What I Believe
I believe in liberty, as embodied in the rights and freedoms of individuals laid out in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. These days it seems that government is more interested in granting power and privilege to corporations than in protecting the rights of individuals. I believe that America’s government exists to represent the rights and needs of its citizens – all its citizens, not just a privileged few.

In January 1941, Franklin Roosevelt gave his famous “Four Freedoms” speech before Congress – freedoms that Norman Rockwell revived in paintings he did in 1943 for The Saturday Evening Post. Rockwell’s paintings of the four freedoms have been imprinted in my mind and heart. Ensuring these freedoms for all Americans – freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear – remains a challenge for us today. In fact, “freedom from fear” seems especially challenging for us since September 11, 2001. All our freedoms are in greater jeopardy today, not just because of terrorism, but also because of the exploitation of our “war on terror” by those who seek greater wealth and power.

In 1990-91, I took my family to live in Northern Ireland when I was a visiting fellow at the Centre for the Study of Conflict within the University of Ulster. There we got to see how people coped with terror and violence without sacrificing their freedoms or becoming immobilized by fear. I believe that effectively dealing with terrorism is important, but I believe there are other important issues as well. Retaining basic freedoms in a frightening world is not our only challenge.

In 1948, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted its Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In its thirty articles, the Declaration spells out the rights of all people everywhere. Many of these rights reflect the sacred documents of the United States but the Universal Declaration goes further. Article 25, for example, says that:

"Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control."

This one sentence is not only inspirational: it also reveals the depth of the challenge before us to create a more just society. The extent of homelessness and hunger in such a prosperous nation disgraces the promise of our democracy’s founding principles. The Democratic legislative agenda has traditionally focused on the rights expressed in this article, but because of the steady erosion of such rights, we must recommit ourselves to defend these rights for everyone and it must do so now. How do we achieve the sort of society we imagine, a society is which economic opportunities exist for everyone who is capable; a society in which people have access to quality health care; a society in which people need not worry about losing their home; a society where people are free from unreasonable fear? We do it by working together for the benefit of all our people.

Ron McAllister
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