties and freedoms we have. Some view them as God given rights, but we gained them through blood, sweat, tears, and hard work. Nevertheless, we pride ourselves on living authentically and unashamedly using these concepts. Though we revel in the benefits, not everybody knows the difference between civil rights and civil liberties, and we often group them together. This can be confusing when trying to understand the guidelines and standards our government is supposed to hold itself to. Civil liberties limit the government’s power when it comes to infringing on civil freedoms. If you are accused of a crime, civil liberties protect you from being convicted and punished without a trial. Civil rights (mostly stated in the Bill of Rights) constitutionally guarantee that the government treats its people equally, regardless of protected class (ex: race, gender, religion). Both these concepts play a part in achieving the “American Dream” and living in a nation of equality and freedom by keeping government power regulated.
Recent ICE deployment is an example of how Americans’ civil liberties are being violated. All across social media and news stations, we can see people being approached by ICE agents in their cars and even outside Immigration offices after their appointments. Many families whose loved ones were taken by ICE report not being able to find the detention center they were taken to. Not being in contact with that person means documents proving their legal status cannot be provided to help their case. The lack of due process by DHS (Department of Homeland Security) clearly heavily infringes on our liberties and raises serious concerns for human rights. This is one way DHS gets around upholding the standards this country was built on. Violations like this continue because parts of the government are going unchecked. When governments find loopholes in their own law, it shows a lack of leadership and disregard for their people. Checks and balances are a key factor in keeping our liberties. Without that, our equality and freedom are violated along with our life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness.
Many of the protected groups didn’t always have the rights they do now. They were fought for through various methods, such as protesting. Protesting is a form of freedom of speech, which is a right that we see violated more and more these days. Protesting comes in many forms, like boycotts, hunger strikes, and street marches. Through protesting, we gained women’s rights, civil rights, voting rights, and plenty more. The right to protest is protected by the First Amendment (right to assembly). Law enforcement is increasingly using excessive force to contain peaceful protests, such as tear gas, pepper balls, and rubber bullets, at unsafe distances. There are many examples of how this doesn’t just affect our right to protest, but also other protected rights we hold, such as freedom of religion. At a protest in Chicago, Pastor David Black was shot in the head with pepper balls while praying outside with protesters. Not only is there an increasing disregard for our rights, but it is also beginning to breach the rights of protected groups. The more our government goes unchecked, the fewer rights and liberties we will have at our disposal to do something about it. As that happens, the freedoms we pride ourselves on as Americans dwindle, and the equality we fought for becomes something we only hear about in history books.
