I value the idea of doing onto others as you would do onto yourself. I do think the government is meant to serve the people but I think serving the people looks differently from an economic, social, and global perspective. I think that those American citizens who have more wealth shouldn’t want to sacrifice a small percentage in order to give less fortunate people the benefit of healthcare, legal services, and cost of living pay increases, but they should because it is the morally right thing to do. The pull yourself up by your bootstraps model was created during the Gilded Age when a large majority of people of color were excluded from the idea of a thriving capitalist society based on: rule of law, property rights, and culture of entrepreneurship which entirely excluded them. For that reason which cannot be historically rewritten or undone the government should require citizens to meet this expectation. I believe every American citizen should have: the right to vote, right to pursue the American Dream, and right to speak freely without fear of persecution.

- Liana Wallace