Independence Day is when we celebrate our freedom from tyrannical forces. But this year, the Supreme Court is imposing an unjust, unpopular, and unconscionable form of tyranny on people across the country.
Our liberties are being snatched away.
Reproductive rights. LGBTQ+ rights. Voting rights and civil rights of Black and Brown people.
The Supreme Court appears intent to subjugate the American people and take us back to our past, to a time filled with the oppressions we’ve toiled for generations to overcome.
The America I know is about freedom from that kind of subjugation. And this Fourth of July, amid the fireworks and the gatherings, many of us will be engaged in quiet contemplation about what freedom means – and how to get it back.
I wish you a safe and peaceful holiday. As we prepare for the coming efforts to defend our rights, let us turn our thoughts to how precious independence truly is.
– Hank Johnson (he/him)