Liberty and Justice for All
In past years I posted excerpts from the Declaration of Independence on July 4. But I’m not feeling it this year.
I am old enough to remember the Bicentennial observations in 1976. There were celebrations and commemorative events around the country, not just in Washington. Most notable was the flotilla of tall ships sailing into New York’s harbor. There were historical programs, “Bicentennial minutes” on TV, and decorations on local public buildings and fixtures, right down to red-white-and-blue fire hydrants. At noon on July 4 we went out on the streets and rang bells.
The mood of the country is different now. There are fewer events for America’s 250th birthday and the crowds are smaller.
That’s not to say things were better in the United States 50 years ago. The divisions of the Vietnam War years had not healed. There were plenty of people who thought that some Americans should be second-class citizens based on the color of their skin or their gender. Gay, lesbian, and bisexual people could rarely live their lives publicly. Transsexuals (the term used at the time) were even more oppressed.
But in some important ways things are worse today. There are many who maintain that some Americans shouldn’t be Americans at all, based on where their ancestors came from, how they speak, or how they worship. The gains that racial minorities, women, and LGBT people have made since 1976 are uncertain and under threat. And there are still those who think their wealth buys them more privileges than everyone else.
When I quote from the Declaration, I have to omit the slur against the so-called savage Indians, which decries their cruelty in warfare, when in fact everyone is cruel in war. And I have to talk around the fact that many of the men who signed it were slaveholders and the rest condoned slavery. When they said that all men are created equal, they really meant free white men, primarily landowners. But they used broad, general terms for their stirring rhetoric. Later generations found inspiration in what they wrote that went beyond what they really thought at the time.
So this year I am quoting from a later and much shorter document, the Pledge of Allegiance. Its last line, “with liberty and justice for all,” has never been a true description of what we actually have in America. But it is a plainly stated, unqualified goal that we should strive for.
This Independence Day, I call you to join me in opposing anyone who wants to make liberty and justice available only to some.
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