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Freedoms just another word for nothing left to lose. (Kristofferson) This sounds like a very prophetic statement. But is it? At first glance you may make sense of it, but when you look beneath the surface of this statement, you will realize that it couldnt be any further from the truth. Freedom is the single most important privilege that we as human beings can possess and it is only when this privilege is taken away that we can truly say we have nothing else to lose.
Freedom is the right to think, the right to speak, it is the right to choose, the right to have free will, and the right to practice and manifest ones beliefs. Yes it is all these facets stated above that gives us our freedom of existence. Freedom can also be defined, as the power and ability of the human mind to choose a course of action and make decisions that are independent of other influences. These other influences may be heredity, environmental, divine predetermination or governmental influences. Throughout history many groups and individuals have tried to take away the freedom of others. These oppressed people were persecuted for many reasons.
Differences in religion, race, and place of birth, were some of the factors that led to such heinous actions. There are numerous examples of peoples and nations that have been denied their freedom. Many have overcome their oppressors and are now physically free, but the truth is they are still mentally entrapped. There are even some groups of people who today remain physically enslaved by tyrants and advocates of genocide. Everyone has the will to be free, it is a natural urge that all of us are born with.
From childhood we as human being strive for freedom and independence, whether it be economically, socially or physically. Sociologists classify this natural drive for freedom as the Id. When this natural drive is extremely suppressed as in the case of slavery, a human beings personality and way of life can suffer detrimental effects. In 1933 when the Nazis established their power in Germany, they attempted to commit genocide of the Jewish race. The Nazi Party made concerted efforts to eliminate Jews from German life and Europe in general. When World War II began in 1939, the German army occupied the western half of Poland, bringing approximately 2 million Jews under Nazi control.
These people suffered many inhumanities and their lives as they know it had been torn apart. Jews were forced to move into ghettos surrounded by walls and barbed wire. Unemployment, malnutrition, and poverty were widespread; housing was overcrowded; and diseases were common. There were numerous reports of mass murders and mayhem, and concentration camps were widespread all over Western Europe; this was where many Jews met their death. Seeing the inevitable destruction of the Jews, there was a collective effort by world governments to uphold democracy and give the Jews freedom.
Many people fought valiantly against the Nazi regime and ultimately died in honor for their freedom and the freedom of their children. Even today these brave souls are remembered and praised, for their bravery. The discovery of the New World and the arrival of the Europeans in the 15 th century signaled the demise of the native Indians. These native Indians practiced a life of subsistence; they were reapers of the land and had known nothing else. They practiced their religious beliefs with great obedience and faith. But these Indians lives were soon turned upside down with the arrival of the Europeans.
There was an unprecedented demand for human labor in the New World and this resulted in the enslavement of the whole indigenous Indian populations from Peru, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean by their European conquerors. The Europeans had taken away all of their land, their farms had been destroyed and livestock killed for food. They were indoctrinated with Christian practices, and banned from speaking their native tongue and also from practicing their own religious beliefs. Most of the natives died from hard labor, starvation, punishment and diseases, which were brought by Europeans. As a result of the harsh treatment rooted to the Native Indians, many of them committed suicide and infanticide because they saw no reason for living. In essence, the entity that really mattered was their freedom and it was taken away.
In conclusion, I think I have proven that the statement Freedoms just another word for nothing left to lose which was made by Kristofferson is wrong. The two accounts given above clearly show that freedom can in fact be lost. And it is only when freedom is lost, that we can say that there is nothing left to lose. To be more realistic, freedom is what I live for and freedom is what I will die for. Bibliography:
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Research essay sample on Arrival Of The Europeans Native Indians
