Choicepoint: A Case of Privacy in the 21st Century Essay

The United States was founded on the belief that every man has “certain inalienable Rights.” Not until ninety years later, however, when slavery was abolished did the United States actually offer these “Rights” to all of its citizens. The 19th century was turbulent time of stress and change for America. One of the most controversial dilemmas was the issue of slavery. Slavery was conceived by many to be morally wrong, and it undermined America’s most valued beliefs. Despite this inconsistency, slavery was still widely supported and permitted out of economic necessity in the South.

Throughout America’s history, we have believed that humans have individual rights that should be protected and supported by the rulers of our country. The Constitution’s Bill of Rights was created to protect these rights, and the Declaration of Independence even proclaims that “all men are created equal”. However, there were hundreds of people scattered throughout the colonies, and then states, in America who did not have these same rights and were not always seen as human, such as African Americans, women, and Native Americans.

Throughout America’s history the franchise has been withheld from different groups. This has been possible due to weakly written laws that do not provide adequate protections. In 1965 PL 89-110 was passed, this law, commonly known as the Voting Rights Act of 1965, finally provided real protections for minorities living in southern states. In recent years the language of the law was modified within the Supreme Court to take away the law’s primary power. In the following mock Congressional testimony we will go back to 1848, 13 years before the American Civil War, and provide evidence of why a law like PL 89-110 is necessary and commendable.

For centuries, the success of a democratic society has been measured by its commitment to equality, a resounding principle central to our nation’s founding. The Enlightenment-inspired language of the Declaration of Independence, namely the age-old axiom that “all men are created equal,” pervades our perception of the American creed. However, nearly a century passed before the Lockean principles espoused in the Declaration of Independence began to bear the force of law. Entitling American citizens to due process and equal protection of the law, the Fourteenth Amendment, perhaps the most transformative Amendment of all, has inspired the steady progression of American society. Nonetheless, while the Amendment serves as the chief legal force behind the democratic goal of equality, questions regarding its achievement of that goal

Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, and the passing of the Thirteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution were historical milestones in which the ever controversial topic of racial equality was first challenged. In theory, these two movements laid the groundwork for a racially equal United States of America. A country in which every member, regardless of skin color, or race were to be treated equally under the eyes of the law and to one day be treated as equals within all realms of society. As historic and powerful as these movements were, they did

It is without a doubt that discrimination in this country has existed since its early stages. However, to this day after many movements and eras to try and eliminate it all together, it remains. And in this class, we seek to understand why. For these last couple of weeks, we discussed the 14th amendment and more specifically referenced its equal protection clause which vows to protect the fundamental rights of “all” citizens of the United States. Because of this state and federal governments attempt to create neutral laws that will apply fairly to all citizens in the United States. Which seems to be the best thing they can try and do nonetheless if a bill is said to be neutral, but has an unequal influence on a particular group of people problems

Between the years of 1865 and 1870, four documents important to improving equal rights for all people of the United States were written. These documents include the 13th through 15th amendments, and the Civil Rights Act of 1886. Each document was equally important to African Americans, because it gave them more rights and opportunities to influence the United States’ future. However, these important documents also influence the future for other kinds of people, including Asian people, and Hispanics. The ratification of the 13th through 15th amendments, and the Civil Rights Act of 1886, influenced the lives of many people and our country’s future too.

In America we are constantly reminded of the idea of freedom and equality for every individual. It is not commonly acceptable to base a person’s stature in the community from their race, class, religion, or sexuality. The most powerful act that brought forth new standards of civil rights and equality privileges was the fourteenth amendment. One of the most highlighted aspects mentioned within the document is that no state shall “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; nor deny any person… the equal protection of the laws.” This simple statement has made an impact in today’s society. The equal protection of the law primarily draws from and requires equal treatment for all citizens in the United States, but

The U.S. has become a less discriminatory nation since the Holocaust. The United States Constitution’s Fifth and Fourteenth amendments restrict the state and federal governments to discriminate against the people. The Fifth amendment calls for the federal government to not take individual's “life, liberty, or property without due process of the law.” The fifth amendment also says that each individual will have equal protection under the law. The Fourteenth amendment forbids states to take away a citizen’s right to fair treatment and equal protection. Both of these amendments have changed America for the better since the

Society has been significantly revolutionized since the beginnings of the United States. The very history of the country has been cursed with racism and the harsh oppression of minorities. In fact, America’s power and economy were founded on a Marxist theory of a two-class system. On the top of that system were the slave owners, and at the very bottom were the slaves themselves (Balkaran, 1999). Slavery and segregation used to be huge components in the lives of Americans. During those times, “Americans” were white, landowning men; obviously that principle has been altered a great deal. People of color, women, and the poor actually have been given suffrage by amendments in the Constitution. Although the United States’ culture and society

One of the biggest problems Africans Americans faced in America is Segregation, discrimination, racism, prejudice, rebellion, religion, resistance, and protest. These problems have helped shape the Black struggle for justice. Their fight for justice marks a long sequence of events towards their freedom. Provisions of the Constitution affect the operation of government agencies and/or the latitude chief executives and legislatures in the creation and implementation of policies today. The rights and passage of Amendments granted to African Americans in the Constitution serve as a source of “first principles” governing the actions and policies of elected and appointed public servants across the United States. The 15th Amendment Equal Rights: Rights

When addressing legal issues of diversity in the modern day era, one main topic is brought to discussion, affirmative action. It was put into place by the federal government in the 1960’s and was initially developed to close the gap in relation to the privileged majority and the unprivileged minority in America (Aguirre Jr. & Martinez, 2003). While it has been controversial since its origin, it remains controversial as critics argue it tries to equalize the impact of so many

While reading this document I realized, if ChoicePoint would have taken adequate measures to verify who their customers were some of the resulting consequences could have been mitigated. Though various checks were put into place to authenticate their customers, identity thieves still managed to circumvent those checks and gain access to ChoicePoint’s data. This issue could have been addressed by enacting more robust security checks to authenticate who the customer really is. By incorporating more methods to authenticate a customer or potential client, ChoicePoint could have greatly reduced the probabililty of an unauthorized person gaining access to ChoicePoint’s data. Also it must be noted, the data breached didn’t take place from a technical avenue but more so from a social engineering. Training and educating employees about social engineering can thwart the success of those attacks.

The digital age provides individuals with numerous ways of innovative opportunities like recording data in an effective manner, electronic banking, online shopping, by violating privacy. Despite what might be expected, the national and global security framework needs components to check programmers and outsider interceptors, who can access delicate data and information, placed in various divisions of the financial framework. These outsider interceptors can then break-in remotely to harm or get access to passwords and usernames.

Nine hundred and thirty-seven. That is the number of people assaulted and killed by law enforcement officers, this year alone. Our government is implementing laws and regulations that punish minorities and those without money so they cannot afford to live comfortably in our society. Citizens are being refused the right to serve in our nation’s military strictly because of the fact that they don’t conform to an archaic idea of a two-gender system. We are witnessing the Great Divide. American citizens are disunited based on issues of identity. With this divide, inequality has become an increasing issue, but strong individuals are unifying to fight for racial and gender equality. Many concerned individuals are fighting for equal opportunity in American society because our divided country allows some people to advance while others are held back.