America isn’t easy. America is advanced citizenship. You gotta want it bad, ’cause it’s gonna put up a fight. It’s gonna say “You want free speech? Let’s see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil, who’s standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. You want to claim this land as the land of the free? Then the symbol of your country can’t just be a flag; the symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms. Then, you can stand up and sing about the “land of the free”.
-President Andrew Shepard in “The American President”-

This is a quote. From a movie. Written by a screenwriter who was / is probably on the opposite side of the political aisle from me. This was a brilliant speech given by President Andrew Shepard in The American President. At the heart of this nation, at the start of our founding, this is who we were. Do we believe this still? Or do we now live in a country where dissent is not only discouraged, but condemned by those who we have unconscionably given the right to tell us what to think and what to believe. Whether you agree with gay marriage or whether you don’t, both opinions should be respected, and no one should be forced by the government to violate your own beliefs. It’s a legitimate fear in these modern times to believe that this is starting to happen for those who hold strong religious beliefs. Check the daily news. There are more and more stories of religious persecution happening HERE IN AMERICA. It needs to stop. We need to stand up for the rights of free speech and freedom of religion for all, not just those who agree with what’s currently popular. If not now, when?

Respect everyone. Love everyone. But don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe, no matter how unpopular your opinion may be. Once we surrender to political correctness, we lose our individuality. We lose our souls. Most importantly, we stop fighting the fights that NEED to be fought. We can’t give up. The freedoms we have here in America only exist when they are guarded and passionately defended by each and every one of us. Will you take up this challenge? I will.