I chose to ask my friend, my mom, and my uncle their opinions on the following five questions,
- Who or what were the major influences of your current political beliefs?
- What did they teach you about civil rights and liberties?
- What, in your opinion, are the most important civil rights and liberties in this country?
- Have you ever felt that your civil rights or liberties were violated?
- What does being a good citizen mean to you?
These are the responses from my mom,
- The person that influenced my political beliefs the most was Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
- RBG fought her whole career for equality. Civil rights and liberties are for everyone.
- I believe that freedom of speech, bodily autonomy, and the right to vote are the most important civil rights and liberties in this country.
- As a woman, my right to bodily autonomy is threatened in most states.
- Caring about the health and well being of others in a civilized society. What is good for some people may not necessarily be what is good for everyone, making personal choices that benefit society as a whole. Being an informed voter is the most important thing you can do to be a good citizen.
I already knew most of these things about my mom because we often discuss politics. I did like to learn about what she felt being a good citizen means because that can be very different for everyone. Although we have never discussed this idea specifically, we have the same ideas for what being a good citizen means.
These are the responses from my uncle,
- I would say that my parents and extended family were the biggest influences on my current political views.
- They taught me about personal liberties, all people should be treated equally and with respect. It is important to allow everyone to make their own decisions, individual freedom as long as your actions do not adversely affect others.
- The right to privacy is very important to me, I think that kind of covers freedom of religion and speech. As long as your beliefs do not affect others, you should be free to practice them. The protection of due process, fair trial, is also very important. Although it seems to be abused by some recently, I think it is very important to protect people from each other and the government.
- I do not recall ever feeling that my personal rights or liberties were violated. I have been fortunate enough to grow up a white male with plenty of resources.
- Being a good citizen means respecting others in your community and country, trying to assist with public services as much as you can. Just trying to be a good human. It’s easier for me to focus on local things, try to help others around you, try to leave things better than you found them.
Since I have not really talked to my uncle about politics before, I was not sure exactly how he would respond to these questions. I also liked learning about what he thinks it means to be a good citizen, he is very active in his community and tries to improve his hometown. I also liked learning about who influenced his views the most.
Finally, these are the responses from my friend,
- I am not exactly sure who had the biggest influence on my current political views. My parents and I do not have the same views on politics, it was not a big topic of conversation in my household growing up. I have developed my own beliefs based through news and education. My friends and I occasionally discuss politics, so they have had some effect on my beliefs.
- I would have to say that my middle and high school teachers taught me the most about civil rights and liberties.
- I think that the most important civil rights and liberties would be reproductive rights, pursuit of happiness, freedom of speech and expression.
- No, not my personal rights, but women’s rights are being violated because they are being taken away with the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
- Being a good citizen means following the law, voting, and treating others with respect and kindness.
I thought it was interesting that the biggest influence on his political views were not the people in his life when he was younger, but the people he chose to surround himself with later in life.