My Pursuit Of Freedom In The United States

Freedom is the power or right to think, act, and speak as one wants to without resistance. Freedom is the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved. In the opening of his speech, Jonathan Gibbs speaks out about how delighted he is to be free, but is enraged with that fact that himself and all the rest of the African American people were not getting respect, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as the rest of Americans. If the African American people are not getting the same life, liberty, and protection as everybody else, are they actually Free.

The definition of freedom depends entirely on how the phrase “freedom from…” ends. Perhaps a most straightforward understanding of freedom is the laissez-faire emphasis on limiting the power of government to interfere in economic and social matters. In this state of absolute freedom, however, inequalities exist between people, so that freedom from a controlling government does not imply individuals’ freedom of contract, movement, legal protection, equal rights through citizenship, or political voice. In light of the persistence of slavery in the US through the 19th century, freedom as an individual’s legal status separated people who could be citizens from people who were lifelong slaves. Even among legally free people, economic

Throughout history freedom has had many different meanings and definitions; based on race, gender, and ethnicity. According to the dictionary freedom means the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint (“freedom” def. 1). Freedom may seem like something given to everyone however it was something workers had to fight for. Not everyone believed that workers’ rights needed to be changed, which led to a long battle between workers, employers and the government. To the working class people freedom meant making higher wages, having regulated hours, workable conditions and the right to free speech.

True freedom is not something that can be given. It is something that every single person must discover for themselves. If a person were set free, though still thought of themselves as a slave, they are a slave. America is a country that thrives on freedom. Though numerous people throughout the United States take this privilege for granted.

What is freedom? Is there a specific meaning to the word? Could the meaning be different for everyone? There is of course the obvious answer, where you might say that freedom is the essence of not being controlled by anyone. In the same way, you could reply by saying that freedom is having the ability to make your own choices. Both answers are correct in their own way. However, it could also be described in a very different manner if you were to ask Walt Whitman. A common theme is a lot of Whitman’s poetry is freedom; he observed the world around him, and had his own ideas of the true meaning of freedom. The definition of freedom may be simple to most people, but the true meaning is very deep, personal, and specific; it can never be explained, only experienced.

Just as it’s not the government’s right to control beliefs, you can’t pick and choose what constitutes free speech and what does not. Even if some people spout disgusting, hateful ideas, it’s outright hypocrisy to believe that they should be censored but you shouldn’t. We live in a society where freedom of having an opinion, even one that’s considered stupid by 99 percent of the populace, is allowed. Some may argue that, “No rights are absolute. Rights must be limited by respect for others, and by the needs of society as a whole” (Heinze). This argument states that we must limit everything for the good of society, and implies that free speech is preventing us from reaching the needs of society. It does not, however, explain why freedom of speech hinders the needs of society. While it can be used to offend others or even incite violence (in which case it’s already illegal), expression also shows the concerns for society. Even if another person’s concerns seem off balance compared to the rest of society, they have a free say in what they believe we should do about it. Just as you have the freedom to go out and speak your heart about any issues that trouble you, they have the equivalent rights. The United States can’t call itself a democracy if it limits expression, and you can’t say you’re in favor of free speech if you believe in censorship, even if the content offends you or someone

“Some people’s idea of free speech is that they are free to say what they like , but if anyone says anything back , that is an outrage”, according to Sir Winston Churchill. America, the so called place of opportunity and land of freedom purports to be free, but is it really free? In the 1969 court case , Tinker v. Des moines school district , kids were wearing black armbands in protest of the vietnam war. In response ,the school district didn’t allow it and immediately went to court. The court ruled in favor of the children because they were exercising their right of freedom of speech in a nonviolent manner . Freedom of speech is something that is highly debated and refuted. Freedom of speech is something that gives the people a voice and a right to express their concerns and beliefs that help make America a better place. The right of Freedom of speech should not be limited because the people are entitled to their voice,criticisms and opinions should be expressed freely, and rebelling anyone's rights are

What is freedom exactly? Freedom does not merely refer to unshackled chains of slavery, although in the 19th century, this was the generally accepted belief. When the Civil War ended, many believed that for once, America was a “new nation, for the first time, wholly free” (Fonera 2). However, emancipation from slavery dramatically changed some Americans’ conception of freedom. In 1865, James Garfield asserted that if freedom is understood as “the bare privilege of being unchained…the absence of slavery…then freedom is a bitter mockery, a cruel delusion” (Fonera 2). Instead, freedom is about “civil rights, the vote, ownership of property” (Fonera 2). Freedom is defined by the liberties that

What is Freedom? Freedom is the right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Some use their liberties to express their thoughts, but end up hurting others. Others take it for granted and try to twist over federal law. Society should not be voicing their opinions to hurt Freedom, but to strengthen Freedom instead because Freedom presents opportunities.

My personal answer is that being free means I and anyone else regardless of age, race, height, sex or beliefs is able to walk down the street and not be looked at in a way that portrays them as doing something wrong just because of the way they were born or the path they freely chose to follow. This can apply to the majority of people in most countries, but for some people it's incredibly different like I said.

Garrison Frazier, a Baptist minister, defines freedom as “placing us where we could reap the fruit of our own labor, and take care of ourselves.” My definition of freedom is when an individual has free will. But to the blacks, freedom meant “escaping the numerous injustices of slavery-punishment by the lash, the separation of families, denial of access to education, the sexual exploitation of black women by their owners-and sharing in the rights and opportunities of American citizens.” During the reconstruction, freedom became a landscape of conflict, blacks could not do like the whites, black codes were passed in 1867 by the new southern state legislatures in order to control the labor and behavior of former slaves and other African Americans.

Freedom has a large range of meaning. The encyclopedia Britannica defines freedom as “the quality or state of being free, and the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action” (Britannica). In the American society there is a lot of emphasis on freedom, and the right to be free, but one must question to what extent we are truly “free”.

If I were to define freedom I would call it the ability to do what you want when you want, and have no outside forces preventing you from doing so. But that is a just a very broad definition and there are some exceptions. The first point that is brought up against freedom are laws. If my definition for freedom were to be taken verbatim then the fact that we have

What is the true meaning of the word, “freedom”? According to Webster’s Dictionary, “freedom is the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action” (Webster). Even though that is the formal definition of freedom, others may their own meaning of the word “freedom”. For some people, freedom is acting as one pleases. And for others, freedom is always feeling joyful. For most, freedom plays a positive role in their life. When people have more freedom, this generally means more rights, choices, and opportunities. In the United States, citizens have the freedom to worship, congregate, speak, and vote. Americans often take these freedoms for granted. Unfortunately, this situation is not the case in other parts of the world. Freedom has many years of history, has many causes and effects, and has its’ own meanings of negation.

Freedom is often viewed by having the right to be independent or to be “free from servitude, constraint, inhibition, and liberty” (Oxford Dictionary). The word freedom derived from a “Germanic” culture. Freedom has a different meaning to different people; for example kids, adults and different races. Socially, politically, and religiously the word freedom fits into different categories with different meanings depending on who thinks about the word. Freedom has a wide range of definitions that should be specifically stated in one that addresses the public in one way so everyone knows the same definition and does not cause confusion.