The Black Informant

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable 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.” –Declaration of Independence as originally written by Thomas Jefferson

The short definition of the word Rights is “A just or legal claim or title”. Another way of defining this word is “a permission that is given that has a legal backing”. In this country we have two basic types of rights: Civil and Inalienable.

Civil rights are rights that are given to an individual based on the laws of a society. It is the governing body of that society that has authored and guaranteed the civil rights of its citizens. Civil rights can also be revoked at any time.

Inalienable rights, on the other hand, are rights that are (according to the Declaration of Independence) are given by the Creator (God). A governing body may hinder these rights, but does not have the legal authority to revoke these rights. Man cannot dictate or control what God has already given.

It does not matter if a person believes in God or not. The fact is, the Declaration of Independence, along with all the other legal documents that laid the foundation of this nation used the Bible as its source of inspiration. In order to understand the inalienable rights that have been given to us by God, one must refer to the Bible in order to find interpretation of the laws of this nation. The founding fathers did not use the Koran, or any other religious source book for inspiration. The laws of this nation allows for all men to worship freely; however, when it comes to interpreting US law, the Bible is our source book - weather if we believe in God or not. For a country like Iran, whose laws are influenced by the Koran, the Koran is their source book for interpreting the laws of their country.

Civil rights gives a person permission to have access; however, that person is not empowered to be their very best (i.e. go beyond the status quo). That is why for people who live their lives strictly under civil rights will always be frustrated with the government because in all men and women, there is a distinct drive to go beyond the boundaries that some MAN has set for you. It (the inner drive) just needs room to develop on its own.

If you look the former slaves in this country (who were denied just about every civil right) that migrated out west, what drove them there was not civil rights (because they faced even more bigotry out west), but their God given inalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. All Lincoln could do was to grant us permission to be recognized as “equal” (”Okay ya’ll. Now we must treat these black folks as regular people” - a crude interpretation of the Gettysburg address). However, you know as well as I that deep seeded opinions cannot be changed by simply passing a law. Inalienable rights, on the other hand, have already been given to us by the Creator. If a soldier is captured by the enemy in battle, he has the inalienable right to get out of his predicament. He does not wait until his captors (who would rather see him dead) decide to pass a law that will set him free.

Biddy Mason was a slave who traveled with her owner to California:

Biddy Mason at thirty-two trudged from Mississippi to California behind three hundred wagons of her master’s caravan. Her job was to keep the cattle together during the long voyage of the prairie schooners. In 1865, her master decided to return home with his slaves. But Mrs. Mason had other ideas. She convinced the local sheriff to press her case and she and three daughters won their freedom. Through hard work and cleaver investments, Mrs. Mason acquired large parcels of land. These she donated for schools, churches and nursing homes. In addition she aided flood victims and bought food to the undernourished men in local jails. Many knew and few forgot the generosity of Biddy Mason. She died in 1891. (From “The Black West” by William Loren Katz)

If Mrs. Mason just went along with the little privileges that were allotted to her, she would have gone back to Mississippi and all the people she helped in her life would not have received the help that they needed. It was her inalienable right to live her life to the fullest in spite of what society allowed her to do that drove her to not only win her freedom, but to leave a lasting impression on American history. You see, Mrs. Mason was already free on the inside.

Today, Black America is filled with testimonies of people who were born into deep poverty, but yet found the inner-fortitude to push beyond what mere civil rights gave to them. It was the inalienable right to live life to its fullest that drove them to be the best at what they do. All affirmative action can do is to grant us opportunity. It doesn’t drive us to be the best.

A person that is driven by their inalienable rights will have no trouble abiding by civil rights; however, they will never limit themselves to just being status quo. The most dangerous thing that we can do as Black Americans is to interpret inalienable rights and civil rights as one in the same.