The meaning of the freedom we celebrate
By Vinod Kannu
As Independence Day is coming around, I thought about why our freedom in the United States is important. The answer, seemingly difficult to describe in words, is deceptively simple. The answer is all around us in our everyday lives. Freedom has granted the opportunity for our populace to speak their concerns in order to improve our society. We are blessed with equal educational opportunities, equal job opportunities, and equal social opportunities for all. As a republic the population of the United States is allowed to elect representatives of their views to make and enforce their laws.
Our freedom took many years and lives to obtain. Our bid for freedom started with the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, which said that every man has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Of course, the signing of the Declaration of Independence is our national holiday on July the Fourth because it was the beginning of the creation of the United States, a nation in which there is liberty for all. Of course, our freedom has been threatened in many wars since the American Revolution such as the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II, as well as the War on Terror of today. Whether Americans support war or not, they cannot discount the sacrifices made by American troops to protect our liberty. Their sacrifices should never be forgotten.
Therefore, the meaning of freedom lies in the fact that we, as Americans, have equal opportunities in all that we do. We should never take our liberty for granted. We should treat our freedom as an obligation to help our country in any way we can. Famous French philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau once said: “Free people, remember this maxim: We may acquire liberty, but it is never recovered if it is once lost.” We must exercise our freedom to improve our country and never forget about it. Even in the troubling time of the United States today, I believe that if we all exercise our freedom as citizens to perform our obligations to our country such as voting, working, and paying taxes, our country will stand tall through anything.
Bibliography: http://www.fdrs.org/famous_freedom_quotes.html