Mass incarceration

John Marvin Weed stood his ground as his assailants encircled him. He had already been pummeled and was bracing himself for more. Weed was with family that day, enjoying Maryland's Great Frederick Fair when a young man asked him for a dollar. When Weed refused, the young man and his brother attacked. In a video of the incident, Weed appears calm, hands low at his sides, as the brothers taunt him. Mild-mannered and middle-aged, Weed was a builder; he helped with his hands. 'He gave so much love to his young niece and nephew, four-wheeler rides, playing in the pool, reading bedtime stories, and so much more,’ said Weed's sister, Lori Hawkins.

COIVD-19 has turned us all into prisoners: draconian lockdown orders, solitary confinement, monotonous food, limited fresh air and exercise, irregular phone contact with the outside world. More than half of Americans believe the stress and isolation is harming their mental health. Now imagine living in a real prison during this epidemic.America’s prisons have become COVID hotspots due to overcrowding and poor hygiene. Inmates who were meant to serve months or years for nonviolent offenses now face a potential death sentence. It’s impossible to keep prisoners six feet apart. Prisons are last in line for supplies of soap, hand sanitizer and paper towels. At Rikers Island in New York City, hundreds have tested positive.

The term ‘social justice warrior’ is usually a pejorative hurled at those who hold socially progressive views, particularly those who take their views to extremes. But there is genuine injustice in American society. A host of groups have been oppressed for too long due to their gender, sexual orientation, race or other categorizations. Protecting the civil liberties of these groups has usually been a task of the left or the minority of libertarians on the right. Now, that task falls to Donald Trump.