As we look back at history and the progress our nation has made since its founding, I am almost dumbfounded to which the degree history truly does repeat itself, especially when it comes to social justice and progress in terms of the well-being and social welfare of our citizens. And those battle lines seem to be drawn very clear and one of the most important lessons learned is that history is always on the side of progress and for those who choose to stand in its way will stand their day of judgment.
Once in a generation we all face pivotal and monumental questions that err on the side of progress and freedom or stalemate and regress. Where each of us ends up is the story of life and opportunity. We may not all agree on those issues and our reasons for or against may be ions apart. But one thing we can all agree on is that history does not lie in the sands of time and those who stand for progress and freedom tends to be on the right side of history. Our viewpoint of how we decide our opinions and beliefs on vital issues of our lifetime may be for many reasons: our own life experiences, family upbringing, spiritual and religious beliefs, or just our own inklings and understandings. Everyone is entitled to their own ideals and beliefs without being thrown to the sidelines and beaten because of them. However, when those opportunities come along once in a generation and we must each choose a side to take and the part of history to be on, it is a very difficult choice for all of us.
Monumental issues of our time such as slavery, social security, Medicare, civil rights, and health care are some of the most defining issues of progress and humanity in our generation. Many people fought dearly and with a righteous spirit to bring about positive social change in this country that was and still is needed to this day. When the Thirteenth Amendment passed in 1865 and brought slavery to an end it was an amazing triumph for America. The belief that all people were to be treated as human beings that lived and breathed the same air, and shared the same hopes and dreams past and present was paramount for a new, more just America. It took debate, it took compromise, and most importantly it took the will and desire to change course and see that progress for thousands of people was a positive outcome for our country. So many people gave their life and their reputation in a time where bucking against the status quo was not only hard politically and socially, but deadly.
As our nation continued to progress and understand the notion of true liberty, freedom, and prosperity for all its people, the idea that some of our most vulnerable citizens, senior citizens, could become homeless, unemployed, or simply be forced to work for life without a sense of financial or a social safety-net, the Social Security Act was signed into law by President Roosevelt in 1935. When it was first created it was a not a perfect system by any means. African-Americans and women were mostly excluded as well a good portion of blue-collar and domestic workers. However, overtime numerous amendments and changes were made to the act bringing more people into the program, increases in benefits, and many more changes that created a program that has defined the social and financial well-being of millions of hard-working Americans.
Our leaders once again began to see that we had not made enough progress in terms of providing for our most helpless citizens and sadly medical benefits were left out of the initial Social Security Act of 1935. Many credit Medicare as the first national health program for Americans. Signed into law in 1965 by President Lyndon Johnson, Medicare was gravely important then as it is today in ensuring the opportunity to visit a professional doctor and receive the medical care every human deserves as they age overtime and lose the ability to earn an acceptable wage. Our nation in its growth has realized the importance of humility and compassion in terms of providing for our most vulnerable citizens. The idea that what makes us human is our ability to put ourselves in the shoes of others who are in need and to not just stand and watch, but to provide a real sense of security and opportunity is one of America's most prominent and lasting cornerstones of justice and equality that many nations envy.
Even with the passage of many of these pieces of legislation and acts, there was still a huge segment of the population that was excluded from these programs and the benefits thereof: African-Americans. Left in the darkness of progress and the trails of history, African-Americans were still living a separate and truly un-equal lifestyle upheld by the United States Government. Many national, local, and state officials did not believe the Constitution or any legal document applied to the tribulations and struggles of the African-American community. If it wasn't for the fight and struggle that so many African-Americans and many whites put up to integrate colored people into the American society, America even in all of its glory would never truly stand the test of freedom, opportunity, or social justice. Leaders such as Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Lyndon B. Johnson, John F. Kennedy, A. Philip Randolph, John Lewis, and so many others fought to open the doors of justice for African-Americans that for far too long were slammed shut. Freedom marches, the de-segregation of schools and public places, the right to vote, sit-ins, peaceful and non-peaceful protests, and much more all led to a revolution in truly freeing African-Americans from the bondage of modern day slavery.
Today in the year 2009 (almost 2010) our time has come to stand for a continued history that stands for justice and opportunity. We face many issues that will define not just the lives of Americans today, but of future generations for decades to come. We face similar challenges and calls for equal opportunity, social justice, hope, and progress that many of our Founding Fathers and past generations fought so dearly to create and provide for the least of us today. Many see, including me, the fight for affordable and comprehensive health insurance for all Americans as our generations call for social progress and opportunity. In a nation that spends over $2.2 trillion a year on health care, nearly twice what other developed nation's spend, and over 40 million Americans without any insurance, not including those who are under-insured, many Americans are being left behind and our nation's long-term fiscal stability and health safety net will continue to deteriorate. Some 60% of all bankruptcies in America are caused by the inability to pay for health care expenses. There are many who argue that the status-quo is acceptable, that allowing millions of Americans to roam freely without the ability to pay for the rising costs of health care in the richest country is acceptable. The idea that we are left to fend for own survival and that somehow the nation is better off with the statistics I stated above. This is unacceptable in terms of our nation's fiscal outlook and more importantly America's call to social justice and opportunity for all citizens of this nation.
No one should have to go homeless because they cannot afford their health care bill or because they are under insured. Our nation's very own social fabric hangs in the balance based on our own faithfulness and call to serve to those who have are the most vulnerable. There are those who argue our nation's legislative branch does not have the Constitutional authority to pass a comprehensive health reform bill. The United States Constitution is a legal framework on which our country was founded that created three branches of government, among other vital rights and expectations, to carry out the will of the people. The Constitution created the limitations of power through checks and balances and gave authority to the legislative branch for all law-making purposes. The Constitution was never designed to embrace, nor deny, the ability of our elected officials to pass legislation that conformed to the basic principles of a Democracy, which is why we have a representative government and not a monarchy. If our Founding Fathers sat out to dictate every single law, program, or idea past and present that which our leaders could or could not debate, propose, and/or pass within the legal limits of a three-branch government, the Constitution itself would have failed to acknowledge the power of change and the voice of the people in a representative republic overtime.
The Preamble itself I believe is clear that our Founding Fathers did not seek to implement such rigid outlook, but sought to provide guiding principles, by which our leaders should govern and adhere to a representative system of governance: "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 is quite clear in that it is not seeking to mandate nor restrict the ability of future generations within the confines of a legal framework to determine their own destiny. Quite the contrary to the arguments of those who seek to use the Constitution when they disagree with the legal authority of our legislative branch to create policies it sees fit to progress social welfare and the tranquility of our society, the Preamble wholeheartedly embraces the ideals of justice, progress, opportunity, and the defense of not just our country, but also the social fabric of our culture.
There is no way to ever know how our Founding Fathers would vote or react to the great expansion of our society in terms of equal opportunity and social justice for so many that in their day were simply slaves to the whips of injustice and hopelessness. However, I strongly believe that they would be proud that our country has come so far in its preservation of a free society that within itself has broken down the barriers of hate, tyranny, and the shackles of oppression. When I take a look in the mirror every single day I think about how many still suffer in a society in which even in our darkest hours is plentiful of wealth and opportunity for so many. We may not always see it, believe in it, or even know it’s available, but what I do know is when history is written in the tablets of time and those who come after us turn the pages of our generation's greatest challenges, I want them to see a people that were humble, free, loving, hopeful, and most importantly standing up for progress and positive social change. They will know the trials and tribulations of our past, the opportunities of our present, and our hopes for the future. That even in our darkest days, we always stood on the side of opportunity--not stalemate, hope--not fear, and opportunity over injustice.