America, States\' Rights Are a Hot Topic.

¶ … America, states' rights are a hot topic. Can states legalize gay marriage, or is that something that is better left to the federal government? Can states make their own gun laws, or should we have a general law by the U.S. government about them? These are just a few examples of issues where states' rights are disputed. Religion is a hot topic as well; can students pray at football games and graduation ceremonies? Can a person's religious beliefs make taking an otherwise illegal drug legal? Foreign affairs gets a lot of coverage, as well: should America be concerned about democracy in other nations? Should we use force to patrol the world, perhaps making it a more secure place?

These all seem like very modern questions, and in many ways, they are. Football games and gay marriage were hardly relevant during the colonial period of American history. But the events of our colonial history have a huge impact on the way that we look at issues today, and in the way that we choose to handle them. Our identity as a nation was shaped over 200 years ago, by events that defined what it means to be "American."

One of these defining issues was the fact that our forefathers were trying to escape religious persecution in England (1) and move toward a nation of "religious tolerance" (55). The diversity of backgrounds that came to the colonies and later had to find a way to compromise with regard to their co-existence included Catholics and Protestants, Puritans and more secular groups, and a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds (54-55). This mixture of religious beliefs led the Framers to create an amendment which would not favor one religion over any other, but make all religious beliefs equal in the eyes of the law. This amendment still shapes our world today, in the form of different religious groups looking for either equal treatment, or of government excusing itself from a public area (like a courthouse or school), or of a group seeking an exception based on religious grounds (like students who take the SAT on a day other than Saturday).

Another way that the founding period effects our mindsets today is in the idea of a "self-made" man; that is, the idea that anyone who works hard enough will, in a free-market society like ours, succeed. This concept can be traced back to the colonial era, when the American colonies broke with the European tradition of feudalism, which gave wealth and/or power based on a person's family connections. The independence of the American businessman allowed anyone to participate in the capitalist society. The "Protestant work ethic" stated that "the diligent hand makes Rich" (8) and "let your business ingross you most of your time" (9).