In the beginning, the world was a utopia. Earth was a place overflowing with lush green gardens, bunnies playing happily in the meadows, and fish swimming carelessly back and forth across the ocean: but then you created man. And no matter how seemingly simplistic humans appeared on the outside, humanity's countless flaws have turned this young earth into a dystopia. Human beings have slowly but surely turned inward. Not only do individuals fight, kill, and physically harm each other, but they also inflict harm that can permanently harm another individual, depriving them of their rights. Human rights are afforded to every living being after birth and should ensure that such individuals have the right to basic necessities such as food, water, shelter and a way to support the people they love. And although these rights seem too simple to be relevant in today's society, citizens of the United States very often lower their eyes or turn their backs when someone does not receive these same simplistic freedoms. More than a quarter of the entire human population does not have these human rights (Facts about hunger and poverty). They do not have access to the basic necessities that citizens in America take for granted every day. Simple things like food, water and shelter are rare commodities in developing countries: even when they can get their hands on them, the food or water is usually contaminated with bacteria and harmful substances. Every week nearly 30,000 people die “due to unsafe water and unsanitary living conditions” and 90% of these victims are under the age of five (Why Water). In the United States – where equality is shouted from the rooftops – the government sets aside only a tiny percent of the federal budget…half of paper…not a cent) just so it can save for a single item on the menu in restaurant dollars (Divakaruni). And instead of making small talk with the less fortunate when they meet them face to face, Americans tend to have “hands tighter on the stroller handle” and walk in the opposite direction just out of fear of having to meet them (Ascher). The amount of human beings deprived of simple human rights in the United States is astonishing, but the way we treat them, or lack thereof, is even more astonishing. Human rights are humanity's middle ground. Whether they are a goal to achieve or something to worry less about, all of humanity can identify with them. however, the way we treat the other side of the scale is not humane. Americans need your help to get off our pedestals and practice what we say. That through that help we can finally achieve human equality.