Patriot Week Daily Reading 9/15: Equality - Race

SEPTEMBER 15:  OVERVIEW 

On September 15, Patriot Week recognizes the First Principle of Equality (racial).  

We also recognize the great civil rights icons Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Martin Luther King Jr,  who made that First Principle come alive in America. In addition, we recognize the Gettysburg Address, Emancipation Proclamation, and I Have a Dream Speech, as well as the Union (Fort Sumter) Flag.

FIRST PRINCIPLE: EQUALITY - RACE

The Founding Fathers embraced the Judeo-Christian understanding that the Creator created all individuals, that each person arises from His handiwork, and that every person embodies His blessing. Regardless of physical, mental, and social differences between individuals, each individual is equally precious in His eyes. While this First Principle originally arose from a belief in the nature of the Creator, the laws of nature lead many to the same conclusion. 

By embracing the First Principle of equality, America rejected the deliberately inequitable regimes dominating the globe in their time. Inequality codified in the law was a cornerstone of government throughout world history. Hereditary nobility and other special classes were almost universally granted special privileges unknown to the common person. 

Yet, from the American Revolution and for generations thereafter, equality was not afforded to African-Americans, most especially slaves. Over 50 years after the Declaration of Independence, Frederick Douglass could rightfully ask, “What I have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in the Declaration of Independence, extended to us?” Indeed, slavery and racial discrimination made a mockery of the First Principles of equality, unalienable rights, and the Social Compact. 

Driven by the idea of the First Principle of equality, abolitionists organized to emancipate the slaves and to afford African-Americans equality under the law. The inherent hypocrisy of slavery in the land of the free eventually literally tore the Union asunder in the Civil War. At enormous sacrifice, with the adoption of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th-15th Amendments, the nation finally began to live up to its promise. 

However, generations would pass - and another civil rights struggle led by Martin Luther King, Jr. was necessary - before the principle of equality was more firmly established in civil rights legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

Although the struggle is not complete, the First Principle of equality requires that each person be treated equally under the law, and that the equal protection of the laws be afforded to all.

THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS, EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION, AND I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH

EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION

On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln placed into effect the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves in the Confederacy. 

Simple, but majestic, it provided:

“All persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free” 

GETTYSBURG ADDRESS

The Gettysburg Address, delivered by President Lincoln on the battlefield which months early saw one of the bloodiest and most important battles in American history, is perhaps the most eloquent statement by any American ever.  The Address crystalized for Americans the need to fulfill the broken promise of equality. 

The Address speaks for itself:

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

“Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

“But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

I HAVE A DREAM

Generations later, on August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr., at the March on Washington, he delivered his I Have A Dream speech - a stirring message that inspired the country to overcome its troubled history and embrace racial equality:

“Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation... But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination... 

“In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

“It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation... Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children... 

I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. 

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal...

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character...”

(Because the text of the speech is licensed by Intellectual Properties Management, Atlanta, GA as exclusive Licensor of the Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. (which holds the copyright), the excerpts of this speech are given for academic and educational purposes only in compliance with the “fair use” doctrine).

ABRAHAM LINCOLN, FREDERICK DOUGLASS, AND MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Born a poor child on February 12, 1809 in Hardin County, Kentucky, Abraham Lincoln eventually taught himself the law and became a renowned lawyer in Illinois. 

He began his political career losing a race for the state legislature in 1832. He would win two years later and serve in the Illinois House from 1834-1841. While winning a seat to Congress in the House of Representatives in 1847, he lost his bid for reelection as well as two bids for the Senate in 1855 and 1858. This repeat loser won the presidency in 1860. 

Calling upon the First Principles, Lincoln argued for the emancipation of slaves, protecting the unalienable rights of African Americans, and equality before the law. 

With an uncanny intellect and will he became the rock upon which the Union was preserved during the Civil War. Lincoln could act upon the First Principles when he promulgated the Emancipation Proclamation on New Year’s Day, 1863 – declaring all slaves in states under the South’s control to be free. 

Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (1863) was a defining moment in the struggle to secure equality and unalienable rights for all Americans. While possessing no legal authority, it is nearly as important to the American character as the Declaration of Independence. No other speech reveals – and helped cause – the evolution of American thought. 

Simply put, Lincoln explained that America was founded upon certain First Principles and that it must struggle to meet those principles – even at great and horrible costs – to ensure that the nation dedicated those First Principles could survive. 

FREDERICK DOUGLASS

Born a slave in Talbot County, Maryland (on what he believed to be Valentine’s Day, 1816), Frederick Douglass escaped from slavery on September 3, 1838. Douglass eventually bought his freedom with the proceeds of anti-slavery lectures he presented in Great Britain and Ireland. 

Once he fled the South, Douglass became a committed abolitionist. He leapt onto the world stage by publishing his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (1845). By detailing his brutal life as a common slave, the work captured the public's imagination and significantly advanced the cause of abolitionism. 

Douglass used his fame to tour and speak across the country and in Europe. He began several newspapers, including the influential North Star. His unrelenting attacks upon slavery clearly revealed the need to address the fundamental hypocrisy of slavery in free republic of America. 

During the Civil War he consulted with President Abraham Lincoln; and during Reconstruction he advised President Andrew Johnson. He also served in several federal posts during Reconstruction, including as US Marshall for the District of Columbia, register of deeds for the District of Columbia, and as a diplomat to Haiti. 

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. The impetus underlying the Civil Rights Movement, like the drive to abolish slavery and enact Reconstruction, was the belief in the First Principle of equality. Dr. King firmly believed in this conviction and used it as his greatest weapon. 

King preached and practiced non-violent opposition in the face of oppression. He established the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, and led the struggle for equality during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. 

Writing from a jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963, he explained that the civil rights activists were “standing up for what is best in the American dream and for the sacred values in our Judaeo-Christian heritage, thereby bringing our nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.” 

Thus, it was natural for King, when he addressed over 200,000 supporters who had marched on Washington, D.C., to echo Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Frederick Douglass, in his famous and moving I Have a Dream Speech. The efforts and Dr. King and others in the Civil Rights Movement led to the adoption of several federal civil rights acts and ground-breaking Supreme Court decisions. 

King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. His assassination gripped the nation and became a major impetuous for embracing racial equality in America.

UNION (FORT SUMTER) FLAG

The Civil War began with the Confederate bombardment of Fort Sumter in Charleston South Carolina on April 12, 1861. After the original garrison flag ripped, this flag was hoisted above Fort Sumter. 

Major Robert Anderson lowered the flag when he evacuated Fort Sumter on April 14, 1861. He brought the flag to New York City on April 20, 1861 for a rally on behalf of the Union. The flag soon went on tour to various rallies in the North where “auctions” were held to raise funds on behalf of the Union’s war effort. The “winners” of the auctions promptly returned the flag so that the fundraising tour could continue. 

In February 1865, the Confederacy abandoned Charleston. At Abraham Lincoln’s direction, exactly four years after the flag was lowered, then Major General Robert Anderson raised it at Fort Sumter. 

At the flag raising ceremony, the Reverend Henry Ward Beech delivered a powerful oration that remarked:

“On this solemn and joyful day, we again lift to the breeze our fathers' flag, now, again, the banner of the United States, with the fervent prayer that God will crown it with honour, protect it from treason, and send it down to our children with all the blessings of civilization, liberty, and religion. Terrible in battle, may it be beneficent in peace! Happily no bird or beast of prey has been inscribed upon it. The stars that redeem the night from darkness, and the beams of red light that beautify the morning, have been united upon its folds. As long as the sun or the stars endure, may it wave over a nation neither enslaved nor enslaving... 

In the name of God we lift up our banner, and dedicate it to peace, union, and liberty, now and for ever more. Amen.”

In a remarkable twist of fate, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated that very night.

Learn more about America and Patriot Week, and renew the American Spirit, visit www.PatriotWeek.org, Facebook, Twitter, or contact Judge Michael Warren at mwarren@patriotweek.org.

Patriot Week Daily Reading 9/14: Equality - Gender

SEPTEMBER 14:  OVERVIEW

On September 14, Patriot Week recognizes the First Principle of Equality (gender).  

We also recognize the great suffragists Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, who made that First Principle come alive in America. In addition, we recognize the 1848 Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions (written by Stanton) and the 19th Amendment (which enfranchised women), as well as the Suffragette Flag (which was used in marches and rallies).

FIRST PRINCIPLE: EQUALITY - GENDER

Equality is a First Principle of America’s free and just government. As explained in the Declaration of Independence, the Founding Fathers believed that “all men are created equal.”

The Founding Fathers embraced the Judeo-Christian understanding that the Creator created all individuals, that each person arises from His handiwork, and that every person embodies His blessing. Regardless of physical, mental, and social differences between individuals, each individual is equally precious in His eyes. While this First Principle originally arose from a belief in the nature of the Creator, the laws of nature lead many to the same conclusion. 

By embracing the First Principle of equality, America rejected the deliberately inequitable regimes dominating the globe in their time. Inequality codified in the law was a cornerstone of government throughout world history. Hereditary nobility and other special classes were almost universally granted special privileges unknown to the common person. 

Yet, from the American Revolution and for generations thereafter, equality was not afforded to one-half of Americans - women. Driven by the idea of the First Principle of equality, suffragists pressed for the vote. 

Echoing the Declaration of Independence, suffragists in the Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions (written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton), railed against gender oppression as violating the First Principles of equality, the Social Compact, and unalienable rights. It also explained that men and women had the right to alter or abolish the current unjust system of government. Susan B. Anthony could rightfully ask, “how can ‘the consent of the governed’ be given, if the right to vote be denied”

Through generations of struggle, the First Principles of equality, the Social Compact, unalienable rights, and revolution resulted in women’s suffrage and great advances in equality for women. Understanding the enormous effect of symbols, they even created their own Suffragist Flag. 

Although the struggle is not complete, the First Principle of equality requires that each person be treated equally under the law, and that the equal protection of the laws be afforded to all.

THE SENECA FALLS DECLARATION OF SENTIMENTS AND RESOLUTIONS OF 1848 AND THE 19TH AMENDMENT

Elizabeth Cady Stanton presented to the world’s first conference for women’s suffrage held in Seneca Falls New York, a Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, which was adopted by the conference on July 20, 1848.  Paralleling the Declaration of Independence, the power of the statement is understood best by simply reading it:

“When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one portion of the family of man to assume among the people of the earth a position different from that which they have hitherto occupied, but one to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes that impel them to such a course. 

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it, and to insist upon the institution of a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer. while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their duty to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of the women under this government, and such is now the necessity which constrains them to demand the equal station to which they are entitled. The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world. 

The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world. . . .

“Now, in view of this entire disfranchisement of one-half the people of this country, their social and religious degradation--in view of the unjust laws above mentioned, and because women do feel themselves aggrieved, oppressed, and fraudulently deprived of their most sacred rights, we insist that they have immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens of the United States.”

The Seneca Falls declaration was just the beginning.  It took several generations of determined suffragists to enact constitutional change with the adoption of the 19th Amendment, which became effective on August 26, 1919.  It simply provides:

“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. 

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”

SUFFRAGISTS ELIZABETH CADY STANTON AND SUSAN B. ANTHONY

ELIZABETH CADY STANTON

Born in Johnstown, New York on November 12, 1815, Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the daughter of a Federalist Congressman, who later became a Justice of the New York Supreme Court. Stanton was a homemaker and raised several children, but became very active in political affairs. 

Stanton met Lucretia Mott, a Quaker minister, at the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London. Energized by the convention’s refusal to allow women to openly participate in the proceedings (women were required to sit behind a curtain), Stanton and Mott resolved to hold a woman’s rights conference in America. Belatedly held in Seneca Falls, New York in 1848, the conference participants vigorously attacked the disenfranchisement of women and their unequal treatment as violative of the First Principles of free and just government. This began the first significant organized movement for women’s equality – and it claimed the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution as its own. 

Stanton soon joined forces with Susan B. Anthony, and they eventually formed the National Women’s Suffrage Association in 1869. She later served as President of the National American Women Suffrage Association. 

Stanton’s interest in equal rights was much broader than just suffrage, and her efforts led to several significant legal social reforms after she addressed New York Legislature. 

Although she died on October 26, 1902, nearly two decades before the adoption of the 19th Amendment and women’s suffrage, there is little question that she laid the foundation for equality for women to the present day.

SUSAN B. ANTHONY

Susan B. Anthony was born in Adams, Massachusetts on February 15, 1820, and began her public life as an abolitionist and in the temperance movement. In the early 1850s she began to focus her energy on women’s suffrage and women’s equality. 

She soon joined forces with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and they eventually formed the National Women’s Suffrage Association in 1869. They were peculiar partners. Stanton was full-time mother and housekeeper. She was also married to a politician who little understood her egalitarian beliefs. Anthony, single and childless, was an effective and tireless organizer for the movement, while Stanton was a powerful writer and orator. Anthony was a teacher for 15 years, published a newspaper (The Revolution), and was an active abolitionist and temperance reformer. 

Anthony was famously tried and convicted of illegally voting in the presidential election of 1872. Her eloquent closing argument, grounded on the language of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, was for not. The judge fined her $100, which she refused to pay, and which was never collected. To avoid an appeal, the judge refused to proceed with contempt proceedings. 

Undaunted, Anthony proceeded to go on a speaking tour in which delivered a powerful speech based on her conviction. In that speech she declared “it is a downright mockery to talk to women of their enjoyment of the blessings of liberty while they are denied the use of the only means of securing them provided by this democratic-republican government - the ballot.” 

Although she died in 1906 - years before the adoption of the 19th Amendment and women’s suffrage - she laid the bedrock on which women’s rights would be secured through the present day.

THE SUFFRAGETTE FLAG

The National Woman’s Party created their own flag to symbolize their struggles to achieve women’s suffrage. During the drive to ratify the 19th Amendment (the amendment which gave women the right to vote), they would sew on a star onto the flag for each state that ratified the amendment. 

They used the flag when picketing the White House (unheard of at that time), parades and demonstrations. When the 19th Amendment was finally ratified, the leader of the party, Alice Paul, unfurled a flag with stars representing all of the States at their national headquarters in Washington, D.C. 

Alice Paul sews on another star to commemorate an additional state ratifying the 19th Amendment. Watching, among others, are National Woman's Party members Mabel Vernon (far left) and Anita Pollitzer (standing, right).

Learn more about America and Patriot Week, and renew the American Spirit, visit www.PatriotWeek.org, Facebook, Twitter, or contact Judge Michael Warren at mwarren@patriotweek.org.

Patriot Week Daily Reading 9/13: The Social Compact

SEPTEMBER 13:  OVERVIEW

On September 13, Patriot Week recognizes the First Principle of the Social Compact.  We also recognize George Washington, who made that First Principle come alive in America. In addition, we recognize the Congressional Resolution forwarding the Constitution to the states for ratification, as well as the current USA Flag (the symbol of our current Social Compact). 

FIRST PRINCIPLE: SOCIAL COMPACT

The Declaration of Independence recognizes as a self-evident truth that “governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. . . .” 

There are two aspects to this First Principle of the Social Compact. First, that legitimate governments are instituted among the people; second, that the just powers of the government are derived from the consent of the people. 

The Founding Fathers derived much of their understanding of this First Principle from John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and and other like-minded philosophers. 

The Founding Fathers believed that because conflict is inevitable in a state of nature, individuals united in civil societies and established government to secure the peace. James Madison reflected that “If men were angels, no government would be necessary.” But men are not angels, Alexander Hamilton noted, and government becomes necessary to restrain “the passions of men.” Thus, paradoxically, legal restraints are necessary to preserve liberty. The alternative is vigilantism – which Hobbes aptly termed a “war of every one against every one.” 

The second aspect of the Social Compact is that the people must consent to give the government its authority. Robert Bates, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, explained that “In every free government, the people must give their assent to the laws by which they are governed. This is the true criterion between a free government and an arbitrary one.” 

Indeed, the American Revolution was strongly motivated by a defense of this First Principle. The cry of “no taxation without representation” was directly derived from the Social Compact. 

The Social Compact is an indispensable First Principle of American freedom.

RESOLUTION OF CONGRESS OF SEPTEMBER 28, 1787

On September 28, 1787, the Congress forwarded the proposed Constitution to the several States for their consideration. Although an often overlooked document, the resolution of Congress forwarding the proposed Constitution for ratification is the living embodiment of the First Principle of the Social Compact. Writing on a clean slate, the people of the United States had the opportunity to consent to – or reject – a proposed system of government.  The rest is history. 

FOUNDING FATHER GEORGE WASHINGTON

Born on February 22, 1732 in Westmoreland County, Virginia, Washington was the leading personality of the American Revolution. 

A Virginian plantation owner and large landholder, he had become a military leader during the French and Indian War, one well-known for his bravery. In one fierce engagement early in his military career, he led his troops when his commanding officer was slain. At the time, the Indian chief in charge of the battle ordered his troops to fire on Washington. After they fired 17 times and failed to hit him (although two horses were shot from under him), the Chief ordered his troops to stop targeting Washington and declared that Washington was a man blessed by God and would become the leader of a great empire. After Washington gathered his troops, he discovered that he had four bullet holes in his overcoat, but he was never scratched. 

Washington’s impact was remarkable. This skirmish led to the French and Indian War, which led to taxation of the colonies without representation and British oppression, which led to the American Revolution and Washington becoming the commander of Continental Army - and eventually President of the United States. 

A towering figure, he was truly larger than life. In May 1775, the Second Continental Congress elected Washington as the Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. A man of tremendous character and fortitude, through almost sheer willpower, Washington led the American Army and faltering nation through a grueling and successful war against the mightiest empire on earth. 

Although he attempted to retire to his estate at Mount Vernon, he was called back to service as the President of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1789. Washington’s invaluable presence lent the Convention tremendous legitimacy. After the 

Constitution was ratified, he served two terms as the first President of the United States. 

When Washington had announced he would be voluntarily relinquishing power by retiring as President, his nemesis King George III stated that Washington was “placed in a light the most distinguished of any man living,” and was “the greatest character of the age.” 

No wonder, then, that in the wake of his death that the House of Representatives passed a resolution authored by Henry Lee that summarized America’s thoughts on Washington: “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”

THE CURRENT USA FLAG

On June 14, 1777 (now Flag Day), the Continental Congress, adopted the national flag through the following resolution: "Resolved: that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation." Lore has it that the Betsy Ross flag was the first official version of the flag. 

Since that date, the official flag of the United States has altered - mostly due to the increasing number of states. With the addition of each state, the flag has been modified, until its current composition including 50 stars (one for each state) in the field of blue, and with 13 stripes representing the original 13 states. 

This flag is a reflects a deep commitment to the Social Compact.

Learn more about America and Patriot Week, and renew the American Spirit, visit www.PatriotWeek.org, Facebook, Twitter, or contact Judge Michael Warren at mwarren@patriotweek.org.

Patriot Week Daily Reading 9/12: The Rule of Law

SEPTEMBER 12:  OVERVIEW

On September 12, Patriot Week recognizes the First Principle of the rule of law.  We also recognize Chief Justice John Marshall; the Supreme Court decision Marby v. Madison (authored by Marshall); and the Betsy Ross Flag.

FIRST PRINCIPLE: RULE OF LAW

For much of history, justifying the ruling government went no further than the point of a sword. As John Adams described, “In the earliest ages of the world, absolute monarchy seems to have been the universal form of government. Kings, and a few of their great counselors and captains, exercised a cruel tyranny over the people. . . .” Rulers mostly governed through fear – there were no citizens, only subjects beholden to the ruler. Such government still exists – Vietnam, Libya, North Korea, and Cuba are just a few examples where oppressive regimes continue to rule the people by the barrel of a gun.

The Founding Fathers, however, believed that the rule of law is a fundamental First Principle of a free and just government. John Adams explained the Founders’ understanding when he wrote that good government and the very definition of a republic “is an empire of laws.”

In America, the government governs the citizenry according to the law, not by the whims or fancies of our leaders. By requiring our leaders to enact and publish the law, and to adhere to the same law that applies to each citizen, the rule of law acts as a potent barrier against tyrannical and arbitrary government.

The rule of law also requires that the same law govern all citizens. Founding Father Samuel Adams observed that the rule of law means that “There shall be one rule of Justice for the rich and the poor; for the favorite in Court, and the Countryman at the Plough.”

By requiring both the government and the people to adhere to the law, the rule of law serves as the foundational First Principle for protecting our liberty.

MARBURY V. MADISON

Perhaps the most important decision ever issued by the United States Supreme Court, Marbury v Madison addressed the issue of whether an act passed by Congress in conflict with the Constitution was valid. Ironically, the law at issue granted the United States Supreme Court original jurisdiction to hear a case (a writ of mandamus) brought by a judge who had been appointed by the prior President (John Adams) but who the current President (Thomas Jefferson) refused to provide the necessary paperwork to be seated. In an opinion written by Jefferson’s distant cousin - and nemesis - the Supreme Court found that the law granting them the authority to the hear the case to be unconstitutional and dismissed the case. 

Chief Justice John Marshall first explained that “The government of the United States has been emphatically termed a government of laws, and not of men.” 

Marshall also explained that under the doctrine of separation of powers and the inherent judicial power of the Supreme Court, that the Supreme Court would be the final arbitrator of what the law means:

It is emphatically the province and the duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. Those who apply the rule to particular cases, must of necessity expound and interpret that rule. If two laws conflict with each other, the courts must decide on the operation of each. . . This is the very essence of judicial duty.

Because the Constitution was the paramount law of the land ratified by the people, Marshall found that Congress could not alter it through mere legislation: “It is a proposition too plain to be contested, that the constitution controls any legislative act repugnant to it; or, that the legislature may alter the constitution by an ordinary act.” Marshall continued, “Between these alternatives there is no middle ground. The constitution is either a superior paramount law, unchangeable by ordinary means, or it is on level with ordinary legislative acts, and, like other acts, is alterable when the legislature shall please to alter it.” 

Those who oppose judicial review, Marshall explained, “would subvert the very foundation of all written constitutions.” Such a theory “reduces to nothing what we deemed the greatest improvement on political institutions, a written constitution...” 

“Thus,” Marshall continued, “the particular phraseology of the Constitution of the United States confirms and strengthens the principle, supposed to be essential to all written constitutions, that a law repugnant to the constitution is void; and that courts, as well as other departments, are bound by that instrument.” 

Marbury v Madison established the bedrock principles that the Constitution would govern the affairs of the government of the America, and that the Supreme Court would be the guardian of the supreme law of the land.

FOUNDING FATHER JOHN MARSHALL

Chief Justice John Marshall began his public service as a soldier in the Continental Army fighting the British during the American Revolution. He served a leading role in the Virginia Constitutional Convention that approved the Constitution. He served for a short period as Secretary of State under Adams, who then appointed him to be Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. 

Marshall took hold of what had up to then been a relatively modest institution and transformed the Supreme Court into the guardian of the Constitution and the rule of law. 

BETSY ROSS FLAG

Legend - in hot dispute - holds that In May of 1776, on behalf of the Continental Congress, George Washington, Robert Morris, and George Ross met secretly with Betsy Ross and asked her to sew the first official flag of America. George Ross was the uncle of Betsy’s late husband; and according to lore Betsy also attended the same church as Washington. 

There is no doubt, however, that on June 14, 1777 (now Flag Day), the Continental Congress, adopted the national flag through the following resolution: "Resolved: that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation." 

The origin of the design and the reasons for the colors remain in hot dispute. However, Secretary of the Congress Charles Thompson wrote in connection with the Seal of our Nation that

"The colors of the pales (the vertical stripes on the shield of the eagle) are those used in the flag of the United States of America; 

WHITE signifies purity and innocence, 

RED, hardiness & valour, and 

BLUE, the color of the Chief (the blue band at the top of the shield) signifies vigilance, perseverance & Justice."

Learn more about America and Patriot Week, and renew the American Spirit, visit www.PatriotWeek.org, Facebook, Twitter, or contact Judge Michael Warren at mwarren@patriotweek.org.

Patriot Week Daily Reading 9/11: Revolution

SEPTEMBER 11:  OVERVIEW

On  September 11, Patriot Week recognizes the First Principle of Revolution (i.e., the right to alter or abolish an oppressive government); Founding Fathers Thomas Paine, Patrick Henry, and John Adams; the key document of the Declaration of Independence, and the historical Bennington (’76 Flag).

FIRST PRINCIPLE: REVOLUTION

Our Declaration of Independence recognizes the right of the people to alter or abolish an oppressive government when it declares that “whenever any Form of Government” becomes destructive to protecting the unalienable rights of men, “it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its power in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” 

Indeed, after suffering the cruel tyrannical actions of the British Empire such as as taxation with representation, suppression of the right to the jury, quartering of troops, military occupation, and the closure of legislative assemblies, the Founding Fathers determined that they must declare independence. 

Patrick Henry eloquently explained that “If we wish to be free – if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending – if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have so long engaged . . . we must fight! . . . What is it that gentlemen wish? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but for me, give me liberty, or give me death!” 

Later, Henry could rightly declare that America rebelled for “the holy cause of liberty.” 

The Declaration of Independence crystalized our Founding Fathers understanding of the proper role of government when it declared that governments are instituted to protect the unalienable rights of men, and “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new Government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” 

Thus, recognizing that in the end the people are responsible for maintaining their freedom, the Declaration of Independence and the Founding Fathers recognized that if a government oppresses the people through a “long train of abuses and usurpations,” that “it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.” 

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

The Declaration of Independence recognized the right of the people to alter or abolish an oppressive government.  The Founders’ sentiments are so eloquently expressed that it is best to let the Declaration speak for itself.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.  

“That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.   

“Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.   

“But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. -Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. . . . 

"In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.  

"Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends. "We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent states, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent states may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor."

FOUNDING FATHERS THOMAS PAINE, PATRICK HENRY, AND JOHN ADAMS

PATRICK HENRY

Born on May 29, 1736 in Hanover County, Virginia, Henry was a former storekeeper, turned lawyer and political leader. He led colonial resistance to British oppression as early as 1763. 

Thomas Jefferson gave Henry credit for setting “the ball of the revolution” in motion. On March 23, 1775, Henry solidified the cause of independence before the House of Burgesses. He exclaimed:

"If we wish to be free – if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending – if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have so long engaged... we must fight! It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter, Gentlemen may cry, Peace, peace – but there is no peace... Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but for me, give me liberty, or   give me death!"

Although the Constitution was ratified over his objections, his opposition to the original Constitution - along with many others - led to the quick ratification of the Bill of Rights. 

THOMAS PAINE

Through his unparalleled powerful pamphlets Common Sense and The Crisis, Thomas Paine played a critical role in sparking and supporting the American Revolution.  Born in Thetford, England on January 29, 1737, Paine’s eclectic background before the American Revolution included, among other things, careers as a corset maker, merchant seaman, supernumerary officer, excise officer, stay-maker, school teacher, and inventor. 

He penned Common Sense (1776), which more than any other tract, gave voice to the reasons why the time had come for America to declare independence from the British Empire. Within three months, over 120,000 copies of Common Sense were distributed in colonial America, and Paine’s work became the largest selling book (other than the Bible) in the century. Common Sense in large measure swayed public opinion in favor of independence. 

During the difficult days of the Revolutionary War, Paine wrote The Crisis (1776-1777), which helped solidify patriotic support for the war effort.

JOHN ADAMS

Born in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1736, Adams was the son of a modest preacher. 

During the revolutionary era, he challenged British oppression in Boston. He served in the First and Second Continental Congress. He also, however, successfully defended several of the British soldiers who were accused of murder in the Boston Massacre. 

Fellow Founding Father Benjamin Rush wrote that “Every member of Congress in 1776 acknowledged him to be the first man in the House. Dr Brownson (of Georgia) used to say that when he spoke, he fancied an angel was let down from heaven to illuminate the Congress.” Adams’ forceful and well reasoned arguments led the colonists to declare independence. 

After the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, he was sent to France and Holland, and aided in negotiating the peace treaty with England. After the American Revolution, he served as minister to the Court of St James in England. After his return he was elected as Vice President under George Washington. 

After Washington voluntarily retired after two terms as President, Adams was elected the second President of the United States. In 1800, he lost his bid for re-election to his political rival Thomas Jefferson. 

HISTORICAL BENNINGTON FLAG

The Bennington (’76) Flag  was marched into battle during the Revolution in 1777 around Bennington Vermont.  It has long stood as a symbol of American freedom and liberty.

Learn more about America and Patriot Week, and renew the American Spirit, visit www.PatriotWeek.org, Facebook, Twitter, or contact Judge Michael Warren at mwarren@patriotweek.org.