We the People....

 

WE THE PEOPLE…

Please hear me out.

I’ve often been seeing these three words over the last few years. Usually on stickers on the bumpers of pickup trucks, in the rear windows of minivans, and splattered across social media posts. “We the people are going to take our country back.” “We the people are coming for you.” I wonder, though, how many of the folks who are pasting those words to their personal property actually know where the little phrase comes from.

It comes from the United States Constitution.

When was the last time you read the Constitution? It’s been a long time for me. You see, after all these years, I think we’ve begun to take it for granted. We know we have rights, but we’ve forgotten what locks them in for us. The United States Constitution.

·       Freedom to say what you want? –1^st Amendment of the United States Constitution

·       Freedom to own a gun? –2^nd Amendment of the United States Constitution

·       Freedom to worship as you wish? –1^st Amendment of the United States Constitution

·       Want to “plead the fifth”? –5^th Amendment of the United States Constitution

·       Being born in Indiana or Wisconsin or Utah or any other state or US territory guarantees that you’re a US citizen? –14^th Amendment of the United States Constitution

·       You can’t be arrested and transported to a dungeon without anyone knowing what happened to you? –5^th Amendment of the United States Constitution.

I could go on. The right for women to vote? Constitution. The right for people of color to vote? Constitution. The right of a free and unencumbered press to report the news? Constitution.

Everything we have a right to do hinges on the dedication of our government to fully respect our constitution. If that begins to break down, then we are headed headlong toward widespread infringement of our fundamental rights. ALL OF US. We the people. All the people.

Here’s the extended version of the “We the people” phrase…

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” The Preamble of the United States Constitution.

Just so you all know, those three words (We the people) don’t ONLY apply to the percentage of folks on the right side of the political spectrum who identify as MAGA patriots. Rather, it applies to all citizens of the USA, and some portions of the overall document extend beyond citizens to other folks (persons) who are “within the U.S. jurisdiction.” The overall document was written to guarantee all of us—right, left, and middle—certain rights and protect us against assaults on those rights.

You may love Donald Trump, or you may detest Donald Trump. Or, maybe you’re just trying to keep your head down, hanging onto your sanity with a white-knuckled grip. Regardless of where each of us stand, we ALL need to be dedicated first to maintaining the integrity of the Constitution.

On day one of the new DJT administration, our new President signed an executive order that specifically attacked the 14^th Amendment, attempting to breakdown the guaranteed right of citizenship by being born in our country. He did that within hours of swearing to “uphold and protect” the very document. Since then, he’s worked to restrict portions of the press that he doesn’t like—a deviation from the 1^st Amendment, he’s hinted at finding a way to have a third term—a violation of the 22^nd Amendment, and he’s arrested and deported people—putting them into a foreign prison—without any due process—a violation of the 5^th Amendment. On that last point, the 5^th Amendment guarantees “due process” to all persons, not just to citizens.

Here is the wording of the 5^th Amendment:

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation. 5^th Amendment of the United States Constitution

Church members and gang members alike are guaranteed due process under the law. The burden is on the government to prove their accusations, not just simply announce guilt without due process. If Kilmar Abrego Garcia is really a violent member of the MS-13 gang as the government is stating rather than the loving father and member of a working-class union as everyone who knows him is saying, fine. Go ahead and deport him. AFTER you prove it in court. He has the right to due process.

Our government doesn’t have the right to just “disappear” someone they don’t like—citizen or non-citizen. That’s fundamental.

Either we’re all in on the US Constitution or it’s a dead document and we’re all screwed.

If you’ve been screaming for years about infringements of the 2^nd Amendment, you should be just as horrified at the attacks on the 1^st, 5^th, 14^th, and 22^nd Amendments.

If one right can be ignored, they can all be ignored. If due process can be denied one person, it can be denied for all persons. If one portion of the Constitution can be broken, it is all is broken.

We the people…. Right now, depending on your political perspective, the wind may be blowing your way. Good for you. One day, however, the winds may change. If we let the Constitution fall, what will protect you then? Maybe you’ll just disappear into an El Salvadorian prison.

“We the People….” That’s all of us, right?