TEEN CURFEWS -Brandon Rocque 01-14-99 IÕm sure that many of you when I say the name ŌAdolf Hitler,Ķ have very vivid images of world war, the slaughter of 6 million innocent people, death, pain, and anguish appear. But IÕm almost willing to bet that when I saidĶAdolf Hitler,Ķ that none of you had the word ŌCurfewĶ come to mind. IÕm going to show you what Hitler, Nazism, and Fascism have to do with curfews, and more specifically teen curfews. IÕm sure many of you are thinking: ŌThatÕs a pretty bold comparison, the United States could never be any think like Nazi Germany.Ķ Well let me set the scene for you: It was the late 1930Õs, just a few years before World War II erupted. Nazi Germany and the Communists controlled most of Eastern Europe. Hitler had issued a nationwide curfew in all of the countries they controlled. They did this out of fear of their own people , they used it to control their people. Control is one of the main functions of a communist government. In a Communist government, the Government owns everything, and controls everything. This is great for mindless humans that canÕt think for themselves, but for most humans, for Americans like us that are intelligent and individual, it is the most painful thing you can experience. To have someone controlling your entire existence. Control is a form of mental imprisonment. If we control are own people and damn the communists for doing it, then we are hypocrites and weÕre no better than they are. The United States have spent trillions of dollars, and millions of lives fighting communism. But as wise men say, Ōthe harder you try to not be like that which you hate the more you become just like it.Ķ With every new law that limitÕs our rights as a citizen of our ŌFreeĶ country,Ķ we become more like the people we hate the most. Just Imagine, if you will, that Abraham Lincoln could take a look at our society today, at how much has changed and how corrupt weÕve become. He would probably throw up. We control our own people and outlaw almost everything. It does not make the streets any safer by not allowing our own citizenÕs the right to walk on them. I for one am against any law that takeÕs away our basic constitutional rights. The government has deemed themselves parents of your children. The parents have owned the responsibility for the welfare of their children since the beginning of time. Now because a few political leaders that decided it would be easier to hand this responsibility over to the police. The parents are now faced with a new problem. They are now responsible if their child breaks curfew, To appear at juvenile court with their child and in some cases pay a fine, and in other cases, drive their kid to and from community service projects.The government has no right to legislate themselves as the guardian of your child, and the parents have no right to shirk their responsibilities , and hope that the police pick up the slack. Most people believe that persons under 18 are not citizens, or that they are not eligible for complete freedom until they are adults. These beliefs are nothing more than beliefs. They are not facts. In the United States Constitution, and under Amendment 14, it states: Ō All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.Ķ Right there it states that all persons, not just those persons of a certain age, but all persons are citizens. It then goes on to say: ŌNo state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within itÕs jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. As humanÕs we always make exceptions to the rules. We didn't allow women the same rights as men , because we believed that they were ŌLesser Humans.Ķ We did the same thing to blacks, Native AmericanÕs, immigrants, MexicanÕs, and we are still doing it today with people under the age of 18. We claim we are not discriminatory anymore. But I guess as humans, Their will always be that exception to the rule. If itÕs not teenagers, it will be poor people, if itÕs not them it will be someone else. Justify it, wrap it up in the flag, and stamp the seal of righteousness on it. Either way itÕs still hypocrisy. The Constitution guarantees us equal rights. So quit making excuses for your discrimination, and start solving problems the right way. We can eliminate social unrest without eliminating our freedoms. We donÕt have to make a choice between freedom and no more crime. We can have both. We just need to eliminate the laws that restrict our basic constitutional rights. If the law is not constitutional, get rid of it. We shouldn't have passed it in the first place. The ridiculous part is that we created the constitution, in the beginning, in order to maintain a working society. We created it as a document of certain rules and obligations we must follow In order for our society to function and now we are going against these rules. If we contradict these rules then we have no freedom. We have no working society. ThatÕs it. ItÕs gone, and as of right now, today, our society does not work! I turned 18 in November, so I suppose IÕm officially part of the machine now. I can vote, and as long as I donÕt offend anyone, I can have my constitutional freedoms too. Teen curfews, as well as about half of the ridiculous laws out there, are not constitutional. Yes, your precious constitution, the flag that we wave from country to country from battle to battle says we should not do this. The Constitution, the one document that sets us apart from all other nations, the piece of paper that weÕve given our lives for over and over again, has been pushed aside and ignored, and spit upon by the very people that parade it around. Control was never a means to an end or a solution to any problem, control only leads to hatred, pain and more problems. So I urge any one that is involved in anyway with teen curfews, or outlawing any of our basic constitutional rights, that is, the people that legislate them, or the victims of them, to turn around and fight those bills and those laws with the fury that we fought communism. In Amendment 1 of the constitution it states that we have the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances, so I say, exercise your rights and write to your state representatives, to your senators and anybody else you think would care. I know I will. For it is the fear of people that leads to the control of people, and it is the control of people that leads to more pain and anguish, not just for the people that are being controlled, but for the controller also. Thank You
