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Not So Right

Three Things You Need to Know About Your Rights

By Nicholas Kaje ArnoldPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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The United States of America - the land of opportunity and equal rights for all. Or is it? Here are some things you should know about your rights as a U.S. citizen.

Your rights are not protected by the government.

The rights of citizens are observed in the U.S. Constitution, which is a set of rules the government must follow. However, the U.S. Constitution can be ratified and it often is.

You probably remember learning about the Constitution around the same time you learned about the American Revolution. The outcome is a progressive government that observes basic human rights. So it’s easy to think that the government is responsible for protecting these rights. Well, that’s half true.

The responsibility of a government, for any nation, is limited to the response of the governed. In the very strictest sense, authority is gifted to the authorized by the servant. Revolution is the act of withdrawing the gift of authority. In order to maintain authority, a government must defend its power over the people.

Since a government’s primary function is to establish power and to keep it, and because it is the function of citizens to grant authority, then it is the duty of citizens to defend their rights: especially from the government. (this is why the Second Amendment really exists, history buffs!)

Don’t forget Constitution begins with the well-known line, “We the People...”

Many of your rights are taken away with clever wording.

Living in modern America, you’ve probably heard of gang activity in large cities. Bloods, Crips, even the Mafia. When you think of these groups, you probably think of “crime.” However, what these groups represent is a Consitutional right to form militias.

Yes. “Criminal gangs” are just militias that have been formed to protect their members from other forces.

Ironically, and not so ironic at all, it was a militia that created the negative media sensation against these other militias. Essentially, a war of propaganda between these groups. The FBI is a private organization that gained enough power to infiltrate the US government. Through media and propaganda, you, like many of your fellow Anericans, probably think of these agencies as an extension of the government.

A little research on the Bloods will show you the group organized to protect our black citizens from racial injustices. Despite the Constitution observing the right to form a militia, when minorities form militias it becomes whitewashed as something criminal.

The Mafia is in the same boat — that is the Immigration boat. When Italians came to the states, they were labeled minorities and treated with harsh discrimination. Miranda v Maryland is a good example of how Italian citizens were persecuted by the police. The Mafia, a militia aimed for the defense of Italian citizens, was quickly labeled as a “gang” and became an icon for criminal activity.

Plead the 5th before you’re told to.

The 5th Amendment protects citizens from self-incrimination. Your “...right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you...”

Miranda v Maryland was mentioned above and the outcome was what we know as “Miranda Rights.” Miranda’s dilemma was he didn’t know he had the right to free legal counsel — but nowadays police must read certain rights before making an arrest. Primarily, your right to remain silent.

But, by the time you’re read these rights, you probably already inserted foot in mouth and gave the police what they need to make an arrest. In fact, police are trained to make you think you need to answer their questions. The law states they need to inform you of your rights upon arrest and so they make every effort to ignore these rights until the law tells them to.

Next time you’re forced to deal with police — remember you don’t have to answer their questions. And also remember that anything they say to try and convince you otherwise is just a sales tactic. Never answer questions you’re uncomfortable answering. Ever.

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