Headline: ON
THIS 4TH OF JULY, CELEBRATE, PROTECT OUR NATION'S FREEDOMS
Reporter: By Greg Freeman
Publication: ST.
LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Last Printed: Thur., July 4, 2002
Section: METRO, Page: B1, Edition: FIVE STAR LIFT
Independence Day 2002.
While we barbecue
today, enjoy fireworks, or spend time with friends and loved ones, it's probably
also a good time to think about what we've got. We live in a nation that offers
us freedoms that we would not have if we lived most anywhere else. And though
those freedoms have been harder to come by for some than for others, they are
an ideal for which we collectively strive.
We
argue forcefully in this country. We protest. We carry signs and debate with
one another until we're exhausted.
But
we have the right to speak out, and no one is going to arrest us for it. We
know that unless we're violent, we can protest.
All
of those rights weren't always guaranteed to all Americans -- women and blacks,
for instance. But those rights are promised to everyone these days.
It's important
to realize, however, that not long ago our government -- which was sworn to
uphold the laws, including the Constitution and the Bill of Rights -- trampled
on those documents instead.
We
shouldn't forget, for instance, that J. Edgar Hoover abused his power as the
head of the FBI for years, choosing to use the office to intimidate the powerful
and average citizens alike.
From
1956 to 1971, Hoover operated Cointelpro, a counterintelligence program that
was shut down because of significant abuses of the First and Fourth amendments.
Hoover's FBI infiltrated, monitored and targeted lawful organizations and their
members. Hoover conducted secret wars against those citizens he considered threats,
or whom he wanted to intimidate. Individuals whom most Americans consider heroes
today -- the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., for instance -- were targets of
Hoover's intimidation efforts.
Today, because
of potential terrorist attacks, some Americans are willing to forgo the freedoms
that our founding fathers established for us.
If
U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft gets his way, you no longer will have to
break the law to warrant an investigation by the feds. Ashcroft has released
new surveillance guidelines that remove the protections against excesses by
the FBI that were put in place years ago. The new guidelines make it easier
for the FBI to snoop on people in churches, mosques, libraries, political groups,
or Internet chat rooms, without even a hint of criminal or terrorist activity.
Ashcroft
is telling Americans, in so many words: We're from the government. Trust us.
This shouldn't be a partisan issue. The protections against FBI intrusions were written under President Gerald Ford, a Republican.
As some seek to
reign in our freedoms, it's important for us to realize that some of these changes
could have a significant impact on our free exercise of religion and freedom
of assembly, along with our right to express our political beliefs.
And
though some Americans may consider such encroachments OK under the current administration
and circumstances, it's important to remember that they could continue for generations.
We should be able to have security without throwing away the Bill
of Rights.
So as we're basting
that first rib today, having good times with friends and relatives, or enjoying
the fireworks display at the riverfront, let's take just a moment to remember
what this holiday is about: a celebration of our freedoms and our independence.
It's what makes the United States special. It's why very few of us would actually
renounce our citizenship and live elsewhere. It's why so many long to immigrate
here, and why many consider this to be the greatest nation in the world.
We're
far from perfect. But there is much that is good about our country.
Keeping that in mind, we should always resolve to maintain our
liberties, and do what we can to prevent others from taking them from us, no
matter what reason.
The
Founding Fathers would have expected nothing less.
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