Preserving Rights on the Local Level

As the day of our national independence approaches, it seems fitting to consider the ideals and beliefs upon which this country was founded. In an attempt to counter the discrimination and persecution that marred England’s religious and political sectors, our founders insured that liberty and equality would become America’s defining characteristics. Those two ideologies laid the foundation for the laws and customs that, while at the time, were quite innovative, now seem inherent and commonplace. Questions concerning the rights of man are recurrently being asked and debated, and our nation has become the standard against which most other countries measure. And most importantly, history indicates that the continuing effort to preserve and protect those rights must begin at the local level.

At the Federal level, and in some sense, the State level, the big wedge issues are considered and debated, providing the direction in which our country will move; but it is at the local level where the actual implementation occurs. Every time a police officer makes a traffic stop, or something even as simple as a citizen paying their water bill, there is a ready embodiment of the defense of the natural and civil rights protected by our Constitution. On the surface it seems somewhat counterintuitive, but every time an employee or worker for the local government interacts with a citizen, our rights are being upheld. It is in our cities and towns that we can be most confident that everyone will be treated the same, no matter what they look like or believe. However, that is a privilege easily taken for granted on a day-to-day basis, for there are many places in the world where that is not so. Getting a speeding ticket is obviously not a constitutional issue, but the ideals involved certainly are.

Government at the local level takes a more personal approach than is possible on a bigger scale, especially in a relatively small community such as Owasso. There is a reassuring sense of closeness and equality when your representative lives in the next neighborhood over as opposed to being off in Washington. A more trusting relationship is built when it is possible to run into your Mayor or Council members at a football game or grocery store. Our city leaders: the Mayor, Council, and the citizens who make up the various boards, are volunteers and give up their time for the betterment of the city. In those roles, they are involved in the actual manifestation of ideological rights, and their impact is significant. For if our rights are not being defended and upheld at the local level, having them is futile.