If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.
Robert KennedyRead
I believe indeterminate sentencing can be extremely useful, but I also believe that any such system should always take into consideration the special knowledge as to the facts in a case which only the trial judge possesses.
Interpretation
Indeterminate sentencing requires judicial discretion to consider the specifics of each case.
In this quote, Robert Kennedy underscores the importance of indeterminate sentencing in the judicial system, suggesting that it can provide flexibility and fairness in punishment. He emphasizes that trial judges hold unique insights into the details of each case, which should be paramount in guiding sentencing decisions, ensuring that justice is served in a nuanced manner.
In practice
In a discussion about judicial reforms, this quote highlights the importance of the trial judge's role.
If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.
Elections remind us not only of the rights but the responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy.
Within the United States, we have put great emphasis upon political freedoms. Because it has been our experience that these freedoms can lead to others.
It is one thing to open job opportunities. It is another to train people to fill them, or to persuade American enterprise to seek Negro as well as white applicants.
Our attitude towards immigration reflects our faith in the American ideal. We have always believed it possible for men and women who start at the bottom to rise as far as the talent and energy allow. Neither race nor place of birth should affect their chances.
The Gross National Product measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile, and it can tell us everything about America - except whether we are proud to be Americans.
Because we always are feeling for justice for all that the reality is, unfortunately, the justice system is skewed, and often people of color do not receive appropriate justice in this country.
Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have the exact measure of the injustice and wrong which will be imposed on them.
Justice is never given; it is exacted.
We ask for nothing that is not ours by right, and herein lies the great moral power of our demand.
Rule-following, legal precedence, and political consistency are not more important than right, justice and plain common-sense.
I cannot see any of these death penalty cases where there hasn't been a violation on the ground of either poverty or race. If we can ever get that straightened out, it will help. But, of course, the real answer to it is to do away with the death penalty.
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