Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-09-01
The Role Of the Courts in Expanding Freedom

affirmation by the national con-
science. For many years judges
would not decide reapportionment
cases-no matter how unfair the
apportionment, no matter what
laws or constitutional provisions
were violated, no m after how
many people were denied an eff
fective right to vote. Judges
would not decide such cases be-
cause, as some of them saw it, a
court decision about legislative
apportionment could have no eff
feet unless the legislature and the
people accepted the decision. And
no one could count on, or predict,
whether there would be legislative
or popular support. And so,
though as a matter Of law the
courts had the power to decide
apportionment cases, as a matter
of judicial wisdom courts general
ly abstained from these issues.
Reapportionment was held to be
q political issue which addressed
itself to the people.
Rotten DISTRICTS
But now we have had the Su-
preme Court declare that such
cases are proper for judicial deci-
sion. The court has now found
that in many areas the political
system restrained the people from
acting, that there was developing
In this country a condition in
some respects similar to the rot
ten borough system which dis
graced the electorate Of England
two centuries ago. So the court,
in effect, authorized the courts in
each State to hear apportionment
cases as they came up and to
apply to voting the principle Of
equal protection which our Con-
stitution ordains. There were
those who predicted that the
courts decree would be ignored
or Knocked, that the legislatures
and people would resist to the
end the courts efforts in this
field, and that the Nations re-
fuSal to accept the challenge and
rise to the responsibility given
them by the courts would become
a national disgrace.
But the results have been quite
different, and the response to the
judicial spark has been broader.
and better. than anyone could
have predicted.
Promoting Freedom
Of the areas in which courts,
particularly the Supreme Court,
have been active in promoting the
freedom Of us all, the one that
is at the top Of our minds today,
concerns racial justice. The
Supreme Court decisions In the
field of racial equality have at
tempted to secure an actual free
dom for the Negro from the bonds
OF discrimination and bigotry-
and a freedom for the white from
having to live in a society where
such injustices occur. That these
freedoms belong to the white and
to the Negro is solid constitu-
tional law-nothing could be more
clear than that the Thirteenth,
Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amend
ments to the Constitution were
adopted exactly for the purpose
Of raising the former slave to the
level Of first-clasS citizen. The
court decisions Of our day are but
long-delayed steps forward in CIV
ing actual effect to that constitu-
tional law.
The question remains - will
these decisions receive the sup
port Of the people, or will they
remain only words in the mouths
OF the judgeS2 Will the other
branches Of Government, the ex-
ecutive and the Congress-will the
State and local governments-re-
srond to the challenge Of these
Supreme Court decisions and
make a reality today the promise
OF 100 years ago? In pleading for
passage Of the Civil Rights Act
OF 1858, the Attorney General OF