"When I discover who I am, I’ll be free.” ~ Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man
Who are you? Have you asked yourself this question lately? Do you look at your reflection and question who you are? Who you are becoming? What do you see? The person you always dreamed you would be or the person you never wanted to become? These few short words have the power to cause paralysis because they require an answer.
So, who am I, you may ask? Should I describe the person I see or the person I am working to become? The person I am changes with each new experience, with every person who enters or exits my life, and with how I handle the challenges placed before me. So, the person I am that is something I will spend the rest of my life discovering.
Let me tell you what I know - I live in a nation where the laws of Double Jeopardy do not apply to me. For some this term instantly brought up fond or possibly indifferent memories of the movie Double Jeopardy starring Tommy Lee Jones and for others the legal definition. See, the Fifth Amendment of the U.S Constitution under the Double Jeopardy Clause states,
…”nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb…"
This provision prohibits state and federal governments from prosecuting individuals twice for the same offense after a legitimate acquittal or conviction. The underlying idea is that the government with all its power cannot make repeated attempts to convict an individual, thus subjecting that individual to embarrassment and a life of anguish and insecurity. Does this clause reflect more than law and order, perhaps the society we live in today?
It seems people rarely speak about the societal toll of Double Jeopardy. Where young black men are shot and killed by the person sworn in to protect them, where women make up 15 percent of active-duty forces, but 47 percent of sexual assault victims. Here in the nation I love you can and will be prosecuted repeatedly just for being a minority, and perhaps subjected to embarrassment and a life of anguish and insecurity.
All too often, our surroundings influence whom we become. While many have an opportunity to discover who they are, others are judged by their physical appearance and forced into boxes that place a label on their identity. This is my life and I'm inviting you to join me on my journey as I explore the secret life of Double Jeopardy.
