I will be the first to admit that I see the world through a unique lens that has been shaped by personal life experience, culture, and my faith journey. This personal bias shapes my thoughts, opinions, and feelings about all aspects of life, from the menial to the majestic.

So when I read a phrase such as the first line of the United States Constitution, I need to pause for a moment. I must take a step back and meditate; otherwise, I fear that my bias will take over. Bias is always present, but I do want it to reign supreme without question.

We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

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We hold these Truths - Bias Of Truth

Truth can be described with many adjectives - personal, absolute, proven, disputed, and the list goes on. Many of us enter this conversation with a bias for or against the concepts of truth and faith.

The word faith tends to be associated with religion, but I think that a generic definition of faith serves us better in this conversation: complete trust or confidence in someone or something.

Whether religious or not, I believe all people place their complete trust in someone or something. This focal point of trust becomes the object of a person's faith. And the object of a person's faith greatly impacts what the person believes to be true and trustworthy.

The following are a few examples:

• When I become the object of my own faith, I am guided what I deem as true.
• When an influential leader becomes the object of my faith, I let another human voice determine what is true and right.
• When I claim God is the object of my faith, I am bound to His rules and commands.
• When science becomes the object of my faith, then I can reject the supernatural and deity.
• When family becomes the object of my faith, I spend all my time, money, and resources on my family.

Based on the object of your faith, answer the following questions:

1. Are these truths referenced in the United States Constitution self-evident?
2. Do you even believe that these "truths" are even true?

All Men are created equal - Bias of Inclusion

I believe that the word men in this context represents the totality of humankind, but there are people throughout the ages who have disagreed with me (and will continue to do so) and their actions prove the same.

When we talk about unalienable rights, an important question to ask is "To whom do these rights apply?" The simple answer is everyone, but unfortunately (and even historically), not all people have been able to exercise their unalienable rights without oppression and persecution.

Historically, inequality of rights has occurred when one segment of humankind refuses to acknowledge the importance and value of another segment. If someone is not considered to be of equal standing, it is much easier to draw the conclusion that the same person is less deserving of rights. This forced inequality has been based on gender, age, ethnicity, religious identification, and countless other reasons.

Granted rights (those given by government, religious institutions, and cultural traditional) are conditional. They do not apply to everyone. They are given and may be taken away. But unalienable rights, by definition, cannot be revoked!

Based on your bias towards inclusion, answer the following question:

1. Do you believe all humankind has natural rights that are not given and cannot be taken away?
2. Is there a case when someone's unalienable rights should be limited?

Endowed by their Creator - Bias of Origin

Thomas Jefferson states that unalienable rights are from a Creator. I know people who would acknowledge no religious affiliation and would still support and defend the concept of unalienable rights. I know people who would claim to devoutly adhere to a specific religion but have little to no concern about defending the unalienable rights of the perceived outcast and underprivileged.

For me personally, the origin of unalienable rights plays an important role in the defense of those rights. Jefferson spoke as if unalienable rights were intended for every human, but transcended humanity. He spoke of government as not the grantor of those rights, but rather the protector of the people who hold the rights.

Without a higher power, where do these rights come from? Without an unchanging standard, how have and how will unalienable rights change in regards to what rights are included and to whom they are applied?

Based on your bias of origin, answer the following questions:

1. What is the source of unalienable rights?
2. Does that source offer stability or unpredictability?

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness - Bias of Selection

Jefferson was not the first to speak about these matters (and he won't be the last). Most historical documents that speak about the idea of unalienable rights include the rights of life liberty. Although the "pursuit of happiness" was not original to Jefferson, can we project this concept on all culture and ethnicities?

In the absence of a Creator, I see no way for the entirety of society to agree upon those rights that should be selected and granted to humankind. Even today, there is such a struggle with the definition of life that not all people are in agreement. As another example, those who have lived under strict political or religious regimes may not define liberty in the same way as western countries. Personal experience creates a bias and that bias impacts what an individual may or may not select as an unalienable right.

And to complicate things even more, Jefferson uses the phrase "among these" which implies he was not trying to define all of the unalienable rights afford to humankind (and thank goodness he didn't).

Based on your bias of select, answer the following questions:

1. What unalienable rights would you add to the list?
2. Are you concerned that someone else may or may not agree with your addition?

Final Thoughts

I feel that we have to be honest about our bias. As I stated earlier, our bias cannot be eliminated in the same way that our personal experience and upbringing cannot be removed from our minds. But we have the right (and responsibility) to control our bias so that we can listen to others and allow ourselves to be challenged with new ideas.

Our societal failures today are new iterations of the same problems from the past. If we value humankind, we must seek justice for all (even people are different than us and disagree with us). And we must clearly differentiate between natural rights and granted rights. There are some things in life that I don't wait for the authority of a government to confirm to be true.

My hope is that today you are able to live in freedom and pursue happiness!

Thanks for stopping by!
@SumatraNate