The Price of Freedom Essay -- Immigration Immigrants Equality Essays

The Price of Freedom In one’s lifetime they will see millions of advertisements claiming â€Å"this is free or that is free†, yet by the age of ten one can tell it’s all normally just a gimmick to get someone to buy more than they really need. In reality nothing is truly free, even the water that is drank everyday is not free. What is really strange is that all of this is experienced within â€Å"The Land of the Free†. Nothing in America is free, from what we buy in the stores all the way to how religions are practiced. Even worse than that, basic freedoms are stripped from American citizens on a daily basis by those corrupt political leaders and various other people in power. The worst of all is when innocent people are hurt by a system that is meant to protect them; when what is supposed to help them be free or enjoy freedoms for a short time is taken away. In both The Terminal a movie directed by Steven Spielberg and â€Å"The Border Patrol State† by Leslie Marmon Si lko basic freedoms are infringed upon by a society that is supposed to be protective and free for all to enjoy. Both works use personal experiences, paralleled with the society’s responses to demonstrate that freedom does not always happen in the land of he free to foreigners and citizens alike. In The Terminal, a man (Viktor Navorski) is not simply stuck in the airport, but rather is faced with the hardships of a cruel society that is unwelcoming or even unsupportive to someone who has just endured the loss of his own country and the privileges to enter the United States. Although this movie contains various subplots, the work focuses mainly on Viktor Navorski, an immigrant from Eastern Europe, as he struggles to get out of New York City’s airport. As his adventure unfo... ...o things as they once they could. The desire to move freely within the United States is held by all, but not necessarily something that all can do. This is demonstrated through the participant’s eagerness and willingness to follow the laws, yet desire to find a change within a country that is supposed to be â€Å"The land of the free†. For Viktor Navorski and Leslie Silko this became all too real as they tried their hands at enjoying what we all take for granted in our everyday lives. Being American is having your freedom and traveling into America should encompass the same, freedoms. Yet, it is hard when even those who are free or wish to experience freedom can’t actually do that, sad but true. Just a child learns the truth behind the gimmick of buy this and get that free, those in American are all learning that there are freedoms, but they certainly come at a price.