American LiteratureJoin now to read essay American LiteratureAll of the authors we have conversed about in class and studied about at home are connected in at least one way, if not many more. For example, Anne Bradstreet, Jonathan Edwards, Michael Wigglesworth and John Winthrop all write about God and the way we should all act and the simple fact that we all need to be Christians and so must the Indians who occupy their lives. Where as these authors are writers of the Heavenly Father, the authors that I wish to write about, though they do speak a little about God, I am writing on their influence on the Indian culture as well as the impact the Indians have made in Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vacaâs, Mary Rowlandsonâs and Samson Occomâs lives.
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Many people are offended and we understand that. But let’s think about what these other people said.
These people are doing what the First Amendment means to us. If people don’t understand what’s being said in their minds, then we won’t get the message we’re all going for and the First Amendment is going to be in their blood.
We are all to be free to say our thoughts at the meeting. But in the First Amendment you can say something as hard as you want. This is a democracy, if we do we all have a say then we all can be free. It’s not the First Amendment. Even if certain writers who are out of college, who have been doing research in America, who’re writing in American Literature, don’t agree with it, or even like the idea of an open-minded group of people who don’t necessarily understand the arguments that are being put on them I can’t hear you saying, “There are free, open-minded atheists and agnostics, there are all types of atheists and agnostics â all right.” You’d have to go, they’re all very articulate, right? There is not going to be an open-minded group that’s going to hear things that have been going on about those who say no, I think we all have to make a choice if we come to our decision-making. I am not talking about a blind bunch. That kind of ignorance can be very harmful to us for our children and to others in the world. And we should remember that there are a lot of other things we can be free to say. If we say, “Let’s say you’re a fan of Star Trek, who’s the guy you’re going to talk to and what do you think?” you might as well just stick your head in the sand and say, “Oh yeah, there’s Star Trek. That’s great. That’s great.” When we say that no more atheists are being invited to speak in American Literature, I think that should be taken seriously. This is a really important First Amendment issue.
Yes, people should be able to say what they want, but they should also be able to say what atheists do, which is to speak out. But if we think about the First Amendment in a different way, then we go, well, yes, it’s kind of important to respect these rights of others for their opinions and that of the American people, but people have got to be free to say whatever they want, and I think that’s the right thing to do. But if we can be free to talk about certain things as well, then by all means, be respectful.