Wikipedia:WikiProject Fact and Reference Check/Example 5/
The United States of America, also referred to as the United States, U.S.A., U.S., America,¹ or the States, is a federal republic in central North America, stretching from the Atlantic in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west. It shares land borders with Canada in the north and Mexico in the south, shares a marine border with Russia, in the west, and has a collection of districts, territories, and possessions around the world. The country has fifty states, which have a level of local autonomy according to the system of federalism. A United States citizen is usually identified as an American.¹
Social issues
The United States provides extensive rights for their citizens, such as freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right to trial, and trial by jury, granted to all citizens. The United States has some of the most liberal laws on immigration and extremely tough laws against racial and other forms of discrimination and other protections for minority groups.
Nevertheless, the United States has at times been criticized for violations of human rights, including racial discrimination in trials and sentences, police abuses, excessive and unwarranted incarceration, and the imposition of the death penalty ². In 2001, Human Rights Watch issued a report stating that United States had "made little progress in embracing international human rights standards at home." [1]. As of 2004, the United States has the world's largest prison population at over 2 million inmates. According to Human Rights Watch, its per capita incarceration rate is believed to be second in the world only to Rwanda. [2] Roughly 1 in 15 Americans will spend time in prison during his or her lifetime. [3].
The United States' suicide rate exceeds that of its homicide rate. Male circumcision is legal and, while controversial, is more widely practiced in the United States than in any other country. [4]
Some resent how American culture has spread worldwide. For example, such corporations as McDonald's, Coca-Cola, and Disney have spread to most countries. In one incident, windows were smashed in a McDonald's in France. Many have accused Americans of being chauvinistic or crass.
Legal holidays
Main article: Holidays of the United States
| Date | Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year's Day | Beginning of year, marks traditional end of "holiday season" |
| January, third Monday | Martin Luther King, Jr. Day | Honors late Dr. King, Civil Rights leader |
| February, third Monday | Presidents' Day | Honors former U.S. Presidents, especially Washington and Lincoln |
| May, last Monday | Memorial Day | Honors servicemen and women who died in service, marks traditional beginning of summer |
| July 4 | Independence Day | Celebrates Declaration of Independence, usually called the Fourth of July |
| September, first Monday | Labor Day | Celebrates achievements of workers, marks traditional end of summer. This holiday is held instead of the traditional worldwide Labor Day, May 1, which ironically began in this country |
| October, second Monday | Columbus Day | Honors Christopher Columbus, traditional discoverer of the Americas |
| November 11 | Veterans' Day | Traditional observation of a moment of silence at 11 AM remembering those who fought for peace |
| November, fourth Thursday | Thanksgiving | Day of thanks for autumn harvest, marks traditional beginning of "holiday season" |
| December 25 | Christmas | Celebrates the nativity of Jesus Christ, also celebrated as secular winter holiday |
Related topics
Main article: List of United States-related topics
Reporters without borders Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2003: Rank 31 out of 166 countries (2-way tie) (2002 - 17 out of 139 countries)
Notes
¹ In the English-speaking world, America has become synonymous with the nation of the United States while American refers to United States (U.S.) citizens; this is a standard usage in not only the U.S. itself, but also much of Europe and Australasia. The term Americas, on the other hand, includes the North and South American continents as a collective unit. In Spanish-speaking countries, particularly in Central and South America, the word América is used not to denote the U.S. but what English-speakers would term the Americas. Thus, some people of the Americas find it off-putting for the U.S. to be referred to as America and inhabitants of the U.S. as Americans. While, in some quarters, the accuracy and political correctness of such nomenclature is debated, current usage in English by sheer weight of occurrence inclines to America and American as linked to the nation and citizens of the United States.
²Note that the death penalty is not legal in every U.S. state and that it itself is controversial within the U.S.