The Constitution in which America bases her roots on rests on a major unalienable right that all Americans consider paramount – the right to equality. Under the supreme law of the land, these equal rights matured and grew into an innate value that Americans possess. The emphasis of equality extends into the freedom rights, such as, the freedom to express oneself and not be prosecuted by what you believe. In the United States, one can freely share one’s own beliefs because everyone can equally claim their rights as a citizen of a free country.
Nonetheless, in Saree Makdisi’s “Banned in the U.S.A. (Almost),” a violation to this God-given right becomes evident. The commentary that Makdisi makes gives an uncanny feeling of distrust toward the events occurring in this so-called “Land of the Free.” If individuals are denied the opportunity to speak their own thoughts in public based on its content, how is this any different from not being able to speak at all? How can America call itself a truly free nation when discrimination of ideas and opinions takes place? Events like these definitely “[suggest] that the civic culture on which our country was founded has broken down.”
Although Makdisi limits his doubts about the civic culture to issues with Israel and Palestine, if the culture was broken once, it can undoubtedly break again. What starts small can grow into something much bigger if it is left alone. Though over two hundred years have passed since the birth of the Constitution, it is still just as fragile as when it was first written. The American people regard the Constitution at an utmost level of importance. In order to keep this foundation of the United States safe, the people must protect the contents of the Constitution and the idea of freedom that it was based on.
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