Being American: Liberty, Equality and Republicanism

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Being an American cannot simply be defined by skin color, culture, or religion. This nation cannot be defined in a simplistic manner like many other nations. For instance, other countries define themselves by their accent or by the types of food they consume. According to Sarah Song, “To be or to become an American, a person did not have to be any particular national, linguistic, religious, or ethnic background. All he had to do was to commit himself to the political ideology centered on the abstract ideals of liberty, equality, and republicanism” (31). Therefore, being American simply means having the same views about equality, liberty and republicanism as our American ancestors.

Being an American is clearly stated in the Declaration of Independence. For instance, according to Carrie Shanafelt, Benjamin Franklin stated, “Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety deserve neither Liberty nor Safety” (n.p). Therefore, being an American means treating the ideology of liberty in a sacred manner. The meaning of the term liberty is to be free from servitude, confinement or oppression. In addition, the term liberty defines itself as political independence. Liberty should be taken serious within our American society because our forefather Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty or give me death” (n.p). However, today in America liberty is viewed differently by a variety of people; “Different men often see the same subject in different lights” (Henry n.p). For instance, according to John Petrie, Thomas Jefferson stated, “When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty” (n.p). Therefore, the quote stated by Thomas Jefferson is an example of h...

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JPetrie, n.d. Web. 30 Mar 2011.

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Riccardi, Nicholas. "Arizona passes strict illegal immigration act."

Article Collections. Los Angeles Times, 13 April 2010. Web. 5 Apr

2011. arizona-immigration14-2010apr14>. Shanafelt, Carrie. "Item of the Day: Franklin's Historical Review of

Pennsylvania (1759)." 18th century reading room, 11 October 2005.

Web. 28 Mar 2011.

franklins-historical.html>.

Song, Sarah. "What does it mean to be an American?." (2009): 31 - 40.

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"The CIA World Factbook." The World Fact Book. CIA, n.d. Web. 6 Apr

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