Liberty, D-day, and Justice for all.

June 6th—D-day.  76 years ago, the beginning of the end of World War Two took the lives of untold thousands of U.S. and Allied troops on five beaches in France.  Why?  What drove all these adult men to willfully enter death’s chamber?  What forces escorted an isolated nation onto the world stage?  One might say survival.  Perhaps a justifiable response to an external threat.  The last resort to maintain Liberty. Certainly, every one of those who went to war, went to work, or sent a loved one have their own reasons.  Where are we today?  In what state is our Liberty?

This day touches me personally - four years ago it was my last day in uniform on active duty.  A coincidence that links one individual’s service to the sacrifice of millions in a united nation.  A response globally.  Why?  An idea, an oath (I, Thomas Cunningham, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.), a need for Liberty to survive.  Where are we today regarding Liberty?

Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.  When unencumbered by oppression we refer to this triad as Freedom.  A meaningful life drives the choices of both the free person and the oppressed.  The urge of the Afghan farmer to be left alone to coax life from the moon dust of an arid landscape rings the same tone as the American farmer who exchanged plow for rifle after Pearl Harbor.  That tone rings from the bell that calls the soul to Liberty.  Both farmers chose to support their neighbors and take up arms against those who would step on Liberty and oppress the weak.  The lineage of my brothers, teammates, and comrades in arms lies bear in our motto – De Oppresso Liber—to free the oppressed. 

In my personal struggle to survive and secure my own liberty I pray that I do not infringe upon the rights of my neighbors to do the same.  I have struggled in concert with my neighbors to root out the oppressors.  I have trained those farmers to survive the inevitable encounter with those who would steal another’s Liberty for the sake of their own extremism.  Why this work? So that the ideal of Liberty might prosper and proliferate.  For indeed, if one of us is not free, none of us is truly free.  Where stands Liberty today?

The scales of justice are sharp.  When balanced, they hang in the suspension cords of the parachute we call Liberty. When tilted, unequal, or wrongly weighted they severe those cords as swiftly as a sword endangering the life of our nation.  One nation, under God, indivisible with Life, Liberty, and Justice for all.  For all.  

Today is uniquely special.  For me now it is not just because we remember the sacrifices of our forbearers but because a colleague pushes Liberty forward today.  In these actions and words lie some of my hope.  The words of Freedom, Justice, and Liberty for all echo in the actions of one march among many.  A march to be seen, heard, and respected as equal human beings.  A march to let us all breath.  A chance to breath together and explore what one breath of life feels like in an age where unity struggles against division.  Here stands Liberty today, struggling against the invisible hand of Structural Racism.  Here marches Liberty today, honoring all Americans and our Civil Rights.  Here is the call to free the oppressed.  Let us walk in unity and breathe together.