You may recognize the phrase “Liberty and Justice for All” from the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance. The U.S. Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892 by a 37 year old minister named Francis Bellamy. The original version of Bellamy’s pledge read, “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic, for which it stands,—one nation, indivisible—with liberty and justice for all.” By not specifying to which flag or which republic allegiance was being pledged, Bellamy suggested that his pledge could be used by any country, as well as the United States (ThoughtCo.) I have also read he was a Socialist. There is some irony in that bit of information. In practice it really was, and is to the present day, liberty and justice for some. At that time in history women were not included. It is time to include woman, and everybody else for that matter, and actually put “liberty and justice for all” into practice.
Now here’s an interesting twist. The phrase “one nation, under God” was not added until June 14, 1954. Signed into law by President Eisenhower as part of an anti-Communist agenda, the phrase combined patriotism with religion implying that God was again on our side. It implied the Soviets did not have God on their side. Another slice of manifest destiny was being served up that we could use to justify eliminating our “godless” foes. The Pledge of Allegiance is a union of religion and patriotism that coalesce to form a potent brand of ethnocentrism. Daily repetitions of the Pledge in schools and elsewhere keeps it primary in our thoughts even if we do not understand the words or the context. You have the right not to recite is but there are still strong social sanctions for not participating in the Pledge of Allegiance. And by the way, this change supported the exiting patriarchy. God was a man and in charge. This is the implicit bias underlying the cultural norm that relegates women to second class status. It is pervasive enough that many, consciously and/or unconsciously, accept that status.
Moving on to the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” You have likely aware that this really meant only white affluent men were created equal. Native Americans, Africans, Asians, or anyone else not white was not seen as equal. This also included white American women. To remedy this injustice against women the Suffrage Movement was formed and began to gain momentum in the 1830’s. It took almost a century for women to earn the right to vote. On August 18th 1920 the 19th Amendment finally was ratified allowing women all the rights and responsibilities of American citizenship; at least on paper. Another significant event was the development of the Equal Rights Amendment which was close to becoming an Amendment until conservative Republicans, with the help of Phyllis Schlafly, organized very effectively to defeat it in the 1970’s. It is a fascinating story that is worth a review and a big step in halting the momentum for equal rights for women. Here we are, 50 years later and it has yet to be ratified as an Amendment.
Complicating the process of achieving “liberty and justice for all” is the influence religions have had, including Christianity, in relegating women to second class status. Most of the world’s religions are patriarchal. The story of Adam and Eve has consistently been used to diminish women. After all they took the apple from the tree that got “us” thrown out of paradise. And of course we men were unable to resist the apple she offered us. We just can’t resist those darn apples when offered to us by a woman. You can read whatever you want to into that one but Eve received punishments more severe than Adam’s. And don’t forget Lilith, Adam’s first wife. She was too much of a free spirit and ended up being expelled from heaven. Henricus Institorus and Jakob Sprenger, authors of the “Malleus Maleficarum” managed to convince people to murder anywhere from 200,000 to 1,000,000 women during the Witch Hunts based on the theme of women being seduced by the Devil as a threat in the ongoing cosmic battle between good and evil. Institorus and Sprenger were given free reign by the Pope to do so; to suppress women during a time when their roles were changing and their independence increasing. It is always good to cite friends in high places when attempting to get the people to accept or at least conform to whatever you are pitching. And they were masterful at it. It made opposing them almost like opposing God himself.
Still, despite all the obstacles women persist and I admire their courage and support them in achieving equal status. Yes I am a “feminist”. That means I want women to have the same rights and opportunities that I do. The emergence of the incredibly courageous people who are part of the Me Too Movement are changing our culture. They are forcing us to reconsider how we treat each other and the power dynamics that have existed for millennia with men dominating women are changing. “Liberty and justice for all” needs to be understood as inclusive, not as a privilege for a select group.