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A Pledge Is a Promise
What a child's morning ritual says about the justice we are owed.
Listening to her daughter recite the Pledge of Allegiance, Evelyn Hernandez heard its last words, "with liberty and justice for all," land in a way they had not in years.
A pledge, she writes, is a promise in both directions. When children pledge allegiance each morning, the country promises back that justice will not depend on who you are, who you know, or whether your case is useful to someone's ambitions.
The essay calls for prosecutors held to the same standard of honesty they demand of defendants, real consequences when evidence is withheld or the process is abused, judges who weigh the facts before deciding the outcome, and a system that measures success by whether justice was done rather than by conviction counts.
Key points
- "For all" means all.
- Prosecutors should meet the standard of honesty they demand of defendants.
- Success should be measured by justice done, not conviction counts.
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