It is a known fact that a gun in the wrong hands can and will kill someone. Our society has shown us that people don’t manage anger and frustration well and as a result, they reach for the nearest weapon, which is guns. Kids get shot, babies get shot, shootings are more common than the ice cream man passing by, kids have to duck while riding the school bus in some neighborhoods. They are afraid of being shot. Spouses kill each other with guns, brothers kill sisters and vice versa, usually with a gun. Our seniors survive the teens and mass shootings have become a common occurrence. Death by gunfire is in the news every week and yet PEOPLE STILL HAVE A CHOICE WHETHER THEY WANT TO BUY A GUN.
People’s health costs the United States millions, if not billions, of dollars. Obesity is a hallmark of an unhealthy community. People suffer from diabetes, heart disease, early death and depression associated with immobility due to obesity. PEOPLE STILL HAVE A CHOICE WHETHER THEY WANT TO EAT CERTAIN FOODS OR LIVE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE.
Alcohol has produced so many alcoholics that eventually lead to crime, homelessness, sick babies, divorces, unproductive members of society and yet,
it also remains legal and above all PEOPLE STILL HAVE A CHOICE WHETHER THEY WANT TO DRINK OR USE OTHER DRUGS.
There is so much in society that causes so many problems, but the bottom line is that we all have a choice in making decisions. Adults are still allowed to choose how they organize their lives. They have these choices because that is the democratic process and because according to the Declaration of Independence, people have the right to choose for themselves. TO HAVE THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE IS WHAT AMERICA IS BUILT ON. Yet there are those who would deny a woman the right to CHOOSE what she wants to do with her own body when it comes to the embryo in her womb. It seems okay under the law, for a mother to drink while pregnant for nine months, making that child chemically dependent, after all, that’s legal. It’s okay with the law if her eating habits cause her to get intoxicated or if she smokes or drinks for nine months resulting in her baby being born with serious health problems, but it’s not okay if she decides NOT to take her child into this unjust world. How can some people have the right to choose, no matter what the statistics say, but a woman’s right to choose what she does with her own body is questionable. How hypocritical can we be? A man can father 100 children he can’t take care of and a woman has no choice but to say, “No more”, this must still be a “man’s world”.
It’s not about whether or not you believe in abortions, it’s about whether a woman has the right to choose whether or not she wants one. It’s about a woman who decides to do what she wants with her life. It’s about a woman deciding for herself, based on her life and lifestyle, whether or not to have a baby, carry it to term, or not have it at all. It’s her body, it’s her life, and it should definitely be her choice. If it turns out to be morally wrong, according to her higher power, that’s between her and her higher power, not between her and the same people who push the alcohol, the same people who see no need to control the sale or possession of guns , the same people, who continue to sell cigarettes, the same people who swear to uphold the Declaration of Independence, which by the way PROMISE people will have rights, but only abide by them when it suits them.
The Declaration of Independence promises: “We take for granted these truths, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This inalienable
rights are personal rights of an individual that are not conferred by law, custom, or belief, and cannot be taken away, given away, or transferred to another person… The United States Constitution recognized that certain universal rights cannot be taken away by legislation, as they are beyond the control of any government, as they are naturally given to every individual at birth, and that these rights are preserved throughout life.
The difference between inalienable rights and legal rights is that one is granted to every human being by the nature of birth, and the other is established by law. Inalienable rights supersede government laws and cultural norms. These natural rights include the right to think for oneself, the right to life, and the right to self-defense, and they last throughout the life of every human being.
It’s time to vote, it’s time to think seriously about what and who you want to represent, who will fight for YOUR rights. You have the choice to vote for the one who respects your choices…vote Lashrecse Aird because she made a DECISION that your choice is worth fighting for.
Treska Wilson-Smith
Petersburg, VA
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Brief: The difference between inalienable and legal rights is clear in the primary