The world has never been perfect by definition, but the more I read the news, the less perfect it gets. We live in a world where school shootings will soon become normalized, where discrimination against people still exists, and where our Amendments are being ignored.
According to EducationWeek, there have been about 232 school shootings since 2018. The sad thing is that, due to how many there are, unless there were deaths or injuries, few shootings aren’t even spread across the news.
Kids shouldn’t be scared to go to school because we failed to get school shootings under control. When I was in elementary school, my biggest worry was who I was going to sit with at lunch. I can’t tell you when that switched to being scared of not making it back home.
It’s no secret that discrimination has always been around, but we keep saying that we learn from our mistakes and history. I’m not sure we can say that’s true if people of color and women are still receiving this treatment today.
Discrimination against women may not be life-threatening, but it is prominent. Women have been told what they need and should do with their bodies. Whether it’s telling women they can’t wear certain clothing because it’s distracting, or telling them they can’t have an abortion unless they are willing to be considered murderers. The worst part is that most of this comes from males, not females.
It says in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal. On August 2, 1776, the Declaration of Independence started getting signed. To this day, after hundreds of years, we still fail to meet the standards of the first line in that document.
If all men are created equal, we should be treating all men equally, but we still let white, rich men get away with stuff that someone in a lower socioeconomic class and a person of color might not get away with. Just because someone might look or live differently from the next doesn’t mean they should be treated differently. In the Pledge of Allegiance, we say “Under God, indivisible for liberty and justice for all.” We say there is justice for all when there isn’t.
All people living in the U.S. have Amendment rights, and the First Amendment includes freedom of speech. Recently, many citizens have been denied this right. Most recently, Jimmy Kimmel got his late-night show suspended for speaking on the Charlie Kirk killing. According to the New York Times, Jimmy Kimmel’s show got suspended after he said controversial things online about Trump’s reaction to the death.
Whether you might agree or disagree with what someone says, you shouldn’t be able to take away their access to use their First Amendment right. If they have freedom of speech, then they should be able to use it without consequences. If you don’t like what someone says online, then turn off the channel or scroll down.
Some restrictions do come with the First Amendment, but speaking out on what you believe in isn’t against any rules. When Jerry from Ben and Jerry’s announced he quit due to not being able to speak out about social issues, this was a clear sign that companies’ people might love have policies that restrict the employees’ rights. Unless he wanted to speak badly about his company, then he should have the freedom to talk about whatever social issues he chooses.
The more time goes on, the more each party disagrees with the other. We might say we are a multi-party government, but we truly are just two. We are treading on thin ice that can break at any minute and change the way we know things.
The future I want for America looks at what we have done, then changes it for the better. I want our politics to stop being two different extremes, and begin to take the good things from both sides and make it one great party. I want it to be a place where kids feel safe leaving their houses.
There will always be conflict and disagreements between people, and that’s ok, but we need to remember that we are all a part of America as a whole. Each person’s actions and words hold value in what makes America. We are America, no matter what you look like, no matter your beliefs, and no matter your age, we the people are America.
