To Secure the Blessings of Liberty

by Ann Snyder  •  Sep 18, 2010 at 6:37 pm

https://www.legal-project.org/blog/2010/09/to-secure-the-blessings-of-liberty

You may not have known but yesterday was Constitution Day. It also marked the beginning of Yom Kippur. While our Jewish friends reflect on the Day of Atonement, let all of us, religious or not, reflect on the significance of September 17, 1787 in our nation's history. On that day, our nation, born out of revolution, underwent a radical restructuring of its national government and survived with its founding principles intact. We had endured our violent beginning and our first tumultuous years together as a people.

Today, we are now one week out from the anniversary of September 11th. To say that the national dialogue leading up to that day was "tense" is an understatement. The news was abuzz with discussions of the "Ground Zero Mosque," "Burn a Koran Day," protests, religious freedom, and freedom of expression. To listen to our politicians and pundits you might have thought we were heading for a conflagration---and not the kind involving burning books, but rather, the kind involving a handbasket. But we didn't explode or implode or fall apart. We endured as a people, and most of us held it together pretty well.

I do not mean to make light of what happened over these last weeks, to the contrary. Real concerns were raised about threats to our freedom of expression. Indeed, these are exactly the kinds of issues the Legal Project strives to address. The threats are real, and this national discussion is far from over. We must hold fast to our principles and remain vigilant in guarding our freedoms. However, in all of the controversy over the last weeks, I did see several things that were good.

Amidst the discord, Americans were actively engaged in thinking about and debating about the rights protected by our First Amendment. We don't do that enough, but when we do most of us can understand the underlying principles. Although the conversation was sometimes insulting, rude, or inane, the vast majority of Americans were able to grasp the critical distinction between having one's feelings hurt and having one's rights violated. They are not the same. The former is mere annoyance; the latter is actual injury. Respecting and preserving others' rights in the face of even vociferous disagreement is the responsibility of all of us who want to maintain our freedom. The message from last week is that most Americans shouldered the responsibility of a free people and that "We the People" have endured.

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