Language and the Law

"All men are created equal" is the first "self-evident truth" of the Declaration of Independence. However clearly they are equal only in their fundamental humanity, not in their physical attributes or mental talents. These natural differences create distinctions both rational and irrational. The law is called upon to regulate these distinctions, to ensure rationality while preserving liberty through the institutions of a democratic state . Is distinction based on language natural and rational, or arbitrary and irrational? In the following pages we will examine the determination of legal and illegal distinctions, in national and international frameworks"—