In Loving Memory of JD Wheeler, Patriot

J.D. Wheeler spoke up for civil liberties, lived a principled life


Sunday, January 21, 2007
By Colleen K. Connell and Edwin C. Yohnka


Peoria is a significantly poorer community this week. A strong, sometimes solitary voice known well to readers of these pages is silent. On Jan. 13, J.D. Wheeler died following a lengthy battle with a degenerating heart condition. His health waned, but his commitment to the proposition that the basic protections of our Constitution extend to all persons never faded.

J.D. Wheeler's life is not easily captured in an obituary. He was, for many years, a voice for the voiceless in Peoria. It is difficult, however, to think of J.D. as "voiceless" in any manner. Throughout the years, his letters graced the pages of the Journal Star, expressing his strong views on issues ranging from students' rights in public schools to preserving civil liberties in a time of armed conflict to the need for government to provide basic civil rights without regard to sexual orientation. J.D. raged against government censorship of those with minority political views and believed fervently that government and religious institutions should not become overly entangled.

For more than a decade, J.D. led the Peoria Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Stated more aptly, J.D. Wheeler was the ACLU in Peoria for many years. He spoke in a variety of public settings, organized coalitions, appeared in the media and was identified throughout the Peoria area as the face of the organization. When a delegation from the ACLU visited Congressman Ray LaHood last summer, the congressman's first question was, "Where is J.D.?"

J.D. inspired us to believe that the Constitution's promise of due process and equal protection of the law applied to all - regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or national origin. He taught us that the Constitution is both a shield against the arbitrary exercise of government power and a sword that helped extend the protections of the rule of law to the most vulnerable in our society.

Deeply spiritual, J.D. was a thoughtful advocate of religious liberty, recognizing that the Constitution protects the right of each person to worship in his or her own religious tradition and that the Constitution insists on absolute government neutrality, prohibiting government preference of one religion over another.

What is the impact of an individual like J.D. on a community? No doubt he encouraged a number of people to engage in discussion and debate about a variety of public policy issues. Some joined because they vigorously and virulently disagreed with the views that J.D. advanced; others joined because they were no longer alone. That made J.D. proud. After all, his belief in free speech was not limited to those who agreed with him; he believed that public debate was better with more voices. For J.D., it did not matter that you had a different point of view - he loved the debate and enjoyed the public forum.

J.D., often was a solitary voice. He was not concerned about what others said, or how he might be viewed in a community where so many knew him by name or by face. J.D. soldiered on, motivated by what he believed was right, and not by what he thought was popular.

Living such a life may have made one cynical or bitter. Being criticized constantly simply for holding dear to certain basic principles might make one dislike those who held other views, or those who utter such criticisms. J.D. Wheeler held no such anger. He was a fierce warrior, but he also had a deep reservoir of compassion and empathy for others, even when they disagreed with him.

Italian author Vittorio Alfieri observed that "often the best test of courage is not to die but to live." J.D. Wheeler's life was a testament to such courage. He lived the values he held, without malice toward others and with a sense of eternal optimism that a few good people working together could make the world a better place.

Without J.D. Wheeler, someone else in Peoria will need to play this role for the community. For those fortunate enough to watch his life and be affected by his legacy, this is a strong challenge. Still, it is necessary. Maybe instead of one J.D., there will be two or more, and then the community will not be poorer for his passing but far richer for his having lived.

Colleen K. Connell is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. Edwin C. Yohnka is its director of communications and public policy. They are based in Chicago.

 

J. D. Wheeler tried to keep us true to nation's ideals

Saturday, January 20, 2007
Peoria Journal-Star


Most of you didn't know him by his first name, which was Jack. In his public life, he went by J.D. and scribbled, scolded, scorched and schooled a path through Peoria that brought him a legacy inseparable from this belief: The Constitution matters, it means what it says, it applies to everyone, and though we don't always live up to it, we should try. It was a public service.

Those who recognize the name J.D. Wheeler likely do so as the former president of the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, a position more lonely than lofty. He died a week ago today at age 73. A memorial celebration will take place next Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Peoria Downtown Library. We pay tribute to him today, Forum Saturday, because among other things he was a prolific author of letters, more than 100 of them published here over the last 15 years.

Wheeler's heart may have given out but his passion for civil liberties never did. Unafraid to hold or share an unpopular opinion - or to ask the necessary but "obnoxious question," recalled longtime local activist Dolores Klein - he held forth on the rights of white supremacist Matt Hale to express his onerous views and get a fair trial, on why an area high school shouldn't dictate prayer at graduation ceremonies, on the problem with council-sanctioned religious practices at City Hall. He was a staunch opponent of the death penalty, an unrelenting critic of George W. Bush and the war in Iraq, and a former-insurance-man-turned-angry-patient regarding a health-care system he found fundamentally broken. Along the way he fought bias based on race, religion, ethnicity and sexual orientation. Always he championed the rule of law, never more so than during wartime.

For this he was frequently criticized and sometimes reviled. He and ACLU members like him were "anti-God and anti-American" and should be "kicked out of our country," wrote one Forum contributor in June, 2005. Such characterizations were largely unthinking, inaccurate and unfair. Wheeler, who at one time described himself as an active Episcopalian, simply believed government must be neutral in religion to protect the freedom of all to worship as they please.

Through it all he remained determined and unbowed. "He listened to other people," recalled Tom Pugh, who followed Wheeler as a local ACLU chief. "He didn't argue with them until he understood what their position was." Nor did he suggest they weren't entitled to their opinions, that they were unpatriotic for stating them, that they should be booted. Local attorney Dennis Triggs, who represented school districts that sometimes fell into Wheeler's cross-hairs, likewise recalled his studied professionalism. Current ACLU chief Dave Weiman remembers a dogged researcher, confident in his interpretations of the document underpinning what he believed to be the greatest nation on Earth, if an imperfect one. Peoria's ACLU chapter was never more active nor more prominent than during the nine years Wheeler was its public face.

We did not always agree with Wheeler, who could be tryingly earnest. He certainly was not shy about exercising his First Amendment rights with this opinion page as he tried to coach us toward his version of enlightenment, almost daily in stretches. "Worst editorial ever!" he'd grouch. His last critique came on Dec. 19, over an editorial regarding congressional earmarks: "It's namby-pamby editorials such as this one ..." But unlike most readers secure in their worldview, he'd also balance those with the occasional "Bravo!"

We preferred the latter. We'll miss both. Rest in peace, J.D.

J.D. Wheeler spoke up for civil liberties, lived a principled life


Sunday, January 21, 2007
By Colleen K. Connell and Edwin C. Yohnka


Peoria is a significantly poorer community this week. A strong, sometimes solitary voice known well to readers of these pages is silent. On Jan. 13, J.D. Wheeler died following a lengthy battle with a degenerating heart condition. His health waned, but his commitment to the proposition that the basic protections of our Constitution extend to all persons never faded.
J.D. Wheeler's life is not easily captured in an obituary. He was, for many years, a voice for the voiceless in Peoria. It is difficult, however, to think of J.D. as "voiceless" in any manner. Throughout the years, his letters graced the pages of the Journal Star, expressing his strong views on issues ranging from students' rights in public schools to preserving civil liberties in a time of armed conflict to the need for government to provide basic civil rights without regard to sexual orientation. J.D. raged against government censorship of those with minority political views and believed fervently that government and religious institutions should not become overly entangled.
For more than a decade, J.D. led the Peoria Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Stated more aptly, J.D. Wheeler was the ACLU in Peoria for many years. He spoke in a variety of public settings, organized coalitions, appeared in the media and was identified throughout the Peoria area as the face of the organization. When a delegation from the ACLU visited Congressman Ray LaHood last summer, the congressman's first question was, "Where is J.D.?"
J.D. inspired us to believe that the Constitution's promise of due process and equal protection of the law applied to all - regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or national origin. He taught us that the Constitution is both a shield against the arbitrary exercise of government power and a sword that helped extend the protections of the rule of law to the most vulnerable in our society.
Deeply spiritual, J.D. was a thoughtful advocate of religious liberty, recognizing that the Constitution protects the right of each person to worship in his or her own religious tradition and that the Constitution insists on absolute government neutrality, prohibiting government preference of one religion over another.
What is the impact of an individual like J.D. on a community? No doubt he encouraged a number of people to engage in discussion and debate about a variety of public policy issues. Some joined because they vigorously and virulently disagreed with the views that J.D. advanced; others joined because they were no longer alone. That made J.D. proud. After all, his belief in free speech was not limited to those who agreed with him; he believed that public debate was better with more voices. For J.D., it did not matter that you had a different point of view - he loved the debate and enjoyed the public forum.
J.D., often was a solitary voice. He was not concerned about what others said, or how he might be viewed in a community where so many knew him by name or by face. J.D. soldiered on, motivated by what he believed was right, and not by what he thought was popular.
Living such a life may have made one cynical or bitter. Being criticized constantly simply for holding dear to certain basic principles might make one dislike those who held other views, or those who utter such criticisms. J.D. Wheeler held no such anger. He was a fierce warrior, but he also had a deep reservoir of compassion and empathy for others, even when they disagreed with him.
Italian author Vittorio Alfieri observed that "often the best test of courage is not to die but to live." J.D. Wheeler's life was a testament to such courage. He lived the values he held, without malice toward others and with a sense of eternal optimism that a few good people working together could make the world a better place.
Without J.D. Wheeler, someone else in Peoria will need to play this role for the community. For those fortunate enough to watch his life and be affected by his legacy, this is a strong challenge. Still, it is necessary. Maybe instead of one J.D., there will be two or more, and then the community will not be poorer for his passing but far richer for his having lived.

Colleen K. Connell is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. Edwin C. Yohnka is its director of communications and public policy. They are based in Chicago.