USA Basic Knowledge PDF - Stark Abitur 2025

# Basiswissen zu den Schwerpunktthemen: Politics, Culture and Society - between Tradition and Change: USA ## From past to present: American ideals and realities - Even in colonial times, before the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the "New World" was and has been a promising destination for pe...

# Basiswissen zu den Schwerpunktthemen: Politics, Culture and Society - between Tradition and Change: USA ## From past to present: American ideals and realities - Even in colonial times, before the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the "New World" was and has been a promising destination for people from around the globe. - The USA remains a land of promise to this day because of the economic opportunities, cultural diversity and personal freedoms and individual rights it guarantees. - Millions who live in poverty, under repressive political regimes or in situations of war and unrest perceive America as their dreamland, where they can find refuge and security. - Additionally, people, whose livelihoods are not at stake, are lured by the limitless possibilities for self-improvement the country seems to offer. - Many people even take risks or resort to illegal means to escape their homelands and start afresh in North America. - Today, the United States is among the largest countries in the world according to both population and size. - Arguably, it is also the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth. - Because of its economic and military power, the USA's fascinations and attraction remain unbroken. - The influence the country enjoys today is the result of a development that began in the 18th century with the passing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. - For the first time in history, the authors of the Declaration, among them men like Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, put the philosophical theories of the European Age of Enlightenment into practice. - Based on the assumption "that all men are created equal", they abolished the despotic structures of the European absolute monarchies and replaced them with a social contract between the government and the governed. - This contract stated that a government could only be legitimate if it received the consent of the governed, i.e., the people. - It is the government's responsibility to secure its citizens' natural human rights, such as the "unalienable Rights [to] Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness". - If the government fails in its duties, it is people's right to rebel and choose a new government. - The ideals in the Declaration of Independence represent the guiding principles for the American nation - at least in theory. - However, reality often fails to meet these values. ## The ideal of liberty - The United States national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner", ends with the line "the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave/O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!". - The belief in individual freedom and personal autonomy is a central American ideal. - The First Amendment to the Constitution protects the freedom of religion, speech, press and assembly. - Americans value the ability to pursue their goals, make choices and enjoy the rights mentioned above with limited interference from Congress or the government. - Referring to the social contract expressed in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, Republican President Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) stated the basic conviction, "We are a nation that has a government - not the other way around". - Sometimes the American focus on personal freedom, independence, self-confidence and individualism is seen as a legacy of the "frontier spirit". - During the westward expansion, which mainly took place in the 19th century, settlers were often left to their own devices and could only rely on their own abilities, initiative and perseverance. - They were spurred on by the myth of Manifest Destiny, which claims that the expansion of the American ideals and values is a God-given right. - This idea fits well into the belief that America is "God's own country". - It goes back to the early years of colonisation, when many settlers fled religious persecution in their homelands and saw the "New World" as their "New Canaan". - Since then, the idea of American exceptionalism has often been evoked when it comes to the country's character of a role model and its self-declared mission to spread freedom and democracy. ## Freedom in reality - Unrestricted freedom and individualism often come at a price, particularly if they result in a "survival of the fittest" logic and are combined with valuing one mindset and culture above all others. - The pioneers' belief in their absolute freedom to settle in new territories, for instance, resulted in the near-extermination of the Indigenous peoples of America. - The settlers took the land for themselves, which had been the home of Native Americans for thousands of years. - During the frontier movement, however, settlers killed large numbers of Native Americans or drove them relentlessly off the lands of their ancestors into reservations, usually barren and infertile grounds. - All of this was justified by the belief in Manifest Destiny, which claimed that it was the Godly mission of the Europeans to conquer the wilderness and civilise the "Indian savages". - It is not only the USA's legacy of dispossession and slavery (regarding slavery, see the chapters on (in)equality) that is seen in an increasingly critical light. - According to some, unrestrained freedom and a free-for-all attitude have also created a capitalist society characterised by selfishness, competition, ruthlessness and self-interest. - Social norms and consideration for others often take second place in a worldview which is so focused on individual development and progress. - In 2010, for example, President Barack Obama of the Democratic Party signed a law to provide affordable healthcare coverage for millions of impoverished and uninsured Americans. - The Republican Party heavily campaigned against the [Affordable Care] law, commonly known as ['Obamacare'], and tried to repeal it. - They argued that by making health insurance obligatory, the law violated individual freedoms and represented an undue intrusion by the government into personal responsibilities. - Because of this common belief in as little government interference as possible, many social welfare programmes have a difficult stance in American politics. - The view that every decision should be left in the hands of the individual is also responsible for the widespread resistance to gun control (see "Current issues: Gun control" below). ## The ideal of Equality - In the Age of Enlightenment, philosophers and thinkers propagated the idea that all people were equal and all individuals should enjoy the same rights. - This principle was taken up by the Founding Fathers of the United States in the Declaration of Independence: "***We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal***." - It is one of the fundamental convictions that Americans are proud of and cherish today. - The idea of equality is generally held in high esteem in nations that observe human rights and oppose all types of discrimination based on gender, race, ethnic origin, religion, political convictions, disability, age or sexual orientation, etc. - Organisations such as the United Nations or the European Union are also committed to the protection of human rights (cf. the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, for example). - Both in the USA and other countries, however, reality is often far removed from the lofty ideal of equality. ## Social Inequality - The ideal of a society of equals has not become reality in the USA. - According to its gross national product (GNP) - the volume of goods and services produced by the workforce of a country - the USA is the wealthiest country in the world. - The statistics often do not show the uneven distribution of wealth. - In 2023, nearly 70 percent of the total wealth in the United States was owned by the top 10 percent of earners. - The lowest 50 percent of earners owned less than three percent of the total wealth. - Multibillionaires like Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, Elon Musk, the CEO or shareholder of some of the most successful business ventures, Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, and investor Warren Buffett top the list of the richest people in the USA and the whole world. - At the bottom of the table, on the other hand, there are millions of people, many of them from ethnic minorities, who live in poverty and face significant challenges when it comes to making a living. - The racial wealth gap between White and Black Americans in particular has been a long-standing issue. ## Racial Inequality - The wealth gap between Black and White Americans is only one of several examples of racial inequality in the USA. - Such inequality has a long tradition in the country, particularly when it comes to African Americans and Native Americans (for Native Americans and their dispossession and extermination, see the section entitled "Freedom in reality"). - Not even back in the days of adopting the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution did the right to equality apply to the above-mentioned groups, because their members were not regarded as "men" or "people," nor were they citizens of the United States. - Many of the Founding Fathers - White males of European descent and wealthy property holders - owned slaves, and slavery was practised in all of the 13 original colonies, which was not regarded as a contradiction to the equality demanded by the Declaration of Independence. - Enslaved people were often treated with brutality, degradation and inhumanity. - Furthermore, they were usually denied educational opportunities, such as learning how to read or write, and were ruthlessly exploited. - The agricultural South in particular depended on enslaved Africans working on the plantations, while in the industrial northern states, slavery gradually came under heavy criticism. - Anti-slavery societies were formed, which raised moral questions about slavery and advocated the abolition of this inhuman form of exploitation. - In 1807, President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation that officially ended the African slave trade. - However, this act did not end slavery; in fact, it increased the slave trade in the United States. - The abolition of slavery was one of the reasons for the American Civil War. - As a result of the war and the Union's victory over the Confederate Army from the South, slavery was officially abolished with the passing of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865. - During the years after the Civil War, known as the Reconstruction era, legal rights for Black people were introduced with the 14th and 15th Amendments, including citizenship and suffrage. - However, particularly in the South, slavery was replaced by segregation, and many of the newly won rights for Black people were restricted by Black Codes and later by Jim Crow laws. - In a landmark decision in 1896, the Supreme Court of the United States legitimised the practice of "separate but equal" facilities for the races. - This meant that businesses and public accommodation could be segregated according to race. - In buses, trains, restaurants, hotels, schools, theatres and jails, there were special sections reserved for White people and others for Black people, with the facilities for the latter often being in worse shape than those for the former. - All in all, the Jim Crow laws maintained the unfair treatment of the Black section of the population from before the Civil War and also hindered Black people from exercising the rights guaranteed by the Reconstruction Amendments, such as their right to vote. - One significant step towards equality for Black Americans was the 1954 landmark decision of the Supreme Court which overturned the ruling of 1896 and concluded that segregation was against the US Constitution. - Further progress in the fight for racial equality was made by the non-violent Civil Rights Movement, which had its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s and was led by Martin Luther King. - In his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963, King reminded the American nation that the promises of the Declaration of Independence had not been fulfilled for America's Black people. - The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were important milestones in that direction. - One step to promote equal opportunities for Black Americans and other minorities in employment, business and education not only on paper, but also in reality is the affirmative action strategy. - This aims to create a more diverse and inclusive society where everyone has the chance to succeed regardless of their background. - America's universities, for example, used to give preference to Black, Hispanic and Native American students in order to expand their numbers in higher education, despite their potentially more limited access in the first place. - However, affirmative action has never been free from controversy and a Supreme Court ruling of 2023 declared race-based affirmative action in college admissions as unconstitutional. - While some arguments against affirmative action need to be taken seriously, such as its perpetuating racist bias or benefiting the most privileged members of a minority in comparison to the least privileged of the majority, decisions like this could further widen the educational gap that exists between Black and Hispanic students on the one hand and White and Asian students on the other. - Other fields of daily life where Black Americans and other people of colour are still denied equality and experience racism include housing, healthcare access, the criminal justice system and voting. - The disadvantages with regard to the criminal justice sector in particular have been widely publicised in recent years: in 2013, after Trayvon Martin, an African American teenager, was killed by a White police officer, the "Black Lives Matter" movement was formed and has since organised nationwide marches to protest against police brutality and unfair treatment of Black people. - There is statistical evidence of disproportionate amounts of police brutality against African Americans and of racial profiling: Black people are stopped and searched more often than White people. - In courts, judges tend to pronounce harsher sentences for Black defendants than for White defendants who have committed similar crimes. - As a result, Black Americans are incarcerated at a much higher rate than White Americans. ## Gender Inequality - It is not only ethnic minorities for whom the promise of equality has not been fulfilled in the USA. - Women are another group who were not included in the equality definition of the Declaration of Independence. - Neither have they achieved full equality today. - While the percentage of women in the labour force has increased significantly and they play a crucial role in the American economy, politics and society at large, gender inequality is persistent. - Women remain underrepresented in top positions in both politics and the working world, for example. - As of 2023, women held less than 30 percent of positions in the House of Representatives and the Senate. - Similarly, they were still underrepresented in managerial positions. - The main reasons for this inequality include gender stereotypes and bias. - One example of this is what is known as the similarity bias: people tend to prefer the company of others who are similar to themselves. - Therefore, if bosses of big companies are predominantly male, this can lead them to promote other men instead of women, for instance. - In other words, it often remains hard for women to advance beyond a certain level and occupy leading positions. - This invisible barrier is known as the glass ceiling effect, limiting women's upward mobility. - Even in cases when they do have similar qualifications and job responsibilities, women often receive less pay than their male colleagues. - Although progress has been made towards closing this gender pay gap, male annual earnings continue to outpace those of female workers. - This is in spite of the Equal Pay Act (1963), which prohibits wage discrimination based on sex. - In recent years, efforts have been made to narrow the gulf between men's and women's earnings, but progress is slow. - Concerted actions, such as wage transparency and awareness-raising activities, are needed to remove barriers to female employment opportunities and achieve true equality. ## The ideal of the pursuit of happiness - The unalienable right to the pursuit of happiness allows any human being to decide freely about their individual aspirations in life and choose their path to happiness. - The pursuit of happiness is often primarily associated with material well-being, although it can also include other free and unlimited choices for an individual's contentment. - The promise that every person can rise to success through hard work no matter where they come from - has been one of the main pull factors for millions to cross the Atlantic and make a new start in America. - The hope of rising "from rags to riches, from dishwasher to millionaire" is what is quintessentially meant by the term "***American Dream***". - The term was coined by historian James Truslow Adams in 1931, who was convinced that in a free and open society, individual commitment would lead to a better and richer life for each generation. - The trust in personal achievement through private initiative and hard work has remained one of the most cherished American myths. ## The reality: The deferred or unfulfilled American Dream - Originally, the American Dream was viewed as achievable for anyone. - However, the USA is no longer - and arguably never has been -- the land of open opportunities for everyone and many people find it hard or impossible to fulfil their dreams. - Although there are success stories of individuals who have made it to the top thanks to their economic spirit, vision and genius, millions of Americans struggle with self-realisation. - In a society that values success above all else and presents it as something that only depends on a person's own stamina and ambition, failure can be catastrophic because it is likely to impact people's self-esteem negatively, and they will not have many networks to support them. - ***In Death of a Salesman (1949)***, for example, Arthur Miller shows the darker side of the American Dream. - The protagonist of the play, Willy Loman, clings to the values connected to it. - He finally commits suicide when he is unable to live up to his ambitions. - For minorities, it can be especially difficult to fulfil the promises of the American Dream. - It often remains an illusion and an unattainable goal. - ***Lorraine Hansberry's drama A Raisin in the Sun (1959)*** illustrates an African American family's difficult living conditions in racist Chicago. - The play's title refers to a line from a poem by Langston Hughes, who described the unfulfilled American Dream for African Americans by asking, "***What happens to a dream deferred?/Does it dry up/Like a raisin in the sun?***" ## Polarisation - The United States has a two-party system: the Republican Party ("Grand Old Party", founded in 1854) and the Democratic Party (founded in 1828). - This system has the advantage that a clear-cut majority usually enables a strong government. - However, a two-party system can lead to polarisation, which means that the rivals may become ideologically rigid, pushing away from the centre. - Another difficulty arises from the division of power between the different branches of US politics (cf. "Checks and balances in US politics" graphic on the previous page): in a system of checks and balances, each branch's power is limited by the others. - It may happen that if the president is a Democrat, the people vote for a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, the Senate or both, which means that a president will have to contend with a majority from the opposition in one or both of the two chambers of Congress. - In this case, bipartisanship and cooperation between the competing parties are challenging tasks. - Opposition to an initiative of one party may then be more rooted in ideology than facts, which may lead to a gridlock or deadlock in Congress and hinder effective governance. - Observers agree that the country's division along party lines has become more entrenched in recent years. - This is especially evident when it comes to what are known as culture war issues. - These include topics subject to moral dispute and controversy. - Positions on these topics are exaggerated and defended uncompromisingly by each party, so that people who think differently can easily be marked as enemies and any attempt at diplomacy fails. - During the 2016 presidential campaign, Republican Donald Trump used the slogan "***Make America Great Again***" to win over voters among the electorate who believed that the USA had once been great but had lost its status. - It was the start of the MAGA movement, whose supporters hold the failed policies of Democrat governments responsible for America's downfall. - As their criticism often focuses on the fields of immigration, multiculturalism, globalisation and a certain ideology around gender norms, "***Make America Great Again***" can be read as a homophobic, sexist or racist slogan, or even as inciting violence. - In January 2021, after losing re-election, Donald Trump urged a crowd to march on Congress, where politicians had met to certify Democrat Joe Biden's win. - In his State of the Union Speech of 2024, President Biden called 6 January 2021 "the darkest of days", adding that the insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol had "***placed a dagger to the throat of American democracy***". ## Foreign Policy - Since its foundation, the USA's foreign policy has vacillated between the two poles of isolationism on the one hand and interventionism on the other. - In phases of isolationism, the country tends to keep out of foreign conflicts and focus on its own internal affairs. - Interventionism is quite the opposite, meaning that the USA takes an active stance in foreign conflicts because it sees its own interests impacted or enhanced by them. - That a successful American foreign policy is not clear-cut can also be seen from global reactions to the USA's decisions: sometimes the country is criticised for playing the "policeman of the world" and mingling in foreign affairs with a kind of missionary zeal reminiscent of Manifest Destiny. - On the other hand, as arguably the strongest military power on earth, the USA is also relied upon by other countries in times of conflict. - One particularly influential event for the USA's self-image was the terrorist attack of 9/11, when, on 11 September 2001, Islamist terrorists hijacked four planes and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon in Arlington County in Virginia and into a field in Pennsylvania (on the way to Washington, D.C.). - The attack killed almost 3,000 people and injured thousands more. - It was the single deadliest terrorist attack in recent history and deeply traumatised the American nation, as it was carried out on American soil and was seen as an attack on America's standing in the world. - 9/11 impacted both domestic and foreign policies: Homeland security laws were tightened so much that some critics even spoke of unconstitutional encroachments on people's personal rights and freedoms. - Globally, the USA launched several campaigns of its so-called War on Terrorism - in Afghanistan or Iraq, for instance. - With terrorism making a direct enemy quite difficult to identify, these military operations garnered international support but also came under heavy criticism and tarnished the USA's reputation. - Not only was the USA accused of exacerbating tensions in the Middle East, but the lawfulness of some of the attacks and, particularly, the treatment of "enemy combatants" in the infamous detention camp Guantanamo, for example, were called into question and created a public outcry. ## Poverty - Health coverage and food stamps - One of the most pressing worries for millions of Americans today is how to pay for medical treatment. - Health services in surgeries or hospitals are costly. - Unlike the United Kingdom and Germany, the US does not have a centralised healthcare system. - This means that individuals, including employees and the self-employed, normally have to pay for their insurance policies on the market. - As a result, covering the high cost of proper health insurance has become challenging or even impossible for the lower income brackets. - The insurance policies people can afford differ in price and extent of coverage. - As healthcare is so expensive, some companies offer health insurance plans as part of their benefits package to attract employees. - However, healthcare costs are still a significant burden and too costly for millions of Americans. - As the socio-economic status of individuals and families often strongly correlates with ethnicity, African American, Native American or Hispanic people are at a disproportionate risk of being uninsured or lacking sufficient healthcare. - The number of Americans without healthcare coverage has dropped considerably since the 1960s, mainly due to legislation initiated by Democratic president Lyndon B. Johnson. - In 1965, Congress adopted two social plans, Medicaid and Medicare, to help people pay for hospital stays, doctor's visits, preventive care and prescription drugs. - Medicare primarily supports people of 65 or older and individuals under 65 with certain disabilities or specific conditions. - The other programme, Medicaid, provides health coverage to people on a low income or none at all, who could otherwise not pay for their treatment. - These programmes remain essential pillars of social security in the United States today despite vigorous demands from some quarters - particularly Republicans - for support to be reduced. - In order for health insurance to spread to all Americans, President Barack Obama managed to get his Affordable Care Act (usually referred to as Obamacare) through Congress in 2010. - Republicans have fought that law from the start, and Obamacare remains one of the main disputes between the two parties. - Many Republicans seek to repeal the law, arguing that it is too expensive, hurts the economy and is an example of undue government interference in the citizens' self-determined lives (cf. sections on "Liberty"). - Consequently, during his election campaign, Republican Donald Trump vowed to take back the Affordable Care Act, a plan which was not completely successful, however. - In 2021, the Democratic Joe Biden-Kamala Harris Administration made healthcare reform a priority again and the national uninsured rate reached an all-time low. - However, the Republicans adhere to their resistance against the Affordable Care Act and further healthcare reforms. - Another problem in one of the wealthiest countries in the world concerns millions of American citizens who still cannot afford a decent living and struggle to survive every day. - The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, helps people on a low income or none at all to buy food for themselves and their families in order to maintain adequate nutrition and overall health. - Generally, Republicans aim to cut welfare programmes whereas Democrats are more inclined to provide support for underprivileged citizens. ## Immigration - The United States has been called "***a nation of immigrants***" because of its great ethnic diversity. - However, this term does not include Native Americans, the original inhabitants of the continent, nor the slaves who were brought there against their will. - Still, millions arrived searching for a better life or to flee from persecution or famine. - In the 19th century, immigrants were mostly welcomed with open arms to help build the United States of America. - However, the tables soon turned. - Earlier immigrants opposed further influx from abroad and US governments introduced restrictions such as the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882) and the Immigration Act (1924), which reflected the changing policies and attitudes towards newcomers, particularly those from ethnic backgrounds that were not yet represented in the US population. - Today, the United States has more immigrants than any other country and still prides itself on being a haven for refugees and asylum seekers. - However, immigration remains an intensely polarising issue for US citizens. - In some opinion polls it is even ranked as the country's most significant problem, surpassing inflation and the economy. - Of great concern is the number of illegal crossings, particularly at the border to Mexico. - In 2021, undocumented immigrants made up over one-fifth of the total foreign-born US population. - Over the years, Republicans and Democrats have been trying to find solutions to this problem, but they are still in a deadlock. - Republicans tend to take a stricter stance, but both parties struggle to strike the right balance between protecting the rights of refugees, supporting the economy and ensuring border security. - What constitutes proper integration of migrants is also a constant subject of debate: - From the 18th century onwards, the USA was often called a melting pot, where people of different origins were fused into one common American identity. - This metaphor of assimilation has more recently been substituted by other images, such as that of a salad bowl or mosaic. - The latter two stress the fact that despite various sections of the population retaining their unique cultural features, there can be a harmonious whole. - In connection with illegal immigration, there is also a large group of undocumented immigrants who did not enter the US of their own free will but were brought to the country by their parents as children. - These are known as "***Dreamers***". - One immigration policy implemented in 2012, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), is intended to protect them from deportation and allow them to work or study in the USA. - For a time, undocumented migrants even hoped for a pathway to citizenship. - However, the DACA act is another highly contested piece of legislation. - The issue has not been resolved conclusively, and the fate of the Dreamers remains uncertain. ## Abortion - Abortion, the deliberate termination of a pregnancy, is another issue which continues to cause controversy. - Opinions are divided on whether it is legally and ethically acceptable to terminate a pregnancy deliberately. - Advocates argue that the right to have an abortion is rooted in the proposition of the Founding Fathers that every citizen has the right to freedom and the pursuit of happiness. - Consequently, all individuals must have the right to self-determination over their bodies and sexuality. - By contrast, conservative, often religiously motivated groups, especially in the southern states known as the Bible Belt states, argue that the foetus is a human being from conception and, therefore, has a right to life from that time on. - While abortion was neither criminalised nor legalised nationally before the 1970s, in the landmark Supreme Court ruling *Roe v. Wade* of 1973, the judges decided that states may not ban abortions in the first three months of pregnancy and may only ban them in the first six months of pregnancy under certain conditions. - As a result, many states liberalised their laws, but opponents continued to press vigorously for prohibition. - The pro-life movement campaigned to reverse Roe v. Wade, whereas their opponents, known as the pro-choice movement, stressed the importance of the ruling with regard to women's control over their own bodies. - After nearly 50 years of heavy campaigning on both sides, the Supreme Court overturned *Roe v. Wade* in 2022 on the grounds that "***the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion***". - This landmark decision changed abortion laws in the United States significantly. - The right to abortion was no longer protected, and the states were allowed to ban the procedure. - Since the ruling, some states have made the termination of pregnancy outright illegal, others with antiabortion laws allow abortion in some very restricted instances, and many are undecided, still deliberating on how to act. - This means that legislation varies from state to state, leaving the future of abortion in limbo. - It has happened more than once that women have had to leave their home states and cross the border to have their pregnancies terminated. ## LGBTQI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersexual and others') rights - For a long time, the freedom of choice and right to have self-determination over their bodies and sexuality has been denied to people who either have a non-heteronormative sexual orientation or a gender identity that does not correspond with their assigned sex at birth. - In the first half of the 20th century, same-sex relations, particularly between men, were outlawed in the USA. - Female homosexuality tended to be largely ignored in legal frameworks. - Since the 1960s and 1970s, public opinion and laws concerning homosexuality have changed considerably. - However, it was only in 2003 that the US Supreme Court declared all remaining laws against same-sex sexual activity unconstitutional. - Another landmark decision of 2015 made same-sex marriage legal across all 50 states. - When it comes to non-discrimination laws regarding both homosexuality and people's gender recognition, there is no universal court ruling in the USA that guarantees these and laws vary by state. - While it has certainly become easier to live a non-heteronormative life and/or to identify as transgender, LGBTQI+ people suffer widespread prejudice or even violence to this day, in some areas more so than in others. - The film *Boy Erased*, for instance, is set in a conservative milieu in Arkansas. - It shows the dilemma of a young homosexual boy who is forced to hide his sexual orientation. - He is even sent to a centre where a pseudoscientific practice, Conversion Therapy, is applied. - While this practice has been widely criticised and banned in several states, there are also some that still allow it to happen. ## Gun control - Gun control has been among the most fiercely debated issues in the United States. - Pro-gun activists on the one hand and gun control advocates on the other are deeply entrenched in their beliefs. - There is statistical evidence to show that gun-related crimes and deaths are substantially higher in the US than in any other country of similar economic development. - Gun- related deaths occur as homicides, suicides, accidents or in mass shootings that often draw substantial media attention. - Mass shootings are by definition firearm-related incidents with four or more casualties. - After every such tragedy, politicians express their heartfelt sympathy and call for renewed efforts to reduce violence and improve gun safety. - The heated exchange between the pro-gun lobby, including the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Gun Owners of America (GOA), and anti-gun violence movements, such as Everytown or Brady, revolves around the Second Amendment to the Constitution (1791). - This includes the passage "... the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed". - Pro-gun lobby groups have always used these words of America's Founding Fathers for their campaigns against any stricter gun legislation. - Some states have even passed "permitless (concealed) carry" laws, which allow a person to carry a handgun either openly or covertly without requiring a licence or training. - To support their view, the National Rifle Association (NRA) argues that having more armed civilians will help boost public safety, making it more likely that "good guys" with guns will intercept "bad guys" with guns. - Furthermore, stricter gun laws will not prevent the acquisition of firearms because they can always be obtained on the black market. - The "***unalienable right of freedom***", the ideal formulated in the Constitution, may have contributed to the development of a violence-prone society. - Firearms are regarded as symbols of freedom and power - a view that has created a culture of weaponry. - Anti-gun violence groups deplore the continued needless loss of life and demand stricter gun laws. - They maintain that the easy availability of firearms and lax licencing rules account for the large number of suicides and accidents with guns. - It is too easy to acquire weapons in gun shops, on the Internet and at gun shows, where people buy and sell firearms, firearm accessories and ammunition. - Furthermore, research shows that guns do not help to prevent crime - on the contrary, more guns are linked to more crimes: murders, rapes and others. - Consequently, gun access should be made more difficult. - Another aspect connected with the issue of gun control is the question of racism: several fatal shootings of Black people by White deputies have occurred. - The police officers assumed (or claimed) the people they had stopped and searched were trying to pull a gun, which was not the case. - These incidents frequently trigger protests or, in some cases, even riots and rekindle the vigorous debate about the racial prejudice of law enforcement officers against African Americans. - If there were fewer firearms around, some of these tragedies might be avoided. - However, there are some hopeful developments as well. - In 2022, for the first time in many years, Democrats and Republicans managed to overcome their long-standing dispute about gun control. - Together, they worked out the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. - The law imposes stricter background checks for buyers under the age of 21 and encourages states to implement "red flag" laws. - These give a court the power to temporarily remove firearms from people believed to be at high risk of harming themselves or others. - Despite this remarkable progress, gun control and violence remain an issue, which seriously puts the ideal of freedom to the test.