Declaration of Independence - Essay Example

Although a number of rights were provided by the Constitution during the subsequent 150 years, the Equal Rights Amendment that was intended to provide equality for women was rejected by a referendum. It is in the context of these circumstances that the role of Susan B Anthony is considered important because she devoted her entire life for the cause of women’s suffrage movements. She was a prominent American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to introduce women's suffrage into the United States.

She was one of the important advocates in leading the way for women's rights to be acknowledged and instituted in the American government. Her achievements set the pace for passing the 19th Amendment in 1920, fourteen years after she died. This development eventually allowed women to have the right to vote. Susan B Anthony was a staunch supporter of human rights, which is evident from the fact that during her trial she is known to have told the judges to make correct and unbiased opinions about the prevailing law and that as far as possible they should make room for providing benefits in the context of women’s equal rights and liberty while considering that the actual “rule of interpretation under our national constitution, especially since its amendments, is that anything for human rights is constitutional, everything against human right unconstitutional” (Lutz, 2010, p.121). It on the basis of this line of action that she fought peacefully for rights pertaining to the ballot.

Despite fighting a peaceful battle, Susan B Anthony was persistent in getting her way through until she achieved victory in getting equal status before the law for all American citizens. The. The researcher states that human rights cannot be considered to be the same as sets of behaviors, that can be punished or required to be necessarily implemented by law or that can be unfair to people or utilized for repressing marginal groups. During the end of the eighteenth century, John Locke had contended that it was a basic element of God’s innate laws that no individual should cause harm to another in terms of possessions, freedom or health.

Such rights cannot be forfeited under any circumstances and the existence of this innate law even implied whatever possible can be done in protecting these rights. It therefore meant that no individual could be put under the rule of another person unless he or she gave consent. The government was responsible to safeguard natural rights. Such conditions limited the ability of the government to do several things legitimately and gave people the right to challenge a government overstepping its authorities.

The American democratic government is structured on the basis of the inherent rights of all citizens to make an opinion through voting. By indirectly referring to the provision of basic human rights, Susan B Anthony asserted that the government must provide citizens with security in order to enable them to enjoy their basic rights of voting. In keeping with this line of approach, she fought a peaceful battle for the voting rights for women but she was persistent in her efforts until she was victorious whereby all US citizens would be given equal status before the law.