Equal and Discriminating – The Human Rights Series

Posted by shush

August 5, 2015

Article 7. All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

This is one of my series articles on the “Human RIghts” that I believe is worth merging with my series on “Coordinated Moves”.

We can only be protected by the law if the law to protect us exists, if the people who wrote it can interpret it in precise and consistent terms, and if the people who implement it understand them and know how to implement them.
What do I mean by this?

Here is an example.

Miranda. What comes to mind when this word is said? It usually reminds us of what we hear on TV many times. The “you have the right to remain silent” paragraph followed with someone being handcuffed.

Then here are my questions.
Is every civilian aware of what the whole paragraph is about? If you asked the person nearest to you right now, would they be able to tell you precisely what comes after “remain silent”?

Can and does the arresting officer recite the whole paragraph completely and audibly before putting the handcuffs?

If you are a minor, can an officer recite this to you? Or is there a special kind of Miranda for minors?
If you are a senior citizen with a medical condition, can an officer recite this to you?
If you are a mute, does this apply to you?
If you are deaf, would there be someone else that could say this to you in sign language?
If you are on a stretcher or in the hospital, can they read you your rights and arrest you or should they wait for the hospital to release you before doing so?

What if the officer doesn’t say it before the arrest?

Saying these rights is a verbal thing. Which means, if the arresting officer does not say it before putting the handcuffs and says he did under oath, then it’s the officer’s word against the person being arrested.

Is there a written version of this that can be signed before being handcuffed?
Can the reciting of this be recorded as evidence that it was recited before the handcuffing?

So many questions with just the Miranda.

I recently got to watch on TV an officer telling the audience what to expect when you are pulled over while driving. He explained what the documents expected for you to give them are; the option to say “no’ should you step out of the vehicle or should you wait to be asked to do so; should you allow them to search your vehicle or do you have the right to say no. And I think that was awesome. Because the audience were taught firsthand by the officer on what to expect if someone of his kind asked you to do so. A great example of the protector teaching the civilians how to be protected.

I understand that it is our responsibility to know what the laws are. But then again, I also know that only those who can literally read and understand the jargon of the way the law is written can be possibly protected by the law. The others who cannot literally read and understand any law are not really protected by it if someone who knows it would use it against them.

What if we taught the whole Miranda to children in the higher primary education levels. We make them memorize it, recite it and explain what it’s about. Then they grow up knowing this very basic right to expect and demand. Then they could also explain it to their parents who are not aware of it, which in turn also helps their parents understand the laws that were designed to protect them.

What if the officers were made to recite the Miranda on a weekly basis just to make sure they know it by heart?

What if there was a law that said that the Miranda should be recited and recorded as evidence that it was stated before the arrest with a recorded verbal acknowledgement by the arrested that it was stated, without which the person arrested cannot be taken into custody? And another law that says if the person being arrested is physically incapable or is mentally incapable of hearing and understanding it verbally, that a written version be signed by the person being arrested , without which the person being arrested cannot be taken into custody. And of course, if there is a language barrier between the arresting officer and the person being arrested, there should be a translation of the Miranda or an interpreter ready to read it to the person before being handcuffed.

This is a simple example on how the common person can understand this Human Right and at the same time coordinate with the other personalities connected to enforcing this Human Right and the changes needed to continuously implement this right for every possible circumstance.

The methods of people in living their everyday lives are constantly evolving. We should be able to adapt the implementation of these Human Rights to such an evolution so we could continously uphold the very essence of why these Human Rights were thought of in the first place. And when the time comes when everyone understands what their Human Rights are, then we are indeed equally protected.

Coordinated Moves, Human Rights Series, Keeping Safe, Self Improvement, Streetwise

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