Democracy is the worst form of government. It is the most inefficient, the most clumsy, the most impractical. No machinery has yet been contrived to carry out in any but the most farcical manner its principles…
But there is something even more important than efficiency and expediency: justice. And democracy is the only social order that is admissible, because it is the only one consistent with justice.
— Robert Briffault in his 1919 book, ‘The Making Of Humanity’
The word “justice” has a number of meanings.
1. The quality of being just, impartial, or fair.
2. The maintenance or administration of what is just, especially by the impartial adjustment of conflicting claims.
3. The administration of law.
4. The quality of conforming to law.
I believe Robert Briffault intended definition Number 1. The quality of being just, impartial, or fair.
Lately, the term ‘social justice’ has seen increased use in the news media, and in conversation on social media, but it’s not a new term. It was apparently coined in 1840 by social scientist Luigi Taparelli,
and popularized through the writings of Antonio Rosmini-Serbati following the European revolutions of 1848.
During the Progressive Era in America — the first three decades of the 20th century — legal scholars began to use the term more, notably Louis Brandeis and Roscoe Pound, and became embedded in international law and institutions. The preamble to establish the International Labour Organization recalled that “universal and lasting peace can be established only if it is based upon social justice.”
Needless to say, Americans do not agree on the concept of “justice” in reference to actions that are “just, impartial, or fair.” Is it “fair” to provide a Child Tax Credit to a household living in poverty — and not provide the same to a billionaire’s household? Or to a middle-class household?
Yesterday, in Part Three, we considered historical British and American laws that addressed — or tried to address — poverty. Historically, the general approach has been to provide financial or material relief to the elderly, the disabled, widows and orphans — and punishment for those who are able-bodied but unwilling to work and pull their own weight.
Generally speaking, a functional family can provide support for family members at a much more reasonable cost than institutions can. Generally. And we generally assume that a child who receives loving care, secure shelter, and decent nutrition will have a better chance of becoming a productive, law-abiding citizen.
Society is, however, complex. If we truly wanted healthy, well-adjusted young people to help maintain our democracy, would it make sense to try and eliminate childhood poverty?
And what would be the best mechanism to eliminate childhood poverty?
The Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted in January to support the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024, as a suitable federal mechanism. The bipartisan 357-to-70 House vote suggested it might sail through Senate approval with equally-bipartisan support.
But for some reason, the Act sat on the back burner until last week, before the Democrats in the Senate brought it forward… and then failed a procedural vote?
Society is complex, and so is politics. Especially, politics in an election year.
Especially, election year politics in Washington DC.
Some years ago, then-County Commissioner Steve Wadley was among the local elected leaders who had a habit of describing Archuleta County as “one of the poorest counties in Colorado.” One day, I decided to find out if that claim were accurate, and I found a list on Wikipedia showing the ranking of Colorado counties by ‘per capita income’, based on 2010 data.
Here’s a section of that list.
As we see, Archuleta County is ranked ’31’ out of Colorado’s 62 counties, in terms of ‘per capita income’… meaning that Archuleta County is ranked higher than 31 other Colorado counties.
In terms of ‘median household income’ we are also ranked 31.
We are not “one of the poorest counties in Colorado.” On average. What we have is a mix of very poor households, middle income households and very wealthy households.
Much of the poverty exists within the boundaries of the Town of Pagosa Springs, where nearly 2/3 of the households have an income of less than $50,000 a year.
From Britannica.com:
In theoretical terms, social justice is often understood to be equivalent to justice itself, however that concept is defined. Many somewhat narrower interpretations conceive of social justice as being equivalent to, or partly constitutive of, distributive justice — that is, the fair and equitable distribution of social, political, and economic benefits and burdens.
If democracy is truly capable to producing ‘justice’, we may have to do it locally. And there are people in our community trying to do exactly that.
If Archuleta County can truly come together, as a community that cares about justice, then whatever Senator Michael Bennet can achieve in Washington would be just the icing on the cake.