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Civil Liberties : A Debate On Civil Rights And Civil Rights

Decent Essays

Regarding Civil Rights
As a United States citizen I enjoy countless benefits that people living in many other countries may not. As a citizen of a democracy we have civil rights and civil liberties, both of which we are extremely lucky to have. While the conception of civil rights and civil liberties has changed throughout time, they must continue to change to suit our ever changing events. What I mean by this is; when the civil liberties and rights were created, there was no debate on war against terrorism or debate regarding gay marriage, the civil rights and liberties were adapted to include these issues and must continue to do so (Prabhat). Many people often use the terms “civil rights” and “civil liberties” interchangeably. This creates confusion and is one of the main reasons people often think they are the same thing. Essentially civil liberties protect us from government actions while civil rights protect us from un-fairness and discrimination (“What Are Civil Liberties?”). I believe that civil rights are more important to our American democracy than civil liberties.
First of all, let's gain a better understanding of civil liberties. Civil liberties are guaranteed to all citizens and are found in the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Civil liberties are limitations on the government's power and are used to protect freedoms that the government may not legally interfere with. An example of a civil liberty is the freedom of religion, the first

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