Discrimination vs. Freedom

I’ve been browsing through OD the past few days and some things are taking shape in my head. Random thoughts that are begining to make me think American freedoms will never be fully realized.

I read an entry where a girl was complaining about an incident at her school. Another student wore a shirt that was proclaiming gay marriage to be wrong. This upset the girl and other people. She said it was discrimination and its wrong.

I read another entry where a woman was complaining about pictures of aborted babies that were being posted online. She thought it was pathetic to try and “scare” people into banning abortions. She thought the pictures were innappropriate and disgusting.

I read another entry where a young Christian guy was complaining about the lack of Christianity in America. How teachers aren’t allowed to talk about Christianity in school and you can’t pray where ever you want. He said that in trying to seperate church and state, Christianity was going to be stamped out.

I believe all these people have valid points. But so do the people and issues they are complaining about. Both sides of each arguement strongly believes what its fighting for. But who is going to decide who is right and who is wrong? When does discrimination start interferring with freedom?

Think about the t-shirt person. In America, they have the freedom to say what they believe. They believe gay marriage is wrong. They wanted to show other people what they believe. So they wore a shirt stating this fact. The girl claimed discrimination. I’m not so sure she was really right. The T-shirt person wasn’t harming anybody. They weren’t walking around with a machine gun, killing everyone who said they were gay. They weren’t physically harming gay couples. They were just stating their beliefs. They were just exercising their freedom. But the shirt upset this girl. She has the right to be upset and she has the right to wear a T-shirt saying gay marriage was ok. But discrimination? Discrimination is wrong, I totally agree, but is this really discrimination? A good example of discrimination might be a boy and a girl, same age, apply for the same job. The boy has better qualifications than the girl. But the employer doesn’t like boys. So he hires the girl. That is sexual discrimination. Another example is a youmg man is working in an office. He is professional and does his job above expectations. He makes no sexual advances to anyone in the office. But the employer finds out he is a homosexual and fires him. That is discrimination against gays. But I don’t think someone wearing a T-shirt saying gay marriage is wrong is an example of discrimination. It is just what they believe. But take this example. Two white women are walking down the sidewalk. A black woman is walking towards them. The white women cross the street to avoid walking near her. That’s racial discrimination. We know that people should no be judged by the way they look. Brown eyed people are not all smarter than blue-eyed people. Blonde-haired girls are not dumber than brown-haired girls. They are all equal and deserve to be treated that way. They have no control over their natural hair and eye color. And that color has nothing to do with the way their brain works.

But think about this – A 5-year-old boy violently murders his 2-month-old baby neighbor. He does not realize what he did was wrong and he has no control over his actions. He will probably not be put on trial, but he would be placed in an institution where he would not be able to harm anyone else. Is that discrimination? He had no control. It is just the way he is. His mother still loves him and wants him to be around, but the neighbors don’t want him there. Is it discrimination to keep him out of the neighborhood? I don’t think so. He may not be able to control it, but murder is still wrong.

All Americans can agree that murder is wrong. What we can’t agree on is the excat definition of murder. Is shoting a gun in a battle and killing your enemy murder? Is having an abortion murder? Is putting a convict to death murder? The definition of murder leaves room for many opinions. Merriam-Webster Online defines murder as follows “1. (noun) the crime of unlawfully killing a person especially with malice aforethought; 2. (verb) to kill (a human being) unlawfully and with premeditated malice, to slaughter wantonly, to put an end to”. But isn’t this just society’s opinion on the definition of murder? An opinion everyone has agreed is right? Just because a book says it is true, is it really a fact? Or is it just an opinion everyone agrees upon?

Is murder wrong? I believe society as a whole would breath a hearty “yes” to that. But I also believe it is really society’s opinion that murder is wrong. We all agree so we take it to be fact, but it is really just an opinion.

What about honor killings? The honor killing is the execution of a female family member for perceived misuse of her sexuality. It emerged in the pre-Islamic era, according to Sharif Kanaana, a professor of anthropology at Birzeit University. It is still practiced today, with reports emerging from Gaza and the West Bank. Given that honor killings often remain a private family affair, no official statistics are available on the practice or its frequency. According to a November 1997 report of the Woman’s Empowerment Project published in Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, there were 20 honor killings in Gaza and the West Bank in 1996. One representative of the group added, “We know there are more but no one publicizes it.” But the Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counseling (WCLAC) has never been asked to prosecute an honor killing. This is because Jordanian Law still applies to the West Bank. Article 341 considers murder a legitimate act of defense when “The act of killing another or harming another was committed as an act in defense of his life, or his honor, or somebody else’s life or honor.” So in these areas, society accepts murder if it is a honor killing. That is the society’s opinion.

Already, what people take to be black and white is starting to swim into gray uncertainty. The idea that murder is wrong is starting to look more like an opinion than a fact. So what about discrimination and the anti-gay marriage T-shirt? Was the T-shirt person being discriminating? Is gay marriage wrong? There are gray areas concerning murder. Who is going to decide if gay marriage is right or wrong? I don’t believe that society will ever come to an agreement on it.

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Discrimination vs. Freedom

Some people believe that black people are inferior to white people. Some people believe blonde-haired girls are more fun than brown-haired girls. Some people believe the killing of any living creature is wrong. Some people believe hunting for sport is ok. Some people believe homosexuality is wrong. Some people believe abortion decisions should be left up to the woman. Some people believe the excat opposite of everything here, and some people believe completly different things. So who is wrong and who is right? What is opinion and what is fact? When do anti-discrimination laws infringe on freedoms?

The first Ame