Imagine it is 2061, robots have been built with artificial intelligence. That has evolved into sentience, self awarness. Robots while lacking emotions,if they had human emotions they would surely hate and kill us all are demanding rights.
Robots will be classified as property and granted no rights. If you shoot one in the head you will be arrested for destruction of property and made to pay for a replacement, nothing else.
Robots will be classified as a special kind of property, due to their sentience they have a right of continued existience, so you cannot destroy one unless it is in self defense, but they have no other rights, and the government does not have to pay.
Robots will be classified as a new kind of property slightly higher than pets today. They have a basic right to exist, so no murdering, unless in self defense, and the governement must fund a robo-healthcare system, but all other rights can be denied.
Robots are classified as people but not citizens and are granted the basic rights of existance, healthcare, free speech, assembly, innocent until proven innocent, ect. But cannot run for office or vote.
This will be an interesting debate within 50 years. If a machine is self aware and willing to protect its own existence, is it still only a machine,or property?
I honestly believe that there will come a day when Robots and humans live side by side, or even merge into cyborgs, and thus there shall come a time when they have the same rights as us.
I therefore, in the above hypothetical, shall vote no to grant robots the status of "people" and "citizens" with all rights that apply.
So its tour choice. Do you want robots to have a malfunction, or do want to be safe and not create them as slaves? You choose, Robots for the future or not.