On President Obama's Speech from the bridge in Selma Alabama

President Obama delivered a fine speech at the notorious bridge in Selma Alabama. He spoke at length of the need for ordinary citizens to work toward fulfilling the promise and spirit of America. I take him at his word. I'm proud that he is our President. And I'm baffled at how some people vilify and criticize every thing he does or even proposes doing. In his speech from the bridge he reminds us of where we were as a country and a society fifty years ago.

If you'd like to hear for yourself what he said you can find it here…

https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/civil-rights/selma?utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=email443-text1&utm_campaign=selma

But I thought I'd remind the President of People who are working for justice and change today. I tried to make a case for all those political prisoners in the "war" on drugs. John Knock is one of many who are locked up for no good reason. They are being held because politicians think it makes them look good to be "Tough on Crime". They won't be released because almost no one has that authority. 

The Power to correct this sort of injustice is rested solely in the hands of the Chief Executive of our country. For whatever reasons this power is rarely used. But that doesn't mean never used. In the world of hope and change it means keep working on it.

This is my next letter to the President. I'm beginning to like this new hobby of mine…

March 14, 2015

President Barack Obama

1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr President,

I watched your speech from the bridge in Selma. Thank you for making it available online.

Your delivery was inspirational. You made a number of excellent points concerning what it means to be American. Where we come from and the spirit that brought us here. The responsibly handed down to us and that we must continue to work toward fulfilling the aspirations of the founders. That there are still struggles to work on.

You spoke of the need for citizens to stand up for what is right. I agree with this completely. Even a casual observer can see there is still a need for work toward equal protection under the law.

I will tell my Congressman that I support STRENGTHENING the Voting Rights Act. As for participation in our Democracy, that's what the rest of this letter is about. 

As you pointed out in your speech, the marchers were confronted by the police who were backed up by the establishment. They were derided and denigrated and despised by the law and the customs of society. Through their willingness to sacrifice themselves for the greater purpose they eventually won the changes to law that we must all continue to defend and protect.

Where in our system of government is the branch for fairness? Who has the constitutional imperative to fix injustice? When citizens are imprisoned using unjust laws who can remedy that? I suppose you know that it is you Mr. President. The head of the executive branch is given that power and also that duty. 

In my last letter I told you about the horrific sentence handed down to my Uncle John for a first time non-violent marijuana only offense. (Two life terms plus twenty years in prison.) He (my Uncle) would be the first to point out that he is not alone in receiving an excessive prison sentence. You might know by now there are a number of others who have received Life For Pot. As per your speech, I wish to express my opinion that this is not justice. These sentences do not fit the crimes. 

The pretext that "mandatory minimums" is founded upon is wrong. In a misguided effort to curb the discretion of Judges who might be too "lenient" Congress prescribed specific penalties which Judges would have to impose. Prosecutors could then use the threat of harsh penalties to force plea bargains. The effort was misguided because Judges are tasked with deciding what an appropriate sentence/punishment would be for any given case. By taking Judges out of the sentencing equation Congress has created a serious problem with fairness in our Justice System. Prosecutors are not motivated to be fair, they are tasked with winning. 

I know there is no place for cynicism in politics. As you said, "We can afford neither complacency or despair." Citizens who are working toward changing unfair laws also know that this struggle can take decades. The Senate and the House have never been known as fast moving institutions. We know it takes years (maybe decades or centuries) to get laws corrected for the sake of justice and fairness. There are at least 20 people serving life for marijuana crimes. Hundreds more are serving de-facto life sentences for marijuana crimes. These are people who will die before they would be able to complete their sentences. More information has been collected and posted on the web site:

www.lifeforpot.com

This has been painstakingly researched and assembled by the sister of my uncle. Through her work and organizing many of these problems are being talked about now. I believe this is exactly the sort of commitment and citizenship you spoke about in your speech at Selma. Of course we need to organize and vote. We need to tell our representatives in government what we expect from our government. Slowly over time we hope they listen and we hope they act. 

The un-justness of our Judiciary is a special kind of problem. It has come about through ill-conceived laws. While they were well intentioned, the un-intended consequences are clearly injustice. 

Thankfully this is a problem well within your power to correct. You can fix this with a stroke of your pen. You can grant Clemency to people serving Life Sentences for cannabis offenses. It is an amazing power to have. I trust that you will do what is right. 

I thank you for being our President

Sincerely Yours,

Tom Walters