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Mar. 28, 2005 In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson justified his entrance into World War I by saying that "The world must be made safe for democracy." However, when complaints of brutal race riots in East St. Louis fell on the president's deaf ears, it became quite apparent that not only was the world not safe for democracy, but neither was the United States. Similar actions have taken place in the recent past. Starting in 1977, the U.S. State Department has produced a yearly report on global human rights. For years, it has frustrated several authoritarian governments, particularly China. However, as our economy becomes increasingly dependent on China, the report on China has become decreasingly stern, to the point where it no longer exists. Seeing this opening, the Chinese retaliated with their own assessment of our human rights practices, called "The Human Rights Record of the United States." The document criticizes a number of aspects of American life. It deals with 'life, liberty, and security of person' and even goes as far as to discuss racism and sexual harassment in the country. The picture painted by the document is so pathetic, it's almost funny--until you realize that we're talking about a nation that prides itself on being the world's # 1 democracy--The United States of America. The assessment cites the large amount of American deaths lost to guns--31,000 in 2004 (80 people a day), and cites the sharp increase in prison inmates--an increase of over 500% since 1980, and well over 1000% if you count parolees and probationers. If this is really the 'land of the free,' then why are so many of our citizens in 'state penitentiaries?' The document then proceeds to discuss the social conditions in the world's richest nation. It cites that Americans living under the poverty line have increased over the last three years ('01-'04) and cites that the standard living condition has been steadily DECREASING for nearly 30 years. Think about this: we're one of the richest countries, and yet our minimum wage: $5.50 an hour, is an absolutely deplorable salary. The document's stern judgement of racial discrimination is quite sobering as well. It says that "the colored people are generally poor, with living condition much worse than the white." (grammatical errors included). It continues to cite that black people are twice as likely to be murdered than a white person. "The Declaration of Independence said all men are created equal, so the gap between black and white people is simply an insult to the founding essence of the United States." The Chinese report even criticizes homeland security as well, saying that since 9/11, the U.S. government "openly restricts the rights of citizens under the cloack of homeland security, and uses diverse means including wire taping of phone conversations and secret investigations...in which, people of ethnic minority groups, foreigners and immigrants become main victims." Patriot Act, anyone? Besides that, we can count the Abu Ghraib photos, we can count all of the people that Bush has labeled as 'enemy combatants' and the thousands being held in Guantanamo Bay, being tortured and held without bail. Obviously, there's some animosity between the Chinese and American governments on the issue of human rights, and there's a very good chance that plenty of people who read this article will defend the U.S., saying that China is being overly harsh on the country. That may be. But either way, it does make the nation look bad when one of the worst authoritarian governments in the world gives the United States a 'D' in terms of human rights. Perhaps the nation's domestic situation would be better if we stopped looking to foreign policy, and began to focus on the very real problems that we have presented ourselves with at home. ------------ About the author: Jack Lepiarz is a Junior at Madison High School in Madison, New Jersey. Born in Waco, Texas, in July of 1988, he spent the first six years of his life living on a circus lot with the Big Apple Circus. Now residing in New Jersey, he has plans to attend college in the fall of 2006. An avid writer, he hopes to publish his novel, Spencer, soon, but is also working on a second novel at the moment. Email: Jackwuzhere42@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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