Back 240 years ago on July 4, 1776, America became an independent nation. A nation with many rare attributes. One of them is freedom. The word 'freedom' is a word that many citizens across the world wish they had. Being a leading country comes as a risk. Jealousy is the root of all evil. Men and women have died for us to live how we do. Lately, we have lost sight of who we are as a country. Those brave souls fought for our freedom and liberty. We became stuck in what race is better. Is one better than the other? No.

With all the chaos in the world we tend to forget who we are as a country. We get lost in the mix. I want you to remember why the United States of America is the greatest country in the world. We need to unite again because together we are unstoppable, strong, and proud. No terrorist can take that from us. America is the face of freedom. Which has been taken advantage of by some government workers who have a desire for power, who lie and sneak around, who leave the people out of the loop, and who misuse the system. Some have turned their backs on us. We have stuck our noses in places we probably shouldn't have. I don't care if you are a republican or democrat; we all are citizens of USA. That is what we have in common. We all have pride in our country. The courageous die for our country. Remember that the next time you take this life for granted. People kill in order to come here; USA is the final destination for many. You are already here.

Racism is the number one issue in our country. I believe racism is taught because you are not born passionately hating a skin color. There is a massive upset regarding the Black Lives Matter group. I understand how blacks are targeted. But, I also feel blacks should not self-pity themselves. They are not always the target, I have an example. I was in Minneapolis and a group of black men walked by me and my friend. They said something to us, but we were too busy talking to hear what they said. So one of them yelled, " FU racist." Did we deserve to be yelled that? No. Am I racist because of that? No. Did I make that group feel unequal or inadequate? No. Of course, they are no less than any individual. I wish it was easy to fix this problem.

Why does there have to be unfairness? Why does our country have to be split up? Why does racism exist? Why do such horrible crimes happen as the effect of upset races? I am 18 years old and from a small town, what do I know? Why is there more than one race? We are humans on earth. The HUMAN race. Equal. It should be that easy. Why are we so petty to judge someone based on the melanin in their skin? I don't have these answers. I just want America to regain sanity. I want our country to become strong again, and less scary. There are hate groups literally wanting to kill us, to take us down, to take our freedom. You may say I am a white female who doesn't live in another person of colors skin, you are right. I am not saying I understand your struggle. I am saying I see us all as we are even. This world is harsh. Women also are treated less than men in the work field. Racism does exist. There are many problems. We all matter. We have to stop with the idea that white is the supreme race because that isn't true. The human race is supreme.

ISIS is scary I think we all know that. But I am not afraid. They are coming into our home; USA. It is ours, not theirs. We need to come together because we are stronger than them. Coming onto our turf and killing our people. With killing mass amounts of innocent people across the world. We need to stop with the silly debates and move to the most important. Our freedom and safety. ISIS wants to strip us of everything that makes us who we are. How dare we let them? You live in a country followed by the Constitution, Declaration and Bill of Rights. How dare you let a hate terrorist group do this to us? It's time to wake up and take a stand.

The Second Amendment gives us the right to bear arms. Guns aren't scary, people are. You can kill with your hands, so are those gonna get cut off? Ban them? Drugs are illegal but I can tell you it's easy to access. Almost too easy. If you ban guns, it will not do anything. Why? Because criminals are criminals. They do not listen to the law anyway. Not like another law will suddenly make them listen. As US citizens, we need to protect ourselves. I have wanted to go into criminal law and become a prosecutor since freshman year in high school. Yeah, it's kind of a scary job but I want to serve justice and protect people. With that, comes having to protect myself from the criminals who may come after me. I am going to do the conceal and carry class as soon as I am 21. I will not be a victim because I was not allowed to protect myself. I will not let my family lose a battle between them and an unwanted criminal. I will not let the bad people have guns and not normal citizens who deserve to protect themselves. I will not let the stupid leaders of our country take them away and win the fight because I will fight until the end. The government cannot ban our guns.

Wake up America. You are in the greatest country in the world. it's time to dust yourself off and regain your pride for this country. To be proud and to be protective of anyone trying to disrupt our lives and safety. The American flag represents each and every one of us. Do not get lost in the chaos. We are equal and we deserve to be treated the same. The athletes that represent USA run around with our flag wrapped around them. Think about what that means what that represents. The honor and happiness to be from here; the joy. Don't lose sight in that. America is home, stop with the hate.