When you look around, it’s clear that whoever holds the reins gets to write the rules. People in power have always set the terms so they keep winning. That’s why asking for something as simple as equal rights feels like a full-on attack to them. Losing unfair advantages suddenly looks like they’re being persecuted, because they shaped the system to benefit themselves in the first place.

America’s laws and customs came from a narrow group of wealthy white men, so their way of seeing the world became “normal.” Anything outside that view was labeled un-American or dangerous. By insisting “this is how we’ve always done it,” they shut down anyone who doesn’t fit their mold. If you didn’t match their idea of a citizen, your voice didn’t matter and your needs didn’t count.

Even someone like Dennis Hastert, Republican Speaker of the House from 1999 to 2007 and a leading voice in the evangelical political movement, proved how power hides ugly secrets. As Speaker he pushed conservative values and rallied churches into politics, yet behind the scenes he had been secretly abusing teenage boys he coached over decades starting in the ’70s. In 2015 he was indicted for structuring bank withdrawals to pay $1.7 million in hush money, pleaded guilty to that charge, and in 2016 admitted in court that he had molested at least four underage wrestlers. A judge called him a “serial child molester” and sentenced him to 15 months in prison, two years’ supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. His case shows how those who make the rules can twist them to protect themselves.

Church leaders work the same way. They decide which parts of Scripture to spotlight, which people get to lead, and where the money goes. If someone challenges that, they’re accused of disrespecting God or breaking tradition. Preachers cherry-pick verses about obedience and generosity while glossing over Jesus’s warnings about rich rulers. There have been scandals involving the Southern Baptist Church among others where preachers were sent from church to church and members were silenced instead of allegations being investigated. All the rules get framed as divine will, even when they simply protect the leaders’ status and bank accounts.

Real change happens when everyone gets a seat at the table; when rules aren’t made behind closed doors by the same few. We need clear ways to hold churches and governments accountable, with transparent finances, open discussions about leadership, and genuine power-sharing. Only then will our laws and traditions reflect all of us, not just those who wrote the rulebook.