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hurd to makc our nation a li vi ng ·
example of th c proclamalion
or
the
De clara t io n of l ndependence:
'·... that a ll mcn are crea ted equal.
th a t they are endowed by their Cre–
a tor with certain una licn able rights,
th a t among thesc are life. li berty,
and the pursuit of happine
s."
A Lesson in Application
Eldridge Clcaver. a former revolu–
tiona ry Bl ack Panther who uscd to
rant agai nst "the pig powcr struc–
ture.'' has come home to America
with a tota lly ditferent outlook than
when he wc nt into self-imposed ex–
il e over seven yea rs ago. ot only
has he himself been "educated' ' to
political realities in the world. he
now can see that much ha. hap–
pened in the American system since
th e time he and his wife left th e U.S.
He now see fa r grea tcr participa–
tion by blacb and oth er minori ties
in gove rnment than he did in
1968.
He feels that legal and gove rn–
mcntal discrimination against mi–
norities ha vinua lly vanished in the
United Sta tcs.
Cleaver see the endi ng of th e
Vietnam wa r and the ousting of
Presiden! ixon as signs th al" de–
mocracy is \vorking - that th e
peop le can make th eir wis h es
known and carr icd out. He feels that
th is working out in practice of the
principies of democracy i uniq ue
and makes America. politica lly. the
best place in thc world .
Cleaver has continua lly cmp ha–
sized since his return that the ruling
claS!>es in most Commu nist a nd
Third World countries exist only to
pcrpetua te their own selfhh int er–
ests. On the othe r hand. Cleaver
finds it almost amusing that o
many American intellectuals spend
their time criticizing American o–
cicty and praising the countries
which Cleaver sees as politically rot–
ten.
After expe ri encing scven yea rs of
self-imposed exile in va ri ous othe r
countries. Cleaver is resolutcly op-
The
PLAIN TRUTH July 1976
Since the national power of a democracy ultimately
resides in the people themselves, rather than
in an exclusive dictatorial elite, the nation
as a whole is strong only to the extent that the
individual character of its citizens remains strong.
poscd to communism. He statcs:
·'After a ll my travels and ·ceing the
socia li st · world up ve ry close. really
secing how the Soviet Union and
China function. well.
1
now thin k
th at the U.S. shou ld be second to
none milita rily...."
Uníque Personal Freedoms
The above example could be multi–
plied thousa nd · of' times. For many
Americans never fully appreciate
what they have un til th ey li vc in
somc other land. Under the dcmo–
crati c sys tem of checks and balance
- and the opportunity to freely elect
our leaders - Americans enjoy a
mo re open and Oexible political sys–
tem tha n has thus far come about
by any other mcans.
Fo r example. the Fir t Amend–
ment to the U.S. Constitution rcads:
"Congress sha ll make no law re–
spectin g an es tablishment or rcli–
gion. or prohibiting the free exercise
thereof; or abridging the frecd om of
speech. or of the press: or the right
of the peoplc peaceably to assemble.
anclto pe tition the governmcnt for a
red ress of gri eva nces."
A few years ago. the U.S. Su–
preme Court affirmed the tota l rcli–
gious freedom which ha and must
co ntinue to exi
L
in thi nation . lt
sa id : "Freedom to worshi p was in–
di spe nsable in a coun t ry who e
people came from th e four corner
of the earth and brought with them
a
dive rsit y of religious opinion.
Toclay au thoriti es list
83
separate
religious bodies. cach with member–
s hip excecdi ng
50.000,
existing
among our people as well a inn u–
merable smaller groups. . . . The
place of religion in our socie ty i:, an
cxa ltcd onc. achi eved through a
long trad iti on of reliancc on the
home. the ch urch. a nd thc in–
violable citadel of the individual
heart and mind. We havc come to
rea lize th rough bi tter expcrience
that it is not wi thin the power of
government to invade that ci tadel.
whet her its
purpo~e
or effect be to
a i<..l or
oppo~e.
to advance or to re–
ta rd .
1
n the relationship bctwccn
man and re ligion. the state is tirmly
committed
to~
a position of neutraÍ–
ity."
How
rare
these frcedoms
of
speech. press. and re ligion have
been clown th rough the years ol'
huma n history!
Even though the dcmocratic pro–
ces i of'ten low and cumbersome
- ofte n impeded by human natu rc
- it has provided thc sa fesl. thc
wealthiest. the most crea ti\'e. an<..l
certai nly the freest society in mod–
ern times. Emulating America·s suc–
ces~.
mos t Western Europea n
nations and Japan emerged from
World War
11
as genuine democra–
cies. Since that time the grcatest
\\'U\' C Of
pro ·perity and creativity
the world has known - a tl'ccting
al!
cla:,~cs
or
ma
n - ha blc. sed thes
e
na tions as we ll.
Let us be tha nkl'ul for the mani–
fold
blessings
enjoycd \\ ithin the
frccdoms \\ hich dcmocracy has
made pos ible. Wc in America ha\'e
much to be thankful for in this Bi–
ccntcnnial year!
Creeping Doubt and
Difficulties
Thcn; is no Joubt that America is
facing
a
crisis of conjidence.
Wc
ha vc secn Vie tnam. Cambod ia. and
Laos all fa ll to the communist . In
February of this ycar. Angola fell to
Marxist forccs backct.l up by Cuba n
merccnaries and Soviet advisor -
making a shambles or U.S. policy in
Africa.
On thc national cene. thc sean–
dais or \.\'ater!!,ate. the a lmos! daih
néw~
of
corpo~atc
payotfs and othér
revclations or rrailty in high places
has undennined the contidcncc or
the American peoplc in their leaders
and in their imtitutions. Rene\\Cd
contidcnce in Amcrica·s leadership
and in our fu ndamental institutions
m
ust be resto red if the United
Statc~
is to continue a the lcading
\\ orld power.
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