"Democracy just cannot flourish amid fear. Liberty cannot bloom amid hate. Justice cannot take root amid rage. America must get to work. In the chill climate in which we live, we must go against the prevailing wind. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better." -- Justice Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 - January 24, 1993), from his acceptance speech for the Liberty Medal at the Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 4, 1992.
Justice Marshall's words from 31 years ago fit today more than ever. With the current far-right makeup of the Supreme Court, the three progressive Justices are doing a good amount of dissenting these days, dissenting from the hatred, mistrust, apathy and other ills that the far-right is imposing on the majority of Americans through its decisions. As Marshall said, America has no choice but to do better.
In a bitter irony, the corrupt Clarence Thomas was nominated by ex-President George H.W. Bush to replace Justice Marshall in 1991. Elections matter.
(photo: Supreme Court)
