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Jorie Langston

Mrs. Boyd

Humanities

14 November 2022

The Constitutions Ideals

Despite the age of the Constitution, many of the ideals proposed by this document remain

relevant today. However, the question at hand is which ideals are most important. The ideals in

question include unalienable rights, equality, consent of the governed, and the ability to edit or

abolish the government. Of these ideals, equality is the most important because without everyone

being equal, many of the other ideals no longer apply to them. Unalienable rights, consent of the

governed, and the ability to edit or abolish the government are also vital to the nation; however,

equality stands above in terms of how often the ideal is overlooked.

*Unalienable rights include the right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Unalienable

rights keep the citizens of the country alive and well, and without them, many citizens would be

unhappy. Andrew Sullivan beautifully explains why these rights are vital to the nation. He

believes in life and “treasuring it as a mystery.” He believes in liberty and “a system of

government that places liberty at the center of its concerns.” He believes in the pursuit of

happiness and “[n]ot its attainment, nor its final definition, but its pursuit” (Document B). Without

all of those opportunities in life, many would retaliate. Now, the consent of the governed is also

incredibly significant because society would uproar without the consent of the governed. For

example, in Beijing, a protest was organized by Chinese students who were advocating for a
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democratic government. The protests continued until the Chinese government put a stop to them,

and around 3,000 people died, proving just how significant the consent of the governed is

(Document C). The ability to edit or abolish the government was created to prevent another

situation similar to the U.S. and Britain. One good example of retaliation occurring, due to the

lack of this ideal, was the Boston Tea Party. Document D states that “[i]ndividuals acting through

the tea party movement, seek to restore the policies, which are proven to safeguard liberty and

prosperity for all.” This idea explains the actions made by people participating, and why the

ability to edit or abolish the government is key in a nation. The most important ideal is equality,

which is even more significant in the majority of the population's life; since equality already

applies to heterosexual white men in the U.S., the ideal only affects minorities in the United

States. In July of 1848, a woman's rights convention took place in Seneca Falls, NY, where many

women and few men gathered to discuss the “Declaration of Sentiments.” The “Declaration of

Sentiments” states that “[w]e all hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are

equal….”(Document A). This convention was the first move towards equal rights for women,

proving that equality does not apply to everyone. Equality is the most important ideal because

when someone is not regarded as an equal, the other ideals no longer apply to them. For example,

how is one supposed to achieve happiness or liberty when they are treated as ‘stupid’ or less than

others? How can one give consent to be governed if no one listens to them? How can the people

have to ability to change or abolish the government when most of the people in the country are

not regarded as people? Therefore, without equality, none of the other ideals truly apply.

Overall, unalienable rights, consent of the governed, and the ability to change or abolish the

government are all incredibly important in the United States; however, equality stands out above
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all. The ideals stated in the Constitution would mean very little without true equality. Equality can

often be overlooked; however, various inequalities are in society. Overall, equality has improved

in the past few years; however, many improvements still need to be made. Ideally, in the future,

everyone will truly be considered equal, allowing for the proper use of the other three ideals. In

conclusion, society needs to improve on equality to fully express unalienable rights, the ability to

change or abolish the government, and the consent of the governed.