The first month of this year has had many of us struggling with a social conscience question. The struggle comes out of an issue that seems so basic but becomes very complicated when we have to balance two divergent rights.
Freedom of speech is basic. It is imbedded in our souls as well as our constitution and laws. Part of that is the right to demonstrate and express ourselves if we feel that society is perpetuating an injustice. That truth is self evident. So when the hundreds of people took to the streets in our Bay Area, we all watched. I think we all agreed that they should express themselves. We might not agree with their views. They are complicated, but we most probably understood there right to protest—until they started infringing on others’ rights. It started with breaking windows and doing damage. The perpetrators didn’t appear to be the original protestors, but outside agitators and anarchists. Then it spread to closing down Bart stations. Then people started hopping up on the freeway and blocking traffic. At these points, they were violating the law.
This was part one of a thought process of balancing people’s rights. For me, this is very interesting but also easy at the same time. I protested in rather large groups on my college campus. I protested in a movement to get the administration to institute a “Black Studies Program.” This was a revolutionary concept to those in administrative power at our “lily white” institution. They argued that there weren’t enough students to warrant it. We argued that if they offered it, maybe more blacks would be attracted. At one point our protests turned violent with outside agitators who took over the administration building and actually held hostages for a short time. When that happened, I was long gone, not wanting any part of it. Protestors were arrested, jailed and fined.
In the March from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, the flash point of the Voting Rights legislation, people including Martin Luther King, Jr. were arrested and put in jail. All of this is tied together by the bonds of social justice and accepting the consequences of actions.
At my University, the people were in jail and were punished. In Montgomery, whether right or not, arrested jailed and punished. Our modern day protestors want to be cited, taken to jail, released and charges dropped. This is where today’s protestors don’t understand the message of Dr. King or the values of true demonstration.
When they jumped out of cars on the San Mateo Bridge and blocked traffic, they were cited and released. At that point, some prosecutors realized people had been harmed. Accidents had occurred and people’s civil rights had been violated. I believe the tide is turning. If protestors want to break the law in the quest of truth and justice for their cause, they need to be ready to pay for it. Subsequent protests for these modern day protestors have demanded charges be dropped and Bart Police be disbanded. The people making those demands are totally out of touch with the system. The message needs to be loud and clear: Break the law, pay the price!
Now back to the bigger point. We have to find a way in our society to develop better relations between law enforcement and the community. There is no doubt it would be much better if young men didn’t die in the streets. That is a very complicated issue. It needs to be worked from a lot of different angles. But just as young men shouldn’t be dying on the streets, the families of law enforcement officers should expect that their husbands, wives, children, brothers, and sisters to come home from their shifts. Their families should see them walk back through the door.
Free speech is a basic constitutional right in our society, but so is the right to move freely and carry on our lives. It is a very slender tight-rope for any thinking person. The take away for me is “express yourself, but be prepared for the consequences.” Untie the hands of law enforcement to do their job, and for goodness sake let’s work on developing better relations between the divergent communities in our society and law enforcement.
We have to work at it. Only that makes sense.
