When you say the term “civil rights”, a lot of people still don’t know exactly what that means. It’s a phrase that can be complex in its meaning and that has a rich history in our country. Basically, civil rights are the rights on an individual to receive equal treatment and also to be free from discrimination and unfair treatment in a variety of settings.
This may include employment, education, housing and other situations as protected by law. It’s important to understand however, that civil rights are different than civil liberties because the concept of civil rights is that people all have a basic right to be free from unequal treatment based on certain protected characteristics like gender, race and disability.
Civil liberties are considered broader in nature and they are guaranteed by law on a federal level. Civil rights are meant to protect people’s safety as well as protect them from discrimination. Civil rights are also meant to protect freedom of speech, thought and expression as well as freedom of religion.
Civil rights protect people from being discriminated against because of:
• Physical or mental disability
• Race
• Sex
• Sexual orientation
• National origin
• Age
• Immigration status
• And more
You are also protected from unwarranted action from the government or from private organizations. Civil rights also say that all people deserve natural justice in law, the rights to an attorney in legal cases, due process and a fair trial and the right to seek redress. We have rights to participate in civil society as well as politics.
While civil rights can be simple, there is a complex process that has led up to the civil rights laws and regulations as we know them today. History is always in the making as the laws continue to change and evolve as our society has need for it.
If you feel that your civil rights have been violated in some way, it’s important that you seek the advice of an expert to help you determine if you have a case and in what ways your rights were violated. There are attorneys who specialized in only these types of cases and they can help you seek justice that is fair if you were violated according to the law.
In some cases if your rights were violated but the current laws are not clear on this matter, a professional can help you take this case to court for the justice you deserve and also help put new laws in the books that prevent this from happening to others in the future.
