"With Liberty and Justice for SOME"

“With Liberty And Justice For SOME”
John R. Petrilli

We often mouth this precious and familiar phrase without giving it more than a passing thought. But the words are as golden as the freedoms they declare. Our forefathers had a vision, a dream. They believed that the establishment of a nation governed by the consent of the governed was a possibility. Having left a nation that chronically limited their freedoms, they wanted something better, and were ready to launch what was later referred to as a “holy experiment”. Could a government controlled by the majority rule of ordinary citizens really work? The answer would surprise, not only them, but the entire watching world. America was born, and its story of liberty and justice continues to unfold.

It took centuries before all of its citizens were legally guaranteed the “freedom” part of that promise. But, sad to say, there is a whole segment of the American population that is being deprived of the most basic justice. Would it be considered “just” if federal and state governments declared, say, a particular racial or religious group to be “non-persons” and unprotected by the Constitution? What if America decided in its courts of law that, because of economic stress, people not contributing to the tax base would no longer be eligible for medical services. Would we consider that just? How about we take it two steps farther. What if we declared that certain individuals who weren’t, as yet, socially productive were unworthy of receiving food, water and medical attention, in fact, and should be done away with? Would that fall under the label of American justice?

The refusal of rights to the African-American community was a most wicked and sickening form of injustice that deserved to be ended. The withholding of justice from any group of Americans would be considered an outrageous infringement upon their personal rights as guaranteed by the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Yet, for 35 years and running, a whole segment of our society has experienced anything but justice. If you haven’t figured out where this is going, let me be plain. In the land where freedom and justice were the foundational principles of its inception and success, we are depriving an entire class of Americans not only life, liberty and happiness, but justice as well. That class would be the innocent unborn population. Our babies!

Does God have anything to say about justice? He most certainly does! With regard to justice, God says through the prophet Amos, “Bring it on!” (Amos 5:24). The psalmist tells us that God loves justice (Psalms 11:7), and executes it for the oppressed on a regular basis (Psalms 103:6). God blesses those who maintain justice (Psalms 106:3), and is absolutely appalled at its miscarriage (Isaiah 59:14-16). So if God is so into this deal we call justice, how have we, as a nation, come to a place where the weakest and most vulnerable among us are being denied the simple justice of being born? As I write this my heart weeps in grief and incredulity. How can we do this? What have we, a land where justice was supposed to be available to all, become as we wantonly end the lives of millions of children? How can we do this great wickedness? How can we call this atrocity “justice”?

In closing, if we’re to legitimately lay claim to be a land where justice is available and guaranteed to all, we had better stop the killing, and get back on the pathway of true justice. To allow the blood of the innocents to be spilled at over 4,000 per day, it is the height of hypocrisy to say that we are a land of justice. We’re not, and no matter how many instances of justice we do have, none of them can make up for this glaring miscarriage of justice known as abortion. It is the epitome of injustice to human beings when they are denied the freedom of simply existing!