What is the most important right given to U.S. citizens?
Not long ago, for one to be naturalized as an American citizen, he had to answer the question: “What is the most important right given to U.S. citizens?.” The answer, stated by the government was, “The right to vote.” However, this privilege has been on uncertain ground. In the past when the constitution allowed slavery, it also permitted voting to be confined to white men who owned property. The Thirteenth Amendment removed enslavement but the constitution has not gratified the democratic pledge we relate with, and this is astonishing to many people. That is because there is no constitution pledge of the right to vote. Voting in the House and Senate elections are determined by each state.
Constitutional change necessitate equal protection and makes it unconstitutional to deny people voting rights based on race, sex, and age. The Supreme Court for years depended on these amendments to broaden the charter and right to vote associated with the civil-rights movement. In recent years, control of who votes gives more grip than convincing voters to change their mindset, thus, entry to the ballot gives sufficient ground for political disputes. These disputes often land in court and in the unavailability of the right to vote, the court finds no conflict with a variety of directives that impede voting.
The result of these disputes is chaos and uncertainty that pressurize the uprightness of our institutions at home, and our character in advancing democracy abroad. Voters queue for hours; voting centers change in the last minute; misgivings on who can vote arise, what qualifies as the right identification for a person to be allowed to vote.
Battery of lawyers’ battle over these regulations before elections are held, and when the results announcement are almost, they battle again this time disputing over which voters should be ignored.
In 2008 six million qualified voters were locked out from participating in the election because of registration related problems. In more recent elections, use of photo identification locked out poor people and the minorities. Voting on Tuesday’s is hamper’s a person who does not have the capacity to re-schedule his work duties. Felon imprisonment limits over six million persons, of which four million are no longer in jail. It mostly affects the African-American community.
There are few lobby groups fighting to have some of the restrictions abolished. These activists’ lack funding since some people view their agitation as a waste of resources and time. One will think that fighting to have the voting right enshrined in the constitution is easy, but the bias and fighting for power impedes it. Even with all the court battles that happen after every election, the American people will continue to contend with what is available to them at the moment.
In conclusion, placing the right to vote in the constitution will assist to determine most the problems in favour of the voter. It will not render every drawback unconstitutional. It is essential for example to have a specific date, which voters cast the ballot in order to be counted. In these days of voting conflicts, the right to vote is a subject of bias, regional and racial disputes. Time is ripe for America to sort out these mis-understandings’ and accomplish the vow of American Democracy by coming together to make the right to vote part of our basic right as a country.