The Civil Duty

It absolutely ticks me and breaks my patriotic heart when I hear people use the reason of not wanting jury duty to justify not registering to vote. 

First of all, are you forgetting the power and privilege your American citizenship holds? The same citizenship that so many people leave their home countries and bravely cross dangerous borders, hope to get 5 years later. The one that ensures your safety when you are in any foreign country. The one that gives you unalienable rights and protection under the U.S. Constitution. The one that provides free public education then helps fund your higher education with financial aid that children in a country like mine could only wish for. The one that promises you success as long as you work hard, something most countries in the world cannot do. The one that grants you the freedom 90% of the global population could only experience in their dreams. And a mountain-high pile of many more. 

Second of all, our heroes have laid their lives down here and overseas to ensure that your freedom, like the freedom to vote, is protected. They courageously stand up for you to defend our country, our Constitution and your safety. It seems like people take it for granted that you can go to a polling station without having to fear getting killed for utilizing your freedom to vote. You take it for granted because you were born into a democracy that allows you to fly if you dare to dream. Our heroes are out there risking their lives to guard not only you and me, but also that American legacy and values.

Maybe I am overreacting, but because I come from a country where we don't dare to speak up against our government officials, the freedom to vote is the thing I admire the most about this country. My rights are the thing I brag about the most as an American citizen. I remember how astonished I was when I learned that I have the right to criticize my elected officials in this country and actually get to voice my opinions whenever on whatever because I have rights no one could deny me of. Coming from a country where only the top 1% could afford to send their children to K-12, finding out that my brother and I were guaranteed free public education was a dream to me. Being granted all these privileges sometimes blinds you from the sweat and blood behind them all. 

For a girl who came from a socialist country, words can hardly demonstrate how grateful I am for the endless opportunities like the ability to dream, the confidence that I can succeed as long as I work hard, and my American rights that this country and my citizenship have endowed me with. The same ones I wish my friends from Vietnam could have, too. So, I feel like jury duty is merely a small repayment I'm capable of giving my country when I am not brave enough to defend her at the frontline. As an American, not practicing your American freedom to vote is the most ungracious and ignorant thing you could do when millions have died for and are still fighting for your ability to do so. When you choose to not vote, you are forfeiting your voice and the freedom so many could only dare to dream of. 

Whether your vote matters or not, whether you believe this system is corrupted or not, whether jury duty is a pain or not, please PLEASE PLEASE go register to vote and vote this November. It's not the matter of who the candidates are or what the issues may be, it's the principle that you have measured the freedom our heroes are valorously fighting to protect every single day with their lives. And to use your voice on behalf of those who are not as fortunate to have the same liberty.