Justin Johnson

Grade 9

Teacher: Shane Lunceford

"No people who have ever lived on this earth have fought harder, paid a higher price for freedom, or done more to advance the dignity of man than the living Americans, those Americans living in this land today." These words were uttered by the fortieth president, Ronald Reagan, and these words sum up the American people as I see them. The American people, the ideals and virtues of this great land, first laid down by the nation's founders, and the willingness of individuals throughout this nation to serve and protect the citizens and ideals of this land have made this the superior nation that it has ' been and it continues to be. America, to me, means freedom, justice and equality, opportunities, and the willingness of its citizens to stand up for all these things.

From the time that America sprouted from the toils of those who valiantly fought for America's freedom from Britain to the present, America has had in place a government that has guaranteed certain unalienable rights which the government cannot take away and rights laid down in the Constitution, mainly in the Bill of Rights, that lays down our basic freedoms as American citizens. The citizens of this great nation enjoy freedoms second to none in the world, being the heirs to the nation for which many individuals have sacrificed for to improve and defend. We, as American citizens, enjoy the freedom to speak our mind, change our government, earn a living in any manner that is lawful, and many other freedoms which many in the world cannot and will never be able to experience and live within. We have a government "for the people, by the people, of the people." Citizens have the right to criticize their government openly without the fear of being persecuted or punished. As put by James Baldwin, "I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually." Americans can use these rights everyday that few in the world ever could or can today.

In this great nation, citizens are able to be tried in just and fair way for a long time with the court system we have in place. We follow the motto, "Innocent until proven guilty." Citizens have the right to a fair trail by a jury of their peers. If a crime is committed, the guilty individual will usually find himself suffering for his crime. If you are accused of a crime, you have the right to prove yourself innocent in court. Those who cannot afford a professional lawyer to defend them in court can receive one from the government. Justice has been and always will be defended in this country by those that believe in the system that are willing to stand up and defend it, which there always will be a multitude of. Though we have had a past of racial inequality, we, as Americans, have worked to stop this from continuing, and today America, the "melting pot" of cultures, has races of all types living amongst each other. Equality has mostly been reached, and Americans will continue to work and persevere, continuing to improve the -

situation.

America has long been the land of opportunities, offering opportunities to those from a11 walks of life. The poor can rise to high social status. Work is available to those willing to work, and the work ethic and the normal hard-working American will continue to thrive under our system of capitalism and government. Immigrants flocked and still flock to come to this land to receive opportunities not available in their homelands. Many make huge changes in their lives to receive the opportunities available only to the citizens of the United States. Anybody willing to put in their time to struggle and work in life can and will be rewarded, and this simple idea is a truly great thing that exists within America. We, as a nation, are blessed with opportunities to live as we wish and work as we wish. Opportunities will always be open to those with the determination and ethics to toil for those opportunities and use them to the greatest extent possible.

"My fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." In this great nation of ours, we have always had an abundance of courageous men and women that have stood up to enemies that have threatened the ideals and virtues of this nation and answered John F. Kennedy's call to do something for their country. Our military is full of individuals willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to defend the citizens and ideals of this nation. In the American Revolution, men died on the battlefield to build this great nation, and we have millions that have entered the military to preserve it and bring freedoms to those deprived of them in other countries. When terrorists cowardly struck at American citizens and tried to put us in a state of constant fear of attack, men and women went overseas to attack those who attacked us, putting their lives on the line to defeat the enemies before they struck again. Men and women in this nation are even willing to go to foreign countries to free the oppressed and defend those that cannot defend themselves. Throughout this nation, past or present, there have been and always will be individuals that are willing to stand up together to defend this great nation from all those who threaten it.

All these things stand for what America means to me. Freedom, opportunities, justice and equality, and the men and women who are brave enough to defend these ideals and the citizens of the United States of America are the things that make this country the superior nation that it has always been and is today. Without these elements, America would not and could not be as unique or as magnificent as it is today or will continue to be in the future.