Photo illustration by Risa Ryan
In her book, The Bill of Rights: A User’s Guide (Hachette), Constitutional scholar and journalist Linda R. Monk offers an overview of the 10 amendments that have shaped American democracy for more than 200 years. The guidebook features historical analysis of the people and events that shaped the Constitution, and its new fifth edition tackles current hot-button issues such as abortion, immigration, and marriage equality.
Join Monk in a program that celebrates the upcoming 150th anniversary of the 14th Amendment, originally ratified on July 28, 1868. She explores the history of the Bill of Rights amendment by amendment, explains how the Supreme Court has interpreted each right, and examines the role of citizens in enforcing them. She also covers stories of the ordinary people who made the Bill of Rights come alive.
Among them are Simon Tam, whose 10-year trademark battle for his band The Slants ended in a Supreme Court victory; Clarence Earl Gideon, whose handwritten petition to the Supreme Court—sent from prison—led to a ruling that that a poor person has the right to a lawyer in felony cases; and Fannie Lou Hamer, a Mississippi sharecropper who became a national leader in the civil rights movement.
Monk is a graduate of Harvard Law School and for more than 25 years has written commentary for outlets including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and Huffington Post.
The Bill of Rights: A User’s Guide is available for sale and signing.
