As the Founding Fathers wrote in the Declaration of Independence, all men and women are created equal with the rights to "life, freedom and the pursuit of happiness", which is ultimately the government's responsibility to fulfill. Although the foundation of American democracy was based on equality, history proves otherwise. The most concerning issue that still affects society to this day is discrimination and America certainly succumbs to many actions of injustice during several different periods of its national existence. Throughout American history, many people have faced various forms of discrimination, and over the years they have worked to break down barriers to opportunity based on gender, class, race nationality and race. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In the 19th century, American women lived in an era characterized by gender inequality. They had few social, legal and political rights and were limited to the cult of domesticity which privatized women's opportunities to access education, work, express their opinions and propose reforms. As a result, feminist movements were created to resist the inequalities that women have faced for centuries. Two notable 19th century activists were Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who both advocated for more freedom and rights for American women. In her short story, The Yellow Wallpaper, Gilman depicted the psychological impact of traditional gender roles in society on women. Gilman used the narrator's imagination to depict the pitfalls of domestic life on women. In her illusion, the narrator thought she saw women trapped in the yellow wallpaper when she said, "Sometimes I think there are a lot of women behind it...and they're always trying to get through." But no one could climb this model – it’s so strangling. The motif symbolizes the imprisonment of women by the conventions of early 19th century society, where they were expected to live according to the cult of domesticity. Additionally, the women behind the wallpaper represent the personal identity that many American women felt at that time in a male-dominated society. While Gilman introduced the subject of gender inequality into her works, Stanton also used her voice to demand change in society's treatment of women. In 1848, at the Seneca Falls Convention, she discussed the importance of women's rights and condemned male domination of women. In her Statement of Sentiments, she referenced the Declaration of Independence to show parallels between the struggles of the Founding Fathers and those of women. She asserted that to remain true to the Founding Fathers' belief in justice, women should be able to "insist upon immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens of the United States." Given the unjust laws imposed on women, Stanton proclaimed that men and women should have equal rights as citizens in social, political, and economic affairs. Together, Gilman and Stanton's involvement in the feminist movement in the 19th century was a great success in the journey to the success of women's rights, as they introduced the subject of gender inequality to manyAmericans at that time. Overall, their work quickly influenced women's suffrage and laid the foundation for later feminist movements in America. During the American Industrial Revolution, class injustices grew as the economy of the time strictly defined people's position in society. The revolution developed in the late 1700s and early 1800s in response to the country's need to increase its technological capabilities. Among the revolutions were industrial cities, where the establishment of factories grew with the aim of producing goods in the economy. Industrialization quickly led to a growing gap between rich and poor. Income inequality grew because of technological innovations, as the rich expanded their businesses and the middle and lower classes were given industrial jobs with extremely low wages. Hanson Robinson expressed the growing social gap in her biographical book, Life Among the Early Mill Girls, where many American women's work options were limited to working only in factories. She explained how “prominent 19th-century economists argued that the “iron law of wages” required all prudent businessmen to maintain low wages, long hours, and dismal conditions. The Lowell Mills Girls illustrate discrimination between social classes, with the wealthy taking advantage of workers because they knew many of them had no other choice in employment. To combat this mistreatment, factory girls led the first labor movement in the mid-1800s to protest low wages and dismal working conditions. The labor movement subsequently succeeded in ending child labor, providing health benefits, and providing aid to injured or retired workers. Given these facts, the labor movement fought for the social and economic rights that still apply to American workers today. During wartime, America fell victim to a definition of discrimination based on national origin. In particular, during World War II, many Americans were deprived of their civil liberties in the name of national security, despite the existence of factual evidence of disloyalty to the nation. Japanese Americans represent a case in history where extreme levels of hatred have been imposed on peoples based on their national origin. After the Pearl Harbor event, Japanese Americans faced discrimination as they increasingly feared betrayal by the Japanese. As a result, in 1942, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which authorized the resettlement and internment of tens of thousands of Japanese Americans in an inland camp for 4 years. The actions taken by the U.S. government were seen by Tokyo as "evil savagery...where the constitutional rights of American-born Japanese were mercilessly trampled underfoot in the heat of resentment over U.S. political and military errors." The Japanese people viewed the burials as inhumane and unjust, as they were oppressed because of their race by a cruel nation that deprives its own citizens of their rights. The outcry and sentiments expressed by the Japanese caused the American government to seek a solution as more and more people became aware of it and thus protested against it. As many have argued this contradicts the true values ​​of.