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Speak Up for Justice [1]
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Date: 2025-06-26
The organization Speak Up for Justice holds monthly Zoom broadcasts that feature speakers discussing the attacks on our judiciary and how to respond.
The session today (Thursday 26 June 2025), featured an impressive list of jurists, including:
Anthony M. Kennedy, Retired Associated Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Eleazar J. Saldivia, Former Federal Judge of the Anzoátegui State Circuit, Venezuela
Dorota Zabludowska, Judge District Court Gdansk-Poludnie, Poland
Richard J. Goldstone, Former Justice of the Constitutional Court, South Africa
Karen C. Burgess, Past President International Academy of Trial Lawyers
Esther Salas, Judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
Justice Kennedy began by noting that judges are essential to freedom and democracy because they are a key component in civil discourse. Citing the Declaration of Independence, he said the purpose of the United States is to enhance freedom, and that’s what judges do. He promoted more knowledge of the courts, saying that it isn’t just hostility that’s an issue, it is also indifference.
He also said that judges need to decide issues with political consequences, but not in a political way. Right now, partisanship has too big a role in judicial appointments. This should focus more on qualifications.
Judicial independence is a key issue. Kennedy noted that Henry David Thoreau wrote an essay on civil disobedience. Mahatma Gandhi picked up his ideas and used them in non-violent protests. Martin Luther King, Jr., read about them and employed them in the U.S. in the civil rights movement. Nelson Mandela picked them up and used them against apartheid in South Africa.
Judge Saldivia talked about the takeover of the courts in Venezuela and how he was forced to flee after politicians there threatened him if he didn’t rescind one of his rulings. He noted that the judiciary didn’t take action quickly enough when the government took away their independence. He said we should watch out when the other branches of government are silent and complicit.
Judge Zabtudowska discussed the attack on the courts in Poland, and how judicial independence there has been partly restored with support of the people and support of international organizations, including the Court of Justice of the European Union. This has not been complete, but the judiciary was able to get back some independence. She noted that one of the roles of the courts is to control politicians. Judges are not just clerks.
Justice Goldstone talked about his role in reforms in South Africa. The government appointed progressive judges in response to international criticism, which it hoped would tamp down that criticism. But Goldstone and other judges ruled against the government in key cases. This was difficult for the government, but it decided (for political reasons) to obey the courts, which helped lead to the end of apartheid. After the new constitution was adopted, President Nelson Mandela appointed Goldstone to the Constitutional Court, and even backed their rulings when they ruled against the government. The legal system in South Africa learned a lot from the judicial system in the United States, especially in its handling of civil rights.
The problem in the U.S. now, as Judge Salas said, is that disinformation is spreading from the top down. This has encouraged a record number of threats against judges (408 so far this year). This and threats not to follow court orders are very harmful to the rule of law. There’s also deterioration of funding for the courts.
And Karen Burgess said that when they wanted to bring in lawyers from overseas, some of them declined due to the political climate here. One person said that they were not worried about the rule of law in their country; they believed we needed their help here because the rule of law is under threat here.
The United States has a strong legal institution, with over 1.3 million lawyers. Some of the big law firms buckled to the Trump people, pledging up to a billion dollars of pro bono work for them. But it is important for every lawyer to maintain independence.
That’s not easy when the Kremlin has an active program of putting out misinformation. And now AI chatbots are picking up and repeating that propaganda.
Speak Up for Justice is sponsored and moderated by Paul R. Kiesel, of Kiesel Law LLP. I have no connection with the organization.
The recent shootings of legislators in Minnesota are a stark reminder of how much civility we’ve lost in our country. Speak Up for Justice is a studiously non-partisan group, but the shocking truth is that violence against government officials is a partisan issue. The Republican Party is now controlled by the Trump fascists, and one of the central pillars of fascism is to commit violence to undermine the rule of law.
So, while I applaud them for trying to retain a certain judicial restraint, this is not a neutral issue. And we, as Democrats need to support their efforts.
Our ability to hang on to a democratic form of government depends on ejecting violence from our political system.
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