-Caveat Lector-
Subj: LIBERTY AT RISK
Date: 9/19/01 12:24:52 AM Central Daylight Time
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (BuzzFlash.com)
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Amidst the drumbeats of war, we cannot forget that our liberty is often at
risk during times of military urgency.
Congressman John Conyers Jr., who BuzzFlash.com interviewed just a short time
ago about election reform, forcefully expresses the need for vigilance as we
balance our need for security with the necessity and obligation of preserving
our freedoms.
This is his commentary printed in the Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53159-2001Sep18.html
Liberty at Risk
By John Conyers Jr.
Wednesday, September 19, 2001; Page A33
Like every U.S. citizen, I was shocked and revolted beyond comprehension by
the attack on our nation last week. We need to do everything within our power
to find the responsible persons and parties, bring them to justice and end
the blight of terrorism.
At the same time, we must all remember that just as this horrendous act can
destroy us from without, it can also destroy us from within. Historically, it
has been at times of inflamed passions and national anger that our civil
liberties proved to be at greatest risk, and the unpopular group of the
moment was subject to prejudice and deprivation of liberty. In 1798, Congress
enacted the notorious Alien and Sedition Acts, making it a federal crime to
criticize the government. In 1861, at the beginning of the Civil War,
President Lincoln suspended habeas corpus, citing the need to repress "an
insurrection against the laws of the United States." Ulysses S. Grant sought
to expel Jews from southern states. World War II brought about the shameful
internment of Japanese Americans, which even the Supreme Court failed to
overturn.
Unfortunately, our response in 1996 to the Oklahoma City bombing and to the
first bombing of the World Trade Center does not portend well for today's
discussions. Legislation that began in good faith as an effort to fine-tune
our anti-terrorism laws turned into a legislative race to the bottom. It
contained sweeping new limitations on habeas corpus for death-row and other
inmates. The legislation also severely narrowed the ability of persons
fleeing for their lives from dangerous regimes to seek asylum. I sat through
the hearings on this legislation and did not hear a single shred of evidence
that proved that a single terrorist act could be prevented by limiting the
ability of persons convicted in state court to obtain relief from
unconstitutional convictions or by denying immigrants their due process
rights.
Meanwhile, many laudable provisions were dropped from the 1996 legislation at
the behest of the gun lobby. We tried to include a provision allowing for
broader roving wiretaps, as has been recommended by Attorney General John
Ashcroft, but the conservatives could not stomach this expansion of
government power. An exasperated Henry Hyde, who as chairman of the House
Judiciary Committee had worked to keep some of the better provisions, was
quoted as saying that many in his party "trust Hamas more than their own
government." We also failed in our efforts to ban dangerous "cop-killer"
bullets and to require that "taggants" (tracer elements) be attached to
explosive materials and that unregulated explosive material (such as the
fertilizer bomb used in Oklahoma City) be rendered inert. Instead, we were
forced to settle for an ineffective study of these issues.
Certainly, we must update our counter-terrorism laws so that they reflect
21st century reality. But new expansion of government authority should be
limited to properly defined terrorist activity or threats of terrorism. And
with increased federal power, we must ensure accountability and oversight. We
also need to drastically improve airport security by increasing the training
and wages of airport personnel. That will mean increasing the role of the
federal government and allocating more federal dollars to these needs.
I urge the attorney general to take a fresh look at expanding the federal law
to cover hate crimes. Recent days have seen a spate of hate crimes against
Muslims, Arab Americans and South Asian Americans. Two persons believed to be
of "Middle Eastern" descent were killed in likely hate crimes over the
weekend. If we are going to expand law enforcement's ability to pursue
terrorists, we must not neglect the government's role in protecting Americans
from vigilante violence. We are a nation of immigrants, and we are all in
this together.
The keys to success in developing anti-terrorism legislation will be balance
and prudence. History has taught us that we should not use the threat of
violence as an excuse to suppress legitimate constitutional rights and
liberties. As Benjamin Franklin stated, "They that can give up essential
liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor
safety." We must ensure that these acts of terror do not accomplish in a
"slow burn" what the fires of the World Trade Center and Pentagon could not
-- subversively destroying the foundation of our democracy.
The writer, a Democrat from Michigan, is ranking member of the House
Judiciary Committee.
� 2001 The Washington Post Company
More of Wednesday's news at BuzzFlash.com.
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