Is contemporary America in a state of Freedom?

Freedom is a central aspect of American ideology and for modern Americans it is potentially the most important thing to attain in life. Although by design, freedom is seen as inherent to American nationality.

The first account of what it meant to be free was outlined by Jefferson and the Four Fathers in the wording of the Declaration of Independence and later, the Bill of Rights.The Declaration states, "we hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal" and that all Americans are endowed "certain inalienable rights...life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.". So from the very beginning of America as a individual entity, a country in its own right - Freedom has been a key building block in the construction of a working constitution and therefore embedded into the American self.

Predictably, freedom meant something a little different in the Jeffersonian era. It was perceived that unless you had possession of your own land, you were not considered free. Now this may not correlate tangibly to twenty first century freedom but it is born out of the same aspiration to control your own life. Whether that be in a farming sense or a more materialistic, consumerist sense. Lets not forget that when Nixon spoke in Russia as vice president to open the American Exposition in 1959, he told Russians how his country had 72 million TV's and 65 million cars and multi coloured fridges and that was how he portrayed freedom in the United States at that time. The freedom of choice in the marketplace is something that was not accessible in Russia then, and is still seen by many Americans as a marker of their freedom today.

Eric Foner has some interesting ideas on the state of freedom in America which he outlines in, The Story of American Freedom (1998). In a 2004 interview he explains some of his ideas on the identity of freedom in the United States. Foner was asked, in relation to a George Bush quote from a time after 9/11, "So why do you think that statement, "They hate us because of our freedom," makes sense to a lot of Americans?" and some parts of his answer are particularly insightful." Foner, being American, says that 'we do have a very salutary pride in our freedoms. We are the inheritors of a vision of the United States as the embodiment of freedom around the world' highlighting how rooted freedom is in American ideology and how they feel it holds a more prominent place in an American life than any other. Furthermore, that idea of being the shining city on the hill, an example of freedom which the world should follow. Although Bush missed the mark with his statement, as Bin Laden and Al Qaeda had legitimate issues with American foreign policy and its affect on the East its conceivable that the arrogance in freedom that Americans sometimes exude has caused negative opinion in some groups around the globe.

In recent news, President Barrack Obama has reported that the US led coalition forces have killed ten high ranking and influential ISIL targets since last Spring. The war on terror has never ceased since 9/11 and has consequently threatened the freedom of Americans for over ten years. It is apparent that Obama defines freedom as not only the ability to shop in a mall twenty four hours a day seven days a week but also the freedom from the harmful and malicious tendencies of terror groups waging war with the West. When determining to what degree the United States experiences freedom today, it is important to distinguish between the freedom TO and the freedom FROM. The individual American has and I'de bet always will have the personal freedom to consume and prosper economically as they wish. However, the freedom from negative global opinion is something that the everyday American should possibly be more interested in.