.png)
--Benjamin Franklin's response to Elizabeth Willing Powel's question: "Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?"
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines democracy as a "government in which the supreme power is held by the people and used by them directly or indirectly through representation." It further defines democracy as a "belief in or practice of the idea that all people are socially equal." Sounds good…but is that what we are living in today?
To confess right up front, I am a cis-gendered, He/Him, gay, liberal, unapologetic Democrat who is a social liberal and fiscal conservative. I want the government out of my bedroom, out of my house, and to keep their hands off my body and those of women. I want to be able to pursue my dreams, marry whom I love, and live my life without fear.
My voice should count no more nor less than any other citizen's. In this country, every citizen should be able to lift their voice in praise or protest without fear of reprisal — anything less, and we have lost our democracy. (Yes, I know that technically, we are a constitutional federal republic.)
Our country has been a beacon of freedom, but the light is growing dim lately. With the rise of the organized conservative Christian faction as our modern-day Puritans, they appear to feel emboldened by God almighty to attempt to dictate what is right & acceptable and what is wrong.
Legislation has become the new pillory, and nothing appears to be off the table.
Our founding fathers and mothers (Abigail Adams was no pushover) knew that a separation of church and state was not only warranted but absolutely necessary. Our Supreme Court has become a bully pulpit stuffed by former President Donald Trump with members who no longer seem to care about the Constitution and defer rulings to serve their own agendas.
In striking down Roe v. Wade, which had been enacted more than 50 years ago, our government forcibly took possession of the bodies of women, curtailed their freedom to make decisions for themselves, and endangered women needing significant medical attention by threatening doctors with losing their hard-won licenses. As former first lady Abigail Adams says, "If particular care and attention are not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation." I fear that the Obergefell v. Hodges (Marriage Equality Act) ruling of June 26, 2015, is next on the agenda to abolish. After that, who knows?
This presidential election feels like we are at a tipping point. Will we keep our freedoms? What will this country look like for the next generation and the world? Freedom is absolute - either we are, or we aren't. As the American Jewish poet and activist Emma Lazarus said in 1883, "Until we are all free, none of us are free."
Every vote counts. Every vote should count. The collective voice of the people must rule here, or we will all be accountable to a pack of tyrants. With our votes, let us all resound, 'We will have no Kings here!'
Jonathan Cain is a native of Florence, Alabama, and has been the current Curator for the Tennessee Valley Museum of Art located in Tuscumbia, AL, since January 2020. He functioned in that role previously for several years before leaving to pursue a career in education. He holds an undergraduate degree in graphic design from the University of North Alabama and graduate degrees from both the University of Mississippi (MFA – Sculpture) and the University of North Alabama (MA – Clinical Mental Health). He is an eclectic artist who likes to pursue many different media.
Comments