Sandefur on the Constitution

Timothy Sandefur has a follow up on my post about fulfilling the promises of the Declaration of Independence, discussing why he loves the Constitution so much. It's a fascinating read, as usual, and I love this quote he gives from Frederick Douglass:

There is no negro problem. The problem is whether the american people have loyalty enough, honor enough, patriotism enough, to live up to their own constitution.

Brilliant. And true. It wasn't merely blacks who demanded an end to slavery; slavery had to end in order to make the promises of the Declaration a reality. The same is true of allowing women to vote and to work outside the home, and getting rid of the Jim Crow laws. The same is true of striking down state laws that thrust the government into our most private decisions, like our choice of spouse or whether to use birth control, without any legitimate justification beyond the desire of others to control our lives. These advances were demanded by the principles that we have for so long claimed to accept. If our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are unalienable, as Jefferson declared so eloquently, then it was necessary to secure those rights not only for ourselves but for our fellow citizens as well. It is time now to take the next step and extend those promises to homosexuals in all areas, to allow them to marry the person they love just as we may do. Frederick Douglass was right, the only question that matters is whether we Americans are patriotic enough and honorable enough to extend those promises to all people. If we are, then principle will triumph over prejudice.

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Good to hear I'm not the only person who finds the phrase "negro problem" disgusting. It was (is) a "slavery problem" and a "discrimination problem" and a "bigoted people problem".

By Ginger Yellow (not verified) on 12 May 2005 #permalink

For far too many people, the Constitution is an impediment, not something to be lived up to. Slavery in this country is a stain on its history that will never be removed. Even today there are apologists.

By Mark Paris (not verified) on 12 May 2005 #permalink

I haven't yet read Sandefur's post (I will), but I just want to point out that the phrase "Negro problem" brings to mind the Nazi's "Endloesung" (I don't do Umlauts, but "oe" should be "o" with two little dots over it). The Endloesung was their "final solution" to what they conceived to be their "Jewish problem."

Negro problem?

Jewish problem?

Gay problem?

Indian problem?

This, that and the other problem?

You get the idea.

BTW, the post here is, as usual, superlative.

raj:

I have a handy-dandy list of how to type those characters... it must be available on web somewhere -- I have a dog-eared copy, more than 10 years old...

the little dots over the o is created with option key-u + o (Mac) PC is alt key u + o I think.

Gonna try to post it... watch me be humiliated:

ö

It works! Hooray! I think you can use 'character map' on PC or 'keycap' on Mac to access the full list.

Sorry for OT remarks...

"the only question that matters is whether we Americans are patriotic enough and honorable enough to extend those promises to all people?""

When Senator Frist says: "This filibuster is nothing less than a formula for tyranny by the minority.... If this is allowed to stand, the Minority will have effectively seized from the President the power to appoint judges. Never mind the Constitution." as he did last November in a speech to the Federalist Society, then we can reliably say that he is neither patriotic enough nor honorable enough!!. It is a travesty, that this nation projects to the rest of the world, such a callous disregard for its own principles, of liberty and human rights, for itself.

Never mind the Constitution, never mind the Declaration--they are just artifacts in the way of this new revolution of dominionist theocratic power.