Minority Rights and Constitution - Coursework Example

HUMAN RIGHTS AND CONSTITUTION The world has turned into a global village during the modern times, where the people belonging to pole-apart regions proceed to acquire better job, business, education and health opportunities. It is particularly the case with the USA, where people arrive and live from every corner of the globe. Hence, the contemporary US society has become a land of socio-cultural and ethno-religious amalgamation, which has created the feelings of class conflict among majority and minority religious, ethnic and racial groups. There was felt an utter and immediate need for making laws for the protection of human rights all over the country. The amendments made in the US constitution during the contemporary times offer many rights to its citizens without discrimination. Though, the statutes of the prevailing constitution do not specify the protection of these human rights, yet the future amendments, articulated and approved during the course of time, offered few rights to all and sundry in the USA. The provisions of the first constitutional amendment specifically declare freedom of exercising religious practices, freedom speech and of assembling to all citizens, yet it does not condemn exercise and observing of any prejudiced behavior against minority groups and communities. Almost all the opportunities will be wide open to men and women, according to the provisions, belonging to every social and ethnic group and religious belief. In addition, fourteenth amendment of the US constitution also offers the rights on equal basis to the American citizens, born or immigrated in the USA. All citizens have rights to contest for the highest political or social position provided he is not a criminal or convict or traitor to the country. Moreover, fifteenth amendment provides all Americans the right to cast his/her vote in favor of the candidate of his own choice. Further, seventeenth amendment allows all the American individuals equal right to contest for the position of senator. There is no restriction on the racial or gender biased ness at all. Amendment twenty six of the US Constitution maintains the very fact that every citizen, who has reached the age of majority, will be capable of casting his vote. It does not mention that only the WASP community has the right to cast its votes and elect its political leader. Even then, there is no specific of justifying the protection of human rights according to the constitution due to the very fact that no provision of the constitution looks for the protection and preservation of human rights on the one hand, and the abolishing of prejudice against the minority groups on the other. Thus, the provisions of the US constitutions cannot be declared as sufficient for the preservation of minority rights in the country. While analyzing the ancient and modern societies, it becomes evident that all human societies have been divided into different castes, clans, communities, classes, religions, races, ethnic groups, genders, age-groups and socioeconomic statuses. Researches also affirm the evidence of divergent socioeconomic classes and cultural groups present in every culture and civilization even during the prehistoric times. There was a time when discrimination on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity and gender was the order of the day and the women and African blacks were looked down upon. Slavery was in vogue all over the globe, particularly in the USA and the European nations also brought the poor and helpless Africans for their services. Each and every type of pains and sufferings were inflicted upon the black slaves, who were unable to raise even a single voice of protest against their cruel and ruthless American and European masters. Women and the blacks had to make a long and exhaustive struggle to win their freedom and rights on equal foundations. They produced protest literature, organized demonstrations, articulated social movements and arranged demonstrations for the protection of their rights. The literature produced by the African American writers and poets, gave birth to the famous Harlem Renaissance Movement. The motive behind these writers was not mere expressing of their grief; rather, the aims of such writing material appeared as receiving additional gains out of the so called miseries their previous generations suffered for decades. During nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the White Anglo Saxon Population (WASP) was reluctant to accept the equal status for Blacks at all. The writers played the most significant role in this regards. Great writers like Malcolm X, Margaret Drabble, Toni Morrison and others performed their ethical obligations in this regard. Though, the contemporary US society observes racial discrimination, which is particularly prominent in the health, education and job sectors, where minority groups undergo prejudiced behaviour due to limited and inferior facilities, yet the constitution provides equal human rights facilities to all its individuals without discrimination. The theorists take differences in fertility, mortality and productivity rates among the individuals belonging to different caste, class, community, race, religion, gender and socioeconomic status as the outcome of social inequality. They vehemently criticize the discriminative behaviour towards the minority groups and communities living in the contemporary American social set up and declare it strictly against the provisions of the statute of law and constitution as well. They view the very fact that unsuitable growth and development opportunities have drastically affected the health and life expectancy of the racial groups in minority, particularly the African Americans, who have been undergoing the hatred and antipathy of the white majority since the colonial era of nineteenth century, which has eclipsed the overall health statistics of the US population. The information regarding the social norms, mores, values and traditions existing in the US culture also describe the same, according to which the level of hatred in the minds of the white Americans against the African Americans is really surprising. It is really astounding to note that the country that pretends to be the torchbearer of human rights, maintains such humiliating and nefarious cultural traits in it. Health and education of the individuals is of especial concern particularly in the advanced and civilized countries of western world, but the prejudiced behaviour against the African Americans and non-Hispanic whites, serves as black mark on the very face of the USA. Anyway, many things like social stratification and class conflict, described by the author with reference to the American society, is not very much surprising. “In United States, skin color is an obvious difference. On a cold winter day when one has clothing covering all, but ones head however, skin color may be less obvious than hair color.” (Schaefer, 2006:5) Thus, race specifies the origin of the people living as minority in a great country like USA, which cannot lose its identity even after living for many decades in the region other than and outside their own. The United States of America is a country where people from all parts of the globe have been residing for over two centuries as permanent as well as temporary settlers. Especially during the colonial era, African blacks were captured and were taken as slaves and their descendants make up significant part of the total population. In the same way, Asian, European, Australian and Arab nations have also become the part of social, cultural, economic and political set up of America. This all has given birth to the idea of multi-cultural society where individuals belonging to various regions and races of the world practicing divergent religious practices are living as one single nation. A large part of the individuals settled in America has got themselves assimilated with the native culture, yet an overwhelming majority of the immigrants could not adopt the patterns of American religious beliefs, though they became part of the people celebrating regional festivals and cultural norms. Since America has become a multicultural country, there exists competition, conflict and even serious feelings of alienation and hatred among different races and ethnic groups. The co-operation and understanding between them all is essential for the peace and solidarity of various groups and communities. It may surely be supportive in developing of a progressive and prosperous America at large. Women also had to make hard efforts for winning equal rights for them. Famous feminist and social activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton in her remarkable “Declaration of Sentiments and Resolution” submits that since Nature has created women quite equal to men and bestowed upon women all the faculties attributed to men, they should enjoy their position in society on the basis of equality, rather being suppressed and looked down upon by the dominating male stratum. Stanton looks for the equivalent rights for women in respect of leading their life according to their own free will. Any law that restricts them regarding their liberty as well as pursuance of happiness must be demolished and deleted without any delays. She sought happiness of women out of their own choice whether the methods of seeking happiness were great or mean. All laws, she views, which prevent woman from occupying such a station in society as her conscience shall dictate, or which place her in a position inferior to that of man, are contrary to the great precept of nature, and therefore of no force or authority. (1848: 2) If any stratum of society, she views, including the individuals at the helm of the government even, attempts to challenge any just and true rights related to a particular group or community of society, it is the obligation of every member of society to strive for the elimination of such banishments. The sociologists like Professor Todd Gitlin and Hobsbawm go against the idea of identity politics. They view it as a constant threat to the unity of the American society. Also, it will widen the gulf between various strata of society. Identity Politics, Gitlin states, may drag the social life towards the activities that have been erected on the grounds of racism and ethnocentrism. Preferring the member of one’s own racial group severely hits the concept of nationalism. It is dangerous to be in a state of alienation in one’s own social set up. There must be complete acculturation from the immigrants who have been living or have decided to make new country their homeland. Offering opportunities to one ethnic group may put the talent in jeopardy. Critics of identity politics including Andrew Sullivan and others, write Duberman (2001), claim the very reality that multiculturalists must stretch beyond their cultures and identities. Identity Politics won popularity in America in 1970s. Based on racial, communal and other prejudices, the movements caused polarization in the country. Though, the majority groups hurt the minors including Muslims, Blacks, Communists, women, homosexuals and others, and they met suppression, yet there are many ways to mend the problem. Marxist perspective was also a reaction to the exploitation of the upper classes to the lower stratum. Feminist also blame male-dominating society responsible for the creation of Feminist movement. Establishment of Feminist Jurisprudence, Gay Liberation Front, Black Civil Rights Association and other such organizations and groups have weakened the foundations of the state. The unity as a nation underwent serious set back and disintegration gave way to group based identity. The local White people of the USA see threat of being the victim of ethnic hatred in future years to come. REFERENCES: Duberman, Martin. “In Defense of Identity Politics” Quoted in InTheseTimes.com. July, 2001. Geiger, H. Jack. Health Disparities. Quoted in Schulz, Amy J. & Mullings, Leith. Gender, Race, Class and Health Jossey-Bass. A Wiley Imprint Inc. 2006 Schaefer, Richard T. Racial and Ethnic Groups Tenth Edition Prentice-Hall Pearson Education, Inc. 2006 This is an opinion paper. You can use the Amendments of the Constitution of the United States. Does the Constitution adequately protect the rights of women, African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics Americans, and other ethnic groups and recent immigrants? Paper needs to be typed double spaces, 1 inch margins. It is expected that the Amendments, the Bill of Rights, and Natural Rights be used in this paper. The American Government text book tenth edition would be a great resource. Read More

While analyzing the ancient and modern societies, it becomes evident that all human societies have been divided into different castes, clans, communities, classes, religions, races, ethnic groups, genders, age-groups and socioeconomic statuses. Researches also affirm the evidence of divergent socioeconomic classes and cultural groups present in every culture and civilization even during the prehistoric times. There was a time when discrimination on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity and gender was the order of the day and the women and African blacks were looked down upon.

Slavery was in vogue all over the globe, particularly in the USA and the European nations also brought the poor and helpless Africans for their services. Each and every type of pains and sufferings were inflicted upon the black slaves, who were unable to raise even a single voice of protest against their cruel and ruthless American and European masters. Women and the blacks had to make a long and exhaustive struggle to win their freedom and rights on equal foundations. They produced protest literature, organized demonstrations, articulated social movements and arranged demonstrations for the protection of their rights.

The literature produced by the African American writers and poets, gave birth to the famous Harlem Renaissance Movement. The motive behind these writers was not mere expressing of their grief; rather, the aims of such writing material appeared as receiving additional gains out of the so called miseries their previous generations suffered for decades. During nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the White Anglo Saxon Population (WASP) was reluctant to accept the equal status for Blacks at all.

The writers played the most significant role in this regards. Great writers like Malcolm X, Margaret Drabble, Toni Morrison and others performed their ethical obligations in this regard. Though, the contemporary US society observes racial discrimination, which is particularly prominent in the health, education and job sectors, where minority groups undergo prejudiced behaviour due to limited and inferior facilities, yet the constitution provides equal human rights facilities to all its individuals without discrimination.

The theorists take differences in fertility, mortality and productivity rates among the individuals belonging to different caste, class, community, race, religion, gender and socioeconomic status as the outcome of social inequality. They vehemently criticize the discriminative behaviour towards the minority groups and communities living in the contemporary American social set up and declare it strictly against the provisions of the statute of law and constitution as well. They view the very fact that unsuitable growth and development opportunities have drastically affected the health and life expectancy of the racial groups in minority, particularly the African Americans, who have been undergoing the hatred and antipathy of the white majority since the colonial era of nineteenth century, which has eclipsed the overall health statistics of the US population.

The information regarding the social norms, mores, values and traditions existing in the US culture also describe the same, according to which the level of hatred in the minds of the white Americans against the African Americans is really surprising. It is really astounding to note that the country that pretends to be the torchbearer of human rights, maintains such humiliating and nefarious cultural traits in it. Health and education of the individuals is of especial concern particularly in the advanced and civilized countries of western world, but the prejudiced behaviour against the African Americans and non-Hispanic whites, serves as black mark on the very face of the USA.

Anyway, many things like social stratification and class conflict, described by the author with reference to the American society, is not very much surprising. “In United States, skin color is an obvious difference.

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