Magna Carta was a 13th-century document that guaranteed certain rights to English citizens. Civil liberties are fundamental freedoms granted to citizens, usually defined by law and evidenced in government documentation. Different countries grant similar rights to citizens, but the types of civil liberties may vary. There are ongoing discussions about how many civil liberties should be granted and whether any existing rights should be removed. Ultimately, civil liberties may depend on the country a person calls home.
In the 13th century, an important document was drawn up in England that guaranteed certain rights to citizens. Magna Carta was a statement about the civil liberties of the people, guaranteeing certain types of treatment for people and limiting the government’s power to act without reason. By definition, civil liberties are fundamental freedoms granted to a country’s citizens, usually defined by law and evidenced in government documentation. People don’t need to earn them; citizenship confers them automatically in most cases. Documents such as Magna Carta make this idea explicit and are often seen as the inspiration for how successive governments would define and limit their powers over their citizenry.
For Americans, familiarity is greater with the US Constitution. In the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the Constitution, the United States grants people certain civil liberties. Most know at least a few. People can speak freely, gather whenever they want, practice the religion of their choice, carry a weapon and write whatever they want, just to name a few.
Other countries grant similar rights to citizens. France, like America, has civil liberties such as freedom of the press and freedom of speech. India has laws that protect some citizens, especially children, against certain forms of exploitative practices. Each country may define the types of civil liberties differently, and at times it is more or less likely to actually protect the rights its government documents purportedly grant. This is not only true in states that have more limited freedoms and have a reputation for restricting them, but also in some that are celebrated for their permissive stance toward citizens most of the time.
One of the issues affecting many countries is exactly how many civil liberties should be granted and whether any existing rights should be removed. In the United States there are still discussions about the Second Amendment, which provides for the right to bear arms. Opponents argue that this right is meaningless in today’s context and threatens other people’s fundamental freedoms, such as the right to live. Equally passionately, people may cling to this right, claiming it is one of their civil liberties and they wish to exercise it, perhaps in self-defense or for other reasons.
In many countries there are people who ask for more freedoms to be granted. America continues to fight a battle over who has the right to marry, limiting that freedom to heterosexual couples in most states. Similarly, in more restrictive countries, some people risk their lives to earn basic civil liberties such as freedom of speech, peaceful protest, or freedom of assembly.
Ultimately, what exactly constitutes a civil liberty may depend on the country a person calls home. While countries are likely to have fairly similar rights granted, there can be small differences. These differences may or may not be very significant from a civil liberty perspective, increasing or detracting from the freedom of a country’s citizens.
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