When is Justice Amoral?

by the Honorable Nat Paul, former member of the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking 

On July 17th, 1998, the Rome Statute of the United Nations established the International Criminal Court to hold accountable those who perpetuate the gravest of crimes including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Today on International Justice Day we should reflect upon the fact the United Nations recognizes 200 countries where you include seven recognized states, yet only 125 countries voluntarily agree to recognize the ICC’s jurisdiction.

This day serves as a day to reflect upon Justice and the “rule of law,” Victim’s Rights, Prevention of Further Atrocities, and Combating Impunity. September 2nd, 1945, marks the official end to World War II, in the 81 years since that atrocity we have seen a resurgence of fascist beliefs, authoritarian beliefs, and the criminalization of humanity.

In the United States, the Supreme Court declared in the Johnson Pass decision that being systemically impoverished and unable to afford the greedflation of housing prices can lead to imprisonment for “public camping.” Although there are 1.05 billion metric tons of food wasted annually it is a crime to steal food, and in many Homeowner Associations growing your own food is also condemned. The United States contributes 60 million metric tons of food “waste” annually.

The United States Congress has never authorized ICC jurisdiction, allowing impunity to war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The lessons learned from Germany in 1945 were that all of the actions of the Holocaust were “legal” in accordance with German Law. In the Buck V Bell decision from the SCOTUS, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes proclaimed it was better for all the world to sterilize “unfit” people rather than wait to starve them to death or execute them for crimes.

When you criminalize those who struggle to exist under the burden of stagnant wages, greedflation, and systemic poverty then your laws are amoral. Currently the ethnic cleansing campaign against Latine people in the US with six federal cases for labor trafficking still pending against the corporations holding these “illegals” proves the amorality of our “justice” system.