Ch. 43 Establishing Justice

"Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable... Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals."

-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Justice, in its truest form, means ensuring equal treatment under law for all people, regardless of their differences. Yet in practice, this ideal often falls short, particularly when wealth enters the equation.

Consider Michael Steinhardt, a hedge-fund billionaire found with approximately $70 million in illegally obtained art and antiquities. His punishment? The items were returned, and he was barred from collecting art. 

No charges were filed.

Then there's Kalief Browder, a sixteen-year-old accused of stealing a backpack. Despite never being convicted or pleading guilty, he spent nearly three years in jail, 800 days in solitary confinement. 

Prolonged isolation like solitary confinement causes severe mental and physical damage. Beyond loneliness, it can shrink the hippocampus affecting memory, and develop psychiatric syndromes including hallucinations, panic attacks, and delirium, as identified by Dr. Stuart Grassian.

Kalief maintained his innocence despite plea deals, requesting a trial that was repeatedly delayed. His potential sentence if convicted? Fifteen years.

Reportedly beaten multiple times by guards, he attempted suicide multiple times while in solitary confinement. 

He was finally released, then hanged himself in his parents home two years later. 

Over a backpack.

The contrast between these cases illuminates a fundamental truth: in America, justice often comes with a price tag. The wealthy can purchase their freedom and other "blessings of liberty," while the majority find these rights increasingly out of reach.

Our institutions have demonstrated their inability to administer fair and impartial justice. No one is coming to save us. The question becomes: when do we decide enough is enough, and how do we create change?

History offers an answer...

It takes just 3.5% of the population to create lasting social transformation. (Robson, 2019) While this seems like a small percentage, it represents a tipping point. When this many people actively participate, it signals broader passive support among the population.

Nonviolent, cooperative effort proves particularly effective, showing more than double the success rate of violent resistance. Beyond statistical success, nonviolent efforts offer practical advantages: broader participation unrestricted by physical capabilities or aversion to violence, easier media coverage, and more effective public communication of goals and grievances.

But let's not pretend like we're talking about a simple matter here. Though 3.5% is a relatively small percentage, in the United States, that’s approximately 11 million people. The reason this number seems to work is because, if that many people – just a small minority in the grand scheme of things – are actively participating, there is a significant amount of the population that is aligned with the cause but just isn’t active for one reason or another.

So how do we get 11 million people in this country to agree on a single cause?

We don't.

Gathering 11 million people requires moving beyond traditional notions of agreement. We must shift toward alignment of intentions. 

Let me explain.

Agreement = congruence of opinion (shared beliefs)

Alignment = congruence of intention (shared goals)

Opinions lack substantiated proof. They are based on belief, right or wrong. When debating opinions, disagreements often escalate to disputes over "rightness," regardless of facts.

Alignment focuses on future achievement, allowing flexibility. 

Alignment enables collective progress without requiring agreement, avoiding opinion-based conflicts while maintaining focus on shared aims.

When we approach our goals from this perspective, different beliefs and perspectives aren't obstacles but assets, bringing diverse capabilities and approaches to our shared goals. (Kimura, 2003)

This shift demands:

1. Moving from "I'm right" to "This benefits the majority"
2. Separating our opinions from our identities
3. Remaining flexible as strategies evolve
4. Prioritizing collective progress over individual victories

Remember that progress isn't an Uber service, delivering us directly to our destination. It's a bus we must ride together, making every necessary stop along the way. We may disagree on the route, but we share a destination: equal justice under law.

When we can embrace alignment over agreement, we open possibilities for genuine collaboration. Different viewpoints become strengths rather than divisions. The potential for collective achievement far exceeds what any individual or like-minded group could accomplish alone.

To be clear, it's only a small percentage of us that actually have the courage and fortitude to take a stand. 

I'm hoping you're one of us.

Only by establishing true justice - equal treatment and opportunity for all - can we hope to ensure domestic tranquility. The path forward requires us to unite not in identical beliefs, but in shared intention. Through this unity in diversity, we can create lasting change and a more just society.