'Liberty and Justice for all' (or just some)?

July the Fourth: certainly a day to celebrate. But it also is a day that warrants some contemplation of our rights and responsibilities. And in that regard I've been thinking about our Pledge of Allegiance.

When we are called to military duty or military support duty, we are contractually bound to obey. That is the price of the safety, security, and rights we receive in return. But I'm also looking at the part that says: "with liberty and justice for all". That is still only an ideal: we have plenty left to do.

For some time now, The Republican Party has waged open warfare on the rights of a number of minority groups (people of color, LGBTQ+) as well as women's rights, denying them the justice they rightfully deserve.

In California, a really low point came Nov 5, 2008, when Proposition 8 was passed, banning same-sex marriage. It was several years later (June 6, 2015) that federal law lifted the ban nation-wide (Obergefell v. Hodges). Note that the objections to same-sex marriage are primarily based on religious belief: it never should have been a political issue. Only the Republican Party made it so.

The Republican Party has propagandized widely to convince you there is no racial bias in America. Actually, you can read about it almost every day: for example, reported arrests of Blacks in vehicles and minor drug offenses typically far exceed their representation in the population. And the Party really, really wants there to be no further mention of slavery in teaching American history.

Even as a minority party, the Republicans have managed to abridge the rights of many minorities and have made it clear they intend to do more damage: access to contraception, no-fault-divorce, and more are on their chopping block. Should we seriously consider putting their leader in the White House? I don’t. And you shouldn’t either. Instead, vote to maintain our democracy.

John H. Terrell