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ADDRESS BY
HONORABLE FARRIS BRYANT
DIRECTOR
OFF ICE OF EMERGENCY PLANN ING AT THE
SOUTHERN GOVERNORS' CONFERENCE
KENTUCKY DAM VILLAGE
SEPTEMBER 19, 1966
But what is Justice?
To a ball player -- it is an honest uopire with good eyesight.
To a grape picker-- it is a fair wage and decent worI ing conditions.
To a rebellious college student -it is a voice in the affairs of the world of which he has lately beconeaware.
To a Negro -- it is some yet illdefined equality voiced through a diverse and often confused leadership.
To a husband or father -- it is the safety of his wife and daughter wherever in this land they way be.
For a child it is health and education.
For an older citizen it is security in dignity.
- 10
The demand for justice takes a thousand for-e, Like beauty, it seems to lie in the eyes of the beholder.
Sometimes demands for justice clash with each other; some tisos they clash with concepts of freedom and private property, and increasingly of late, with sovereignty of the law.
I recognize full well that I have moved into an area of discussion fraught with Jiffioulty and delicacy. It revolves around the philosophical aspects of methods used to satisfy the constructive impulse of the American people to see that concepts of justice and law prow as rapidly as our culture, our technology, and our economy.
We have decided to bring the avantages of medical science to the diseosel and disabled -- how is it to be Jone In a Nation which began with a commitment that no Amer ican shoulJ be impr isoned for debt, nor without due process, nor because of excessive bail, there is gradually forming a commitment that no Amer ican shall be imprisoned because of disease if it is in the power of his fellows to free him.
We cannot recoil or retreat from the revolutionary sp ir it of these times. The values that we cherish are not ancient forms, but eternal r ights. 9'p must not warp those r ights, as they are enlarged by an enr iched society, to fit ancient forms, but change those forms, or create new ones, to enlare
our rights.
ea have lecijed to clean up our cities, ans make then both attractive and safe -- how is it to he Jene? How can we prevent public abuses without destrovino private rights? Every street toay is posted against litter; every alley is protected against filth: How can we carry forward this pr inciple to set standards for the maintenance of private property which balance the rights of the individual to use his property as he deems wise with the new demand which Aeerice is Tak ing that our cities he attractive ans healthful places in which to live?
-13
How can we police our streets with the vigor and effectiveness that will insure the safety of the public without destroying the hard-earned liberties of the individual?
We have decided to give every child the opportunity to learn and to develop to his full potential -- how is it to be done? How can we achieve that kind of equality and not he bound to the lowest common denominator?
We have Jetided to clean our streams, restore the beauty to our landscapes, make safe our highways -how are these things to be done? How can we expand the public domain and not conpress the private
These are goals with which none can quarrel because they do but seek for everyone what everyone seeks for h noelf.
Somehow we must take the pragmatisn of social and economic reform and fit it into the idealism of political reform.
Those who gathered around iing John at Runnymede did not compose the Magna Carta and then derive from it freedom from tyranny. They first decided to free themselves free tyranny, and then created the Magna Carta to secure their ideal.
Our forefathers did not first draw a Constitution and then adopt its goals. First they settled upon
-15
their goals, and then framed our Constitution as an instrument to achieve them.
And we have an obligation no
less great than theirs, and opportunities far greater, to make the institutions through which we serve ever more perfect instruments of Justice.
If we cannot always agree upon the mean ing of Justice; if we cannot always perceive the same constitutional applications in its pursuit; we are, I trust and pray, un cited as one in the optimism expressed by Je Tocqueville as he marvelled at our laboratory of liberty more than a century ago. He saw in this "land of wonders" a place where:
"No natural boundary seems to be set to the efforts of man; and in his eyes what is not yet done is only what he has not yet attempted to do.-
( have looked forward eagerly to this opportun ity once again to be with members of the Southern Governors' Conference and particularly to the privilege of keynoting your deliberations in 1966.
A great physician, Oliver Wendell Holmes, once said:
"Where we love is home, Home that our feet may
leave, but not our hearts."
That is precisely how I feel
on this platform and before this audience Service as a Governor was one of the great experiences of my life, and the friendships I found with other Governors, many of whom are here today, are lasting and precious.
- 2
The assinment I have taken in Washington is, also, exciting and exacting. The management of strategic stockpiles valued in b million and essential to our national survival; the preparation of plans for the regulation and allocation of our human and natural resources should war come; the direction of the response of this Nation to natural disasters which strike our people; the participation in deliberations of the National Security Council; the responsibility for the readiness and continuity of our governments should we be attacked; the role of Ambassador for the President to the Governors of this Nation; these are large tasks and a constant challenge. And when in doing all of this I try to match
- 3
the footsteps of my predecessor, Governor Ellington, my best efforts seem weak and ineffectual.
It is to the latter assignment, as liaison for the Iresident with the Governors, that I address my remarks today. This task comes to me at a time when the entire concept of "creative feJeralise"--that remarkable constitutional form devised by our forefathers as a system of divided but parallel responsibilities--is on trial.
It comes at a time when the social structure of our Nation is on trial.
It comes at a time when the brJens mut upon all our governmertal institutions are mount ting at a quantum
.al..
Ft cones at a time when the
strength and the sta-ina of our people are being put to the test abroad.
rart of this concept of federalism is the delegation to the national governwent of responsibility for the conduct of foreign affairs. Over 1tC years, that delegation has been proven to he an act of wisdom. fn spite of our chronic selfcriticism, every American has a right to be proud of the policies ani actions of the Un cited States in the world arena. Greece, Turkey, the Marshall -lan, lorea, Lebanon, the Alliance for tronress, Formosa, Viet Nan--these are words that evoke pride and reflect honor on four presidents and both parties of this nation.
I cannot let this occasion pass wi thout expressing the appreciation which I feel, and which the President feels, for your steadfastness in the face of the difficulties and sacrifices which are the costs of the conflict in kiet Nam. It is not surprising that you, who have the responsibility for leaders ip, should have a special understaning of the threat which a comunist dictatorsh ip poses for free men, but it is extremely gratifying to the President that you have shown your understanding in such unmistakable ways.
The task in Viet Nam is not a simple one--certainly it is not an easy one. I am quite sure that no one wishes more than the President of the United States that it was not our task.
But we cannot expect others to honor our commitments if we Jo not honor them.
We cannot expect others to stand for freedom if we do not.
We cannot expect others to resist aggression if we run.
Someone has saij of Jemocracy that it is the worst form of government -- except all others.
I think it can be said of our policy in liet Nam that it is the worst policy -- except all others.
What we seek in Viet Nam, really, is what we seek at home: just ice.
Not Justice as a product of
power! If that were so, the strong would always rule, and the weak be crushed;
- 7
the laborer would still be on his knees; the slave would still wear his cha ins.
America has taken its stand as a nation governed not by men --en who for the moment wield power -- but by laws; laws which are the embod iment of our concepts of justice. They protect the weak from the strong, not because the weak command, but because it is right -- it is just -- to do so.
There are those in this nation who seem to think that justice is possible without law. Without law there is anarchy, and anarchy respects only strength, not justice.
It is the comfort and strength of the law that it approaches justice.
This is an imperfect world, and perfect justice is Seldom achieved; but love of law, and willingness to abide its decrees and contentment with its individual judgments, rests totally upon a conviction that it approaches justice. The worst way to seek justice -- and we have seen the sorry results in the North as in the South -- is to substitute the i mmoral law of force for the moral force of law. The result is not to achieve justice, but to destroy the only instrument which can, and will, provide redressunder the law.
It is the life of the law that It seeks justice. Thse of us gathered here t,3av, perhaps icided on the definitiun of justice, are united in the conciation that -sti-w is our oron oral.
PAGE 1
ADDRESS BY HONORABLE FARRIS BRYANT DIRECTOR OFF ICE OF EMERGENCY PLANN ING AT THE SOUTHERN GOVERNORS' CONFERENCE KENTUCKY DAM VILLAGE SEPTEMBER 19, 1966
PAGE 2
But what is Justice? To a ball player -it is an honest uopire with good eyesight. To a grape picker-it is a fair wage and decent worI ing conditions. To a rebellious college student -it is a voice in the affairs of the world of which he has lately beconeaware. To a Negro -it is some yet illdefined equality voiced through a diverse and often confused leadership. To a husband or father -it is the safety of his wife and daughter wherever in this land they way be. For a child it is health and education. For an older citizen it is security in dignity.
PAGE 3
-10 The demand for justice takes a thousand for-e, Like beauty, it seems to lie in the eyes of the beholder. Sometimes demands for justice clash with each other; some tisos they clash with concepts of freedom and private property, and increasingly of late, with sovereignty of the law. I recognize full well that I have moved into an area of discussion fraught with Jiffioulty and delicacy. It revolves around the philosophical aspects of methods used to satisfy the constructive impulse of the American people to see that concepts of justice and law prow as rapidly as our culture, our technology, and our economy.
PAGE 4
We have decided to bring the avantages of medical science to the diseosel and disabled -how is it to be Jone In a Nation which began with a commitment that no Amer ican shoulJ be impr isoned for debt, nor without due process, nor because of excessive bail, there is gradually forming a commitment that no Amer ican shall be imprisoned because of disease if it is in the power of his fellows to free him. We cannot recoil or retreat from the revolutionary sp ir it of these times. The values that we cherish are not ancient forms, but eternal r ights. 9'p must not warp those r ights, as they are enlarged by an enr iched society, to fit ancient forms, but change those forms, or create new ones, to enlare
PAGE 5
our rights. ea have lecijed to clean up our cities, ans make then both attractive and safe -how is it to he Jene? How can we prevent public abuses without destrovino private rights? Every street toay is posted against litter; every alley is protected against filth: How can we carry forward this pr inciple to set standards for the maintenance of private property which balance the rights of the individual to use his property as he deems wise with the new demand which Aeerice is Tak ing that our cities he attractive ans healthful places in which to live?
PAGE 6
-13How can we police our streets with the vigor and effectiveness that will insure the safety of the public without destroying the hard-earned liberties of the individual? We have decided to give every child the opportunity to learn and to develop to his full potential -how is it to be done? How can we achieve that kind of equality and not he bound to the lowest common denominator? We have Jetided to clean our streams, restore the beauty to our landscapes, make safe our highways -how are these things to be done? How can we expand the public domain and not conpress the private
PAGE 7
These are goals with which none can quarrel because they do but seek for everyone what everyone seeks for h noelf. Somehow we must take the pragmatisn of social and economic reform and fit it into the idealism of political reform. Those who gathered around iing John at Runnymede did not compose the Magna Carta and then derive from it freedom from tyranny. They first decided to free themselves free tyranny, and then created the Magna Carta to secure their ideal. Our forefathers did not first draw a Constitution and then adopt its goals. First they settled upon
PAGE 8
-15their goals, and then framed our Constitution as an instrument to achieve them. And we have an obligation no less great than theirs, and opportunities far greater, to make the institutions through which we serve ever more perfect instruments of Justice. If we cannot always agree upon the mean ing of Justice; if we cannot always perceive the same constitutional applications in its pursuit; we are, I trust and pray, un cited as one in the optimism expressed by Je Tocqueville as he marvelled at our laboratory of liberty more than a century ago. He saw in this "land of wonders" a place where:
PAGE 9
"No natural boundary seems to be set to the efforts of man; and in his eyes what is not yet done is only what he has not yet attempted to do.-
PAGE 10
( have looked forward eagerly to this opportun ity once again to be with members of the Southern Governors' Conference and particularly to the privilege of keynoting your deliberations in 1966. A great physician, Oliver Wendell Holmes, once said: "Where we love is home, Home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts." That is precisely how I feel on this platform and before this audience Service as a Governor was one of the great experiences of my life, and the friendships I found with other Governors, many of whom are here today, are lasting and precious.
PAGE 11
-2 The assinment I have taken in Washington is, also, exciting and exacting. The management of strategic stockpiles valued in b million and essential to our national survival; the preparation of plans for the regulation and allocation of our human and natural resources should war come; the direction of the response of this Nation to natural disasters which strike our people; the participation in deliberations of the National Security Council; the responsibility for the readiness and continuity of our governments should we be attacked; the role of Ambassador for the President to the Governors of this Nation; these are large tasks and a constant challenge. And when in doing all of this I try to match
PAGE 12
-3 the footsteps of my predecessor, Governor Ellington, my best efforts seem weak and ineffectual. It is to the latter assignment, as liaison for the Iresident with the Governors, that I address my remarks today. This task comes to me at a time when the entire concept of "creative feJeralise"--that remarkable constitutional form devised by our forefathers as a system of divided but parallel responsibilities--is on trial. It comes at a time when the social structure of our Nation is on trial. It comes at a time when the brJens mut upon all our governmertal institutions are mount ting at a quantum .al..
PAGE 13
Ft cones at a time when the strength and the sta-ina of our people are being put to the test abroad. rart of this concept of federalism is the delegation to the national governwent of responsibility for the conduct of foreign affairs. Over 1tC years, that delegation has been proven to he an act of wisdom. fn spite of our chronic selfcriticism, every American has a right to be proud of the policies ani actions of the Un cited States in the world arena. Greece, Turkey, the Marshall -lan, lorea, Lebanon, the Alliance for tronress, Formosa, Viet Nan--these are words that evoke pride and reflect honor on four presidents and both parties of this nation.
PAGE 14
I cannot let this occasion pass wi thout expressing the appreciation which I feel, and which the President feels, for your steadfastness in the face of the difficulties and sacrifices which are the costs of the conflict in kiet Nam. It is not surprising that you, who have the responsibility for leaders ip, should have a special understaning of the threat which a comunist dictatorsh ip poses for free men, but it is extremely gratifying to the President that you have shown your understanding in such unmistakable ways. The task in Viet Nam is not a simple one--certainly it is not an easy one. I am quite sure that no one wishes more than the President of the United States that it was not our task.
PAGE 15
But we cannot expect others to honor our commitments if we Jo not honor them. We cannot expect others to stand for freedom if we do not. We cannot expect others to resist aggression if we run. Someone has saij of Jemocracy that it is the worst form of government -except all others. I think it can be said of our policy in liet Nam that it is the worst policy -except all others. What we seek in Viet Nam, really, is what we seek at home: just ice. Not Justice as a product of power! If that were so, the strong would always rule, and the weak be crushed;
PAGE 16
-7 the laborer would still be on his knees; the slave would still wear his cha ins. America has taken its stand as a nation governed not by men --en who for the moment wield power -but by laws; laws which are the embod iment of our concepts of justice. They protect the weak from the strong, not because the weak command, but because it is right -it is just -to do so. There are those in this nation who seem to think that justice is possible without law. Without law there is anarchy, and anarchy respects only strength, not justice. It is the comfort and strength of the law that it approaches justice.
PAGE 17
This is an imperfect world, and perfect justice is Seldom achieved; but love of law, and willingness to abide its decrees and contentment with its individual judgments, rests totally upon a conviction that it approaches justice. The worst way to seek justice -and we have seen the sorry results in the North as in the South -is to substitute the i mmoral law of force for the moral force of law. The result is not to achieve justice, but to destroy the only instrument which can, and will, provide redressunder the law. It is the life of the law that It seeks justice. Thse of us gathered here t,3av, perhaps icided on the definitiun of justice, are united in the conciation that -sti-w is our oron oral.
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