How truly free are we?

  Often times, we in America like to believe that we possess freedom in our country unmatched by any other, however; I think that this claim is not as true as we'd like to believe. Of course, we are technically allowed to wear what we want and act how we please, freedom is not at all nearly attained, and I mean this both negatively and positively. Here, I would like to talk a bit about why we aren’t actually as free as we think, and how that is a bad and good thing. Now, let’s begin. First, and most obviously, we aren’t as free as we think we are because of laws. Laws in their nature completely go against freedom, yet without them, we probably would be more worried about fighting for our lives than with discussing our freedoms. In general, the reduction of freedom by laws is positive, however, this becomes more complex when you delve into whether the laws are just or unjust and take away necessary freedoms or strip people of their rights. Laws such as those that keep women from deciding what they want to do with their body or keep two people of the same sex from getting married are completely unjust laws that take away basic rights and essential freedoms. Next, I think we aren’t as free as we think we are because of social pressures. Overall, I think it’s agreed that social pressure to perform a certain way or not perform a certain way is a negative reduction of freedom. We are not free to truly wear what we want without the fear of being scrutinized. We can’t act certain ways without being judged. Social pressure can often times keep us from being who we truly are. Even though we are free to be as we please without breaking the law in these instances, we still face immense consequences if we act in such a way. On the contrary, however, social pressures can be beneficial. People are more likely to criticize those who do drugs, so it is less likely for people to do them. It is socially unacceptable to be a rude person, so people are more self-conscious. There is a certain set of morals pushed which can be good at making sure that people don't act horribly. I think this shows how every situation can be a double-edged sword. Of course, these also have their exceptional and drawbacks, but I think we can recognize that every negative may also have some underlying benefits. Clearly, we as Americans are not as free as we’d like to believe, but I don’t think this necessarily means we have to begin freaking out. Instead, we should reflect on which freedoms are being unjustly stolen from us, and which freedoms must be controlled in order for our society to be efficient and whole.