Burnout in the Nursing Workforce

How Did A Diversity of Views Transform American Society?

Diversity is an American value based on the tenets of self-government and liberty. American citizens are at liberty to express their differences in many ways as long as they embrace a nation created as a republic with equality and fundamental freedoms of individuals. These freedoms are captured in the Declaration of Independence that proclaimed its universal principles. The Declaration declared “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal” in their liberties and rights. However, American people have not always complied with their ideals. Women, African Americans, and Native Americans were denied equal rights and fundamental liberties enjoyed by the white males throughout the American history.

The Declaration of Independence has had a significant influence on American culture and policy making (Tsesis1). The Declaration of Independence declared to the world the reasons the 13 colonies got separated from the British Empire. In addition, the Declaration contained three other major principles: All men are created equal, individuals have certain inalienable rights, and people have a civil duty to defend these rights. The three ideals emphasize human equality for all (Tsesis 2). The Declaration is a national holiday celebrated by Americans from all walks of life in the Fourth of July as a day of deliverance. Various groups have influenced the importance of the Declaration by championing for equality.

However, many Americans have not lived up to the ideals enshrined in the Declaration. There are groups of Americans this document marginalized and excluded including women, African Americans, and Native Americans. These groups were denied full rights despite the Declaration stating “All men are created equal.” American Americans suffered brutal rule of racial slavery for nearly three centuries. It took the intervention of Civil War to abolish the institution of slavery in 1865. In the next few years that followed, African Americans earned equal rights thanks to the 13^th, 14^th, and 15^th Amendments. Despite these gains, African Americans continued to live under racial segregation. They faced legal restrictions that barred them from equal civil participation (Lindsey 56). Many civil social movements sprung up to fight for Black Rights. The attainment of equality for all could not have been possible without the determination and courage of leaders like Martin Luther Jnr, Web Dubois, Fredrick Douglas, and many others (Lindsey 55). The struggles of African Americans remarkably transformed American Society. The Declaration has been critical to the development of norms within the legal system and outside

Like African Americans, women were denied the same civil rights and educational and economic opportunities as men owing to their sex. Married women did not have a right to own property.  The fight for voting rights was hard-fight, which took suffragists a century to win. The Seneca Falls Convention is credited for initiating the woman suffrage movement that resulted in the enactment of 19^th Amendment. The Convention wrote the Declaration of Sentiments that described the grievances and demand of women. The Sentiment urged women to fight for their constitutional right to equality (Thompson 42). Drawing on the Declaration of Independence, the Sentiments argued “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men and women are created equal. The movement pressed the regime for constitutional amendment to accommodate women’s voting rights. The ratification of the 19^th Amendment paved way for the inclusion of women in the mainstream of voting (Thompson 41). Women’s suffrage transformed America beyond the ballot box. Women gained equality in education, politics, and jobs. Thus the achievement of the women’s suffrage did transform the American society.

Works Cited

Lindsey, Kristin R. The Breakup: The Declaration of Independence, Frederick Douglas, and Me. Chicago, Illinois: DePaul University, 2015. Internet resource.

Thompson, Bradley C. Antislavery Political Writings, 1833-1860: A Reader. Abingdon: Routledge, 2015. Internet resource

Tsesis, Alexander. For Liberty and Equality: The Life and Times of the Declaration of Independence. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012. Internet resource.