An America In Crisis

During the American Revolution, patriot and pamphleteer Thomas Paine stated, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” These words were formed on the lips of a man who tired of the tyranny and oppression of a nation that once afforded him proper freedoms and privileges guaranteed to him and the other citizens of the relatively new American colonies. Colonial oppression came in the form of unjust taxation and neglect of the colonists’ fundamental right to give consent to their governing body. Over 200 years after the colonials’ victory against the oppressive British forces, our rights and freedoms are once again under attack, not from a foreign imperialistic power, but from our own government.

On September 28, 2006, Congress passed a bill (H.R. 6166, the Military Commissions Act) pertaining  to the detaining and interrogation of terrorism suspects. Supporters of this bill claimed it would grant necessary and proper privileges to the American military and legal system that would protect our nation. This bill seemingly helps to protect American citizens from threats, both domestic and foreign. The truth behind the façade, however, is that this protection comes at the cost of one of our most fundamental rights; our right to habeas corpus. Suspending habeas corpus, or the right promising the release of prisoners who can establish they have been falsely imprisoned, is guaranteed in Article 1, section 9 of the Constitution of the United States. Important implications of this act include the exoneration of prisoners who were falsely imprisoned and who had been rejected at the highest level of appeal, but can file a writ of habeas corpus if important evidence, e.g. DNA, is discovered. The recently passed bill would allow anyone viewed as a threat by the United States government to have his or her habeas corpus rights suspended. Under the current policy, the McCarthy Red incident could have been much worse and alleged “communists” could be imprisoned indefinitely without a chance to prove their innocence.

The right to habeas corpus is not absolute: the Constitution does provide a proviso allowing habeas corpus to be suspended in “Cases of Rebellion or Invasion [where] the public Safety might require it.” Despite this fact, historical incidences of the suspension of this right, such as the internment of suspected Japanese militants during World War II, have met with negative criticism as well as backlash by members of both political parties. Under the new regulations governing the right to habeas corpus, the rights of even American citizens would be subject to negation, and tragedies that could pale the internment of Japanese-Americans in the 1940’s would occur.

The preamble to the Constitution states the Constitution was created in order to, among other things, “…form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, [and] insure domestic Tranquility…” Every member of the armed forces, political party, branch of government, and citizen of the United States, by accepting citizenship, agree to uphold and protect the Constitution, even if it means forfeiture of his or her lives. If we as citizens are willing to give our lives to protect our country, why do we have difficulty taking much less drastic measures in order to achieve the same goal? By spreading the word to others, by petitioning our leaders, and by refusing to be silent, we can achieve the goal of protecting our nation by showing that We, the People, will not support immoral, unjust, and unconstitutional laws meant to disenfranchise our rights as citizens. Terrorism sought to destroy America, and if the citizens allow our government to deprive us of our rights, it has succeeded. For the sake of our ideals and the continuance of our promised rights, and to prevent the terrorists from claiming an early victory, all Americans should seek change and not stand for imposed injustices. Recall the spirit of the framers of the constitution and petition to change any government that abuses the rights of its people. Only then will our America in crisis once again become the great nation it has been for over 200 years.

--Ben Pharr