Land of the Free and Home of the Brave
Is there really justice for all? In America we pride ourselves on the phrase “with liberty and justice for all” but who exactly is receiving this type of treatment and is it for all Americans or just a select group or minority? With the immigration policies and the corruption of power trickling down to state officials we have to ask do we really have justice for all? In this essay I will describe some examples of injustice that we face today and let you decide if we have justice for all.
The United States of America is the leading country in incarceration with there being 2.3 million people incarcerated in federal and state prisons. When I hear about people being arrested I immediately wonder if it has to do with racial profiling or if they were actually guilty of the crime. Racial profiling is when a person of the law is biased with the notion that People Of Color are more guilty or likely to commit a crime rather than a white person. When looking at the number of people tried and found guilty 555,000 people have been imprisoned who have not been convicted or sentenced. The main reason why this is is because they can’t afford bail which is around $10,000. Poverty is a leading cause in mass incarceration. It doesn’t make sense to set the median bail at $10,000 when both parties have different incomes. It's setting the poor up to fail and more so to stay incarcerated and to constantly come back because they have nowhere else to go.
When looking at Immigration reform we constantly see in President Trump's campaign that he wants to build a wall! I remember looking on twitter and the news to see hundreds of people being held in these makeshift camps and inhuman conditions not even allowed enough water at times. I couldn’t imagine being taken from your family because you're trying to find somewhere safe to stay. The biggest issue within immigration reform and trying to enter the country illegally is that these people are not being fairly represented in a court of law. I remember watching a movie about this topic and was shocked to hear about the inequalities for these people trying to find refuges. I have found that they are seldom provided with a translator in court which is unconstitutional. How are they supposed to fight for their right to stay if they don’t understand what's happening?
Police brutality is a very serious subject which involves a higher corruption of power than we think. I believe there is a more psychological basis for this “invincibility complex”. There was an experiment which is highly talked about in the psych profession. The experiment conducted was essentially proving that in a position of power the person would act evil with the freedom to do so. Throughout time however they have talked about this experiment to be immoral and extremely biased. When seeing an updated experiment they have taken out some variables to make it more conclusive and they found that the participants are not so willing to be evil without the pressure from outside sources. Their personalities also played a role in the experiment; they only selected people with high moral standards. Which poses the question should all Police officials be tested for high morals to do their job effectively? Is our safety at risk if we don't put those measures in place? Is there justice for all if the people in power are the ones oppressing the civilians?
In conclusion we realize that there are many things wrong with the phrase “with justice for all” we look at the incarceration rates, immigration policies and police brutality to truly get a feeling for what is at stake here and what freedoms we really have. Without an implemented system of correction we can truly begin to see changes and for this nation and to be safe again.When looking at police brutality we could implement different tests to ensure the mental status of our police officers and people of power. With immigration we need to have policies that ensure everyone gets a fair trial with an interpreter present.Without an interpreter all of the information could be misleading. I want the margins to be smaller for error and for the people to have a chance at a decent life. Justice for all can be obtained if we have support and work towards our goals.
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