by Francisco R. Angones
Florida Bar president
Americans are an open, friendly, and courageous people. Among their most prized characteristics is a sense of fairness. This fairness is enshrined in our Constitution and in our Bill of Rights, and I believe it typifies the sentiments of most law students and the majority of lawyers. The commitment to fairness is the foundation for the rights that all of us as Americans enjoy.
Other countries may have constitutions or similar legal documents that assure the rights of its citizens, but if these rights are not fostered and protected, they are worthless. As Americans, we share the beliefs stated in our Constitution, and understand and desire that they be implemented as part of our daily life. Successive generations born in our country, and those reaching it in search of basic freedoms, make these values their own, and by so doing guarantee the continued existence of the concepts and practices of freedom and equality in our nation.
A few months ago, I was reading about Second Lieutenant Emily J. T. Perez, West Point class of 2005. She exemplifies these ideals of freedom and equality. Lt. Perez was the highest-ranking Black and Hispanic female cadet in the Academy’s history, as well as a track athlete who helped set a team relay record at West Point. Her loyalty to our common values as a nation went from theory to reality. On September 12, 2006, she became the first female West Point graduate to be killed in Iraq. She and the many other servicemen and servicewomen who represent us as members of our armed forces, many of them from Florida, live out day to day the devotion to our country and to its principles of liberty and fairness.
The Florida Bar and its members are at the forefront in the defense of human rights. My agenda for this year will focus on these rights; this page will give me the opportunity to discuss them and their very broad implications at different levels, since human rights issues go beyond state and national boundaries to encompass the whole world.
Human rights derive from the philosophical ideal of natural rights, the innate rights of individuals that are present even if there is no legal system in place to protect them. Historically our human rights legislation dates back to the Magna Carta and the English Bill of Rights, and our own Bill of Rights restates and affirms many of the rights enumerated by them. Civil rights and related laws continue our country’s tradition of human rights legislation and constitute a constant process of assuring equal protection for all.
As president of The Florida Bar, I intend to focus my attention on our state and to primarily spotlight Florida issues. Specific topics related to human rights will include the importance of an independent, fair, impartial, diverse, and inclusive judicial system; funding for our courts; initiatives to teach civics in our Florida schools; mentoring law students and newly licensed lawyers and the significance of pro bono work by our lawyers.
Florida Bar members have been nationally recognized for the defense of human rights. This year, for example, three of our members were given national human rights awards by the American Bar Association. Talbot “Sandy” D’Alemberte was recognized with the 2007 Father Robert F. Drinan Award for Distinguished Service, an award that recognizes leadership in the protection and advancement of human rights. Judge Joseph W. Hatchett was honored with the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity 2007 Spirit of Excellence Award in tribute to his accomplishments in promoting a more racially and ethnically diverse legal profession. Neal R. Sonnet, currently the ABA’s official Observer for the Military Commission trials in Guantanamo, received the Outstanding Service Award for 2007 from The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation. This award is given in recognition for service to the public for a period of more than 30 years.
A human rights agenda for the next year will be extensive. It’s one that precedes me in substance in the Bar’s past work, and one that will continue long after my service through the ongoing efforts of Florida’s lawyers. It will reflect the professionalism and the commitment to ethics that we as lawyers make and need to reflect as well as the responsibilities and privileges granted to us by our oath as members of The Florida Bar.
— Courtesy The Florida Bar Journal