"Water: Rights or Restrictions?"

It often seems as though the economics of modern day life clash with the concept of life itself. Somewhere in the midst of purchase power, profit, and private corporations, we forgot the most important “p” word: people. This lapse of memory is visible through the resistance to ideals such as the concept that human beings have a right to fresh, safe water. Considering the fact that the Declaration of Independence states that each human being is entitled to the pursuit of life, it is rather puzzling to believe that any one would oppose the idea of a right to clean water. Exactly how is one expected to successfully pursue life without one of life’s greatest necessities?

The United Nations recognizes water as a necessary component of equality and social justice, and rightly so. Any sort of resistance towards this concept sheds light on the fact that people seem to believe that we have control of the earth’s resources, and the way in which it is distributed among its inhabitants. As long as people continue to contribute to this way of thinking, a fully sustainable lifestyle is far beyond our reach. There are a handful of organizations that strive to engage the public and encourage people to make efforts to alter the way in which the concept of water is viewed. The Food & Water Watch endorses a petition known as “Renew America’s Water”, which urges government officials to reconstruct our water systems, and provide much needed financial and theoretical support to publicly owned water utilities. This is an inadvertent method of recognizing the importance of fresh water, and aiming to make it a priority. Please visit the Food and Water Watch Website to sign the petition, and read more about the right to water.