The Shrinking Freedom Landscape
Is the Basic Right Guarantee Securing Advantage Instead: Is the Constitution Being Ignored at Will?
The power-hungry Deep State, with its knack for manipulation, has perfected the art of the bait and switch. They instill fear about some alleged crisis or security threat, only to capitalize on it by seizing more power and utilizing those powers against the American people.
It's happened time and time again.
With the so-called War on Terror, the government morphed into a full-blown police state. Post-9/11, the police state then spun its own war – the War on COVID-19 – to claim lockdown powers. And with all signs pointing at it, the government's promised War on Illegal Immigration is shaping up as yet another deception that lets the powers-that-be dig their heels in deeper while weakening the Constitution.
This never-ending government power grab is what makes it dangerous. Whatever questionable tactics the government lets itself do today – whether it's for the name of national security, border protection, or public health – rest assured these tactics will be employed against you tomorrow when the government decides to set its sights on you.
The slippery slope that starts with illegal immigration could easily morph into a system where the government chooses who is deserving of rights, and who isn't. Before you know it, we'll all find ourselves navigating a world where the rights enshrined in the Constitution as unalienable rights for all persons living in the United States are transformed into privileges only enjoyed by those the government decides deserve them.
The Government's Power-Hungry Scheme
By convincing the public that non-citizens, particularly illegal immigrants, don't enjoy the same inalienable rights as law-abiding citizens (a fact disproven by the Constitution and every credible legal scholar in the country), the Deep State is guiding us down a dangerous road. This treacherous path will lead to a world where all rights are transitory, contingent upon being favored by the government.
Here's the gist on why this is a no-go:
The Eradication of Universal Rights
The Bill of Rights was designed to safeguard the fundamental rights of all people within the United States, regardless of their citizenship status, race, religion, or any other factor. But when the government discards the principle of universal rights, it fuels the slippery slope where rights become privileges subject to the whims of those in power.
The Rise of Authoritarianism
Throughout history, we've seen governments eradicate the rights of marginalized groups to solidify their power. When universal rights are breached, it's much easier for a government to target other groups deemed "undesirable" or "unworthy." This paves the way for an authoritarian government that doles out freedom in a one-size-fits-all manner.
A Divided Nation
A stratified system based on a hierarchy of rights will inevitably create a two-tiered society, where some enjoy full protection under the law and others face second-class citizenship. This social divide fosters resentment and social unrest and establishes a vulnerable population susceptible to exploitation and abuse.
Undermining the Rule of Law
The rule of law says everyone is subject to the same laws and that no one is above the law. But when the government selectively applies the law based on arbitrary criteria, it erodes trust in the legal system and weakens the principles of justice our nation holds dear.
The Chilling Effect on Freedom of Speech
People who fear that their rights are contingent upon their political views or social standing are less likely to question injustice or challenge the government. A stifling effect on free speech and dissent creates a stifling climate of fear and conformity that squelches the human spirit.
The Loss of Moral Authority
A nation that claims to stand for liberty and justice for all loses its moral high ground when it denies those principles to certain groups within its borders. This compromises its international standing and diminishes its ability to uphold human rights worldwide.
Remember, the erosion of inalienable rights usually starts imperceptibly, with the government targeting specific groups that are already marginalized or perceived as "outsiders." Incrementally, the net is cast wider and wider until the injustice becomes prevalent enough to engender public uproar, but the damage has already been done.
Historical examples abound of governments creating unjust hierarchies of rights to oppress certain segments of society. The list includes slavery, the persecution of Native Americans, the Japanese internment camps, segregation, and beyond. Recent times have seen this tactic used to justify policies that infringe on the Constitution, such as mass surveillance programs, SWAT team raids, voting rights restrictions, and the marginalization of due process.
In the end, as Martin Niemöller warned when responding to Nazi Germany's fascist regime, "Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me."
In a nation that prides itself on being the land of the free and the home of the brave, it's disheartening to see so few people aware of the rights they are entitled to. According to a survey, only 5% of U.S. adults could correctly identify all five rights outlined in the First Amendment. One in ten Americans were unsure if they have a constitutional right to petition the government. It's troubling that civic illiteracy among citizens is a recipe for all manner of tyranny. Sadly, it appears that civic illiteracy among government officials entrusted with upholding and protecting the Constitution may be just as pervasive.
In 2010, the Supreme Court, in its 8-1 ruling in the Heien v. State of North Carolina case, supposedly ensured that ignorance of the law would not become a convenient excuse for government officials to continue flouting the law under the guise of ignorance. The ruling failed to live up to that promise. The case centered around an unconstitutional traffic stop based on a police officer's ignorance of the law, leading to an unlawful search, seizure, and arrest. As a result, ignorance of the law has become a convenient justification for government officials to engage in egregious misconduct, from police shootings of unarmed citizens to SWAT team raids and mass surveillance programs.
With ignorance of the law now a handy excuse for those in power to commit abuse, the devastating consequences for American citizens are shaping up to be dire. As the government becomes the ultimate authority on who is entitled to protected rights, the dividing line is unlikely to fall between legal citizens and illegal immigrants, as well as between Republicans and Democrats, but rather between compliant vassals of the American police state and everyone else.
We're almost there. This is how tyranny rises, and freedom falls.
[1] American Immigration Council: Justified by Fear: Executive Branch Actions on Immigration and the Constitution, 2017.[2] American University Washington College of Law: Unhelpful Comparisons: Immigration and the "Invasion" Narrative, 2019.[3] National Academy of Sciences: The Impact of Immigration on the U.S. Economy: Report of the Committee on the Economics of Immigration, 1997.[4] Human Rights Watch: "Children of the Wall" 11/12/2019, Texas Border Patrol's Systemic Mistreatment of Migrant Children.[5] Migration Policy Institute: Fact Sheet: Key Biden Administration Policy Changes on the U.S.-Mexico Border, 2023.
- The erosion of universal rights, as seen in the government's proposed change in immigration policies, could lead to a world where all rights are transitory and contingent upon being favored by the government, undermining the principles of free speech, freedom, and health, enshrined in Policy-and-Legislation, and general-news.
- The trend of using fear to manipulate the public into accepting policy changes that infringe on civil liberties, such as the War on Terror, the War on COVID-19, and the proposed War on Illegal Immigration, poses a threat to truth and the preservation of inalienable rights, as outlined in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution.
- The politicization of rights and the creation of a hierarchy based on arbitrary criteria, such as citizenship status, creates a two-tiered society, fostering social unrest, division, and second-class citizenship, weakening the rule of law and the moral authority of the nation.
- As the government continues to erode the principles of free speech and due process under the guise of national security, border protection, or public health, it paves the way for an authoritarian government that doles out freedom in a one-size-fits-all manner, stifling the human spirit and compromising the nation's international standing and ability to uphold human rights worldwide.
