June 24, 2022
When Justices Barrett, Kavanaugh, Gorsuch, and Alito were questioned during their Senate confirmation hearings about a woman’s legal right to abortion, they each affirmed that Roe v Wade was settled law, establishing a constitutional right assuring equality for women. Thirty years ago, Clarence Thomas claimed to have not given Roe v Wade much thought. Yes, he was nominated for a seat on the Supreme Court but claimed to have never thought about the most important decision the court had ever made. These very religious justices, with deep and publicly affirmed commitment to a 3rd century form of superstition often called “Christian” are also free of any conscience that might have made it difficult for them to tell any lie necessary to gain a seat on our nation’s highest court.
Even as our congress and senate have finally taken some minor steps in the direction of greater gun safety, this out of touch court, even after a wave of mass murders in America, voted to support gun manufacturer’s profits rather than the sane gun laws of New York. This the bitter fruit of having put right wing Republicans in the White House who have appointed justices who have no regard for the civil rights and safety of Americans.
In previous generations, the United States has been an example of how democracy can evolve in the direction of civil rights and greater individual freedoms for all people, regardless of race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. In the past decade, we have seen a rapid move away from democracy towards the kind of fascism that our nation once successfully fought against in the first half of the 20th century.
Trump was publicly envious of China’s president, Xi Jinping, when he had China’s constitution amended so that he could be president for life. Trump made his first international visit as president to the murderous ruling family of Saudi Arabia, and his love for Russia’s violent dictator, Putin, is legendary. Can we be surprised then that he also organized and led a violent insurrection to overthrow American democracy when it was time for him to leave office, even promoting the idea of murdering his own Vice President? He continues to threated to run again to continue to try to turn America into a fascist state.
It is going to take more than a generation to restore this country to some semblance of sanity and compassion but that return to being that “shining city on a hill” will only happen if people will begin to vote and worship as if their rights and their very lives depended on it. Americans simply must take a fearless look into the mirror to see what has happened to this nation because they have continued to vote for racists, misogynists, classists, homophobic, and xenophobic candidates.
It is difficult to fully understand the love affair between Catholics and Evangelicals and fascism but, and this isn’t easy for me to say, but, please, people, stop supporting and attending churches that condemn your gay sons and daughters. Stop perpetuating the churches that teach that women cannot control their own bodies (the way the men always have). Literally, stop buying bullets for your own assassins.
Dr. Roger Ray is a local pastor, professor, and writer