The quote that caught my attention the most is part of Adams "Social Contract":
All Men have a Right to remain in a State of Nature as long as they please: And in case of intollerable [sic] Oppression, Civil or Religious, to leave the Society they belong to, and enter into another.–When Men enter into Society, it is by voluntary consent; and they have a right to demand and insist upon the performance of such conditions, And previous limitations as form an equitable original compact. (p. 40)
This quote has a lot to do with pur previous discussion about citizenship. Adams talks about a natural human right to be part of a State as long as a person wants to. I believe he really means that people should be able to live at a place that represents its interest. Also he points out that people enter a particular society by a voluntary consent and therefore should have rights. These ideas sound like the world that we live in nowadays. Although we are not always able to leave a State or a Country very easily. The idea of entering a society by voluntary consent is what we do as immigrants.
From the Declaration of Independence I chose the most well know paragraph:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness (p. 59).
This paragraph talks about every important thing a democracy should be based on. It is very related to Adams' ideas of natural rights. Also, this piece of the Declaration of Independence talks about how government should preserve these rights. Furthermore, Adams as well as the Declaration of Independence express that a government who does not fulfill its purpose should be overthrown. I chose both of these quotes because they represent the idea of freedom that represents me and most of the people. Despite the fact that these ideals have not been achieved completely; they create the foundations for a better world.
It is true that most immigrants including myself were entering in America by my own free will. However, when I read that quote, I thought that it was idealistic, and not realistic in modern society. If one could leave the society they are belong to and enter into another, there should not have any illegal immigrants in USA. Many refuges or people from other countries left their motherland to look for better life. But, many were not luck enough to gain their citizenship from new society.
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