By SLADE DOUGLAS
Guest Columnist
America has never lacked the courage to send its sons and daughters into battle. What it has too often lacked is the same determination to stand beside them when they return home.
We train our servicemembers to overcome extraordinary obstacles, endure unimaginable hardship, and defend the freedoms of an entire nation. Yet too many return to a country where housing, medical care, employment or simple justice can represent another battle.
As we celebrate Veterans Day this week, we must commit to ending this contradiction. America’s veterans are not asking for charity. We are demanding that our nation honor its commitments, uphold its Constitution and recognize that the extraordinary men and women who defended this country remain among its greatest assets.
I know the importance of that commitment because I have experienced what happens when the government violates the very freedoms it exists to protect.
In 2019, I was swatted on by the Department of Veterans Affairs following my advocacy for veterans and complaints about government misconduct. LAPD officers were sent to my Los Angeles home, stating that they “received a call” from veterans affairs about me. After I demanded that they leave and called 911 to report their misconduct, I was arrested for exercising my constitutional rights.
In a futile attempt to find drugs in my system and dodge responsibility, officers took me to a hospital where I was restrained, drugged, and subjected to forced testing and invasive body searches. After nearly seven hours, I was released without criminal charges.
After my release, I fought back. I sued the city of Los Angeles and the LAPD for First Amendment retaliation, unconstitutional seizure, false imprisonment, violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and other unlawful conduct. Last December, a federal jury returned a $6.78 million verdict, with U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong ruling that the decision “served the public interest by vindicating important constitutional rights” and guarded against “lawless, unconstitutional conduct.”
In August, that same judge upheld the jury verdict and denied the city a new trial.
But this victory is not just about me. It demonstrates that courage does not conclude when military service ends. Sometimes the greatest test of our commitment to the Constitution comes when we fight to defend it. As veterans, we should always fight to ensure that our voices matter, our constitutional rights are protected, and our futures shielded from government failures.
That conviction inspired me to create the Slade Douglas Liberty Act, proposing federal legislation designed to establish stronger constitutional safeguards against unlawful noncriminal detention and ensure meaningful judicial oversight when government officials seek to thwart individual freedom.
Its guiding principle is simple: Freedom cannot be taken by label. Liberty requires due process.
The Constitution is not a privilege reserved for those with wealth, influence or political connections. It is the foundation of American freedom – and the men and women who defended it should never have to question whether those protections apply to them.
Yet constitutional accountability represents only part of the transformation our veterans deserve. We must also fundamentally rethink how America addresses veteran homelessness, economic opportunity, education, health care and the transition to civilian life.
If America can organize extraordinary military operations across the globe, mobilize enormous resources, and accomplish so-called “impossible” missions, surely it can ensure that every veteran who wants a home has one.
In our own city, billions of dollars are spent each year responding to homelessness, yet nothing changes. Why? Because too much money is spent managing homelessness instead of ending it.
America should never hand a homeless veteran a voucher and wish them luck finding an apartment. We should build Veterans Community Campuses where permanent housing, health care, mental-health treatment, education, employment opportunities, vocational training and community exist in one place.
Imagine communities where veterans are not merely surviving but thriving. Where they can earn degrees, build businesses, raise families, develop careers, and rediscover the purpose and camaraderie that military service once provided. Where the measure of success is not how much money the government spends, but how many veterans have permanent housing, economic independence, and meaningful opportunity.
No veteran who defended this country should sleep on a Los Angeles sidewalk. And no veteran should have to spend years navigating government bureaucracy simply to obtain the services and opportunities that their sacrifice helped secure.
America must move beyond temporary solutions and commit to lasting results. That commitment also requires accountability within the Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans who report discrimination, retaliation, neglect, or misconduct must be heard, respected and protected. Their complaints must receive meaningful independent review, and those who abuse governmental authority must face consequences.
An institution established to serve veterans should never become an institution that veterans fear challenging.
Access to justice remains another profound challenge for America’s veterans. Too many veterans struggle to obtain competent legal representation, while others encounter attorneys who exploit the stigma surrounding military service, portraying veterans as mentally ill, unstable or dangerous to undermine their credibility.
Our nation must also recognize something too often overlooked: Veterans are not defined by the difficulties they have endured. We are leaders, innovators, business owners, educators, parents, athletes, public servants, and community builders. We possess extraordinary talents developed through service, sacrifice, discipline, and perseverance.
And our greatest contributions to America may still lie ahead.
That is why veterans organizations, elected officials, business leaders, and communities must work together to transform appreciation into action. Not merely another ceremony. Not just another promise. But real homes. Real opportunities. Real accountability. And constitutional protections that apply equally to every American.
My nearly $6.8 million victory proved that government can be challenged and held accountable. But I don’t want my story remembered solely for the injustice I endured or the judgment I secured. I want it remembered for the doors it helped open, the rights it helped protect, the policies it helped change and the opportunities it helped provide – for veterans and for all Americans.
That would be a victory far greater than any monetary judgment.
To every veteran reading this, remember something fundamental: The uniform may come off, but the courage, leadership, and determination that inspired you to serve this country remain with you. You are not America’s forgotten past. You are an essential part of America’s future. The country that entrusted you with defending its freedom must now demonstrate that it values your freedom, your dignity, and your opportunity to prosper.
Because the true measure of America’s gratitude will never be found in the speeches delivered this Veterans Day. It will be found in the homes we build, the freedoms we protect, the injustices we prevent, and the bright futures we create for those who answered their country’s call.
Slade Douglas, a U.S. Army veteran, lives in Los Angeles.
