Citizenship refers to belonging to a certain political community. That is, citizenship is what expresses the belonging of an individual in a given society in which of course he actively participates at all levels. In the West, for example, the citizen has a series of legal attributes and at the same time integrates the political community of the nation in which he participates.
Being a citizen of this or that territory implies having developed the feeling of belonging and identity of that geographical place and in which, of course, one will interact socially with responsibility and having rights and respecting the pertinent obligations that arise from that status.
For example, citizenship grants a series of rights and obligations that must be respected. Among the rights can be mentioned the right to vote and choose the authorities that are considered pertinent, as well as to participate in any good that is derived from community participation. Obligations include, by way of example, the obligation to pay taxes; this aspect can be summed up in compliance with the law in general.
The term citizenship to refer to this community participation owes its use to historical circumstances that take us back to Greek civilization. At that time, the political organization was centralized in each city, which made up a true state. The example of Athens is particularly famous, which consisted in the first case of the exercise of democracy. In these cities, only men were considered citizens, to the extent that only men could take up arms to protect the city against potential external attacks. This conception of citizenship was adopted and developed by the Roman Empire.
Be a citizen
While it is called with the term of citizen to that individual who is natural, that is, was born or is a neighbor of a certain geographical place (state) and who then as such is subject to both civil and political rights which have been contained in current regulations, such is the case of the national constitution and national laws. For example, as a citizen, an individual is obliged to comply with those obligations that are demanded of him and also must assert his rights when appropriate.
Historically issues such as race, foreigners, ethnicity, religion, sex, age and birth have delimited the denomination of citizen of this or that place and therefore have been grounds for exclusion of those who did not comply with some of the they are considered mandatory.
There have been numerous and recognized social movements that have fought against discrimination and in favor of inclusion.
It should be noted that those who temporarily reside in a nation and do not have the required documentation will not be considered citizens but simply residents.
A citizen today
Currently, Citizen status is obtained from a certain moment in human life that is identified with the age of majority, a circumstance in which it is considered that a person can face with sufficient criteria and capacity the obligations and rights that coexistence in community holds for them.
For the moment in which this event of citizen integration takes place, a series of basic knowledge about the behavior of society and its political organization is necessary.. That is why during the educational process that trains each individual and which is mandatory, mandatory content on citizen participation is included. In these he realizes the rights and obligations that the student will obtain upon reaching the corresponding age.
On the other hand, nowadays it is common for individuals who have direct ancestors with another nationality to apply for it before the corresponding organizations, presenting all the documentation that proves it. It is also possible to acquire citizenship of a nation by marrying someone and after a certain number of years have elapsed.
