“The Constitution is worth saving, the rule of law is worth saving, democracy is worth saving, but these things can and will be lost if everyone waits around for someone else.” –Timothy D. Snyder
This week’s selections teach us more about the history of the U.S. Constitution and Free Speech, and there’s a lot more to it than what we learned in school.
We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution by Jill Lapore – Jill Lepore, Harvard professor of history and law, explains through a new lens, why the U.S. Constitution is among the oldest constitutions in the world and one of the most difficult to amend.
Lepore contends that the framers never intended for the Constitution to be preserved, like a butterfly, under glass, but expected future generations would tinker with it, hoping to mend America by amending its Constitution through an orderly deliberative, democratic process.
“One of the Constitution’s founding purposes was to prevent change,” Lepore writes. “Another was to allow for change without violence.” Thousands of amendments have been introduced since 1789, but only twenty-seven have been ratified–the last meaningful amendment was in 1971.
Lepore’s history seeks to rekindle a sense of constitutional possibility.
What is Free Speech: The History of a Dangerous Idea by Fara Dabhoiwal – Every premodern society, from Sumeria to seventeenth–century Europe, knew that words could destroy lives, undermine social order, and create political unrest.
Given the obvious dangers of outspokenness, regulating speech and print was universally accepted as a necessary activity of government. In the 1700s this old way began to break down. In a brief span of time, the freedom to use words as one pleased was reimagined as an ideal to be held and defended in common.
Though free speech has become a central democratic principle, its origins and evolution have less to do with the high-minded pursuit of liberty and truth than with the self-interest of the wealthy, the greedy, and the powerful. Free speech, as we know it, is a product of the pursuit of profit, of technological disruption, of racial and imperial hypocrisy, and of the contradictions involved in maintaining openness while suppressing falsehood. For centuries, its shape has everywhere been influenced by international, not just national, events; nowhere has it ever been equally available to women, the colonized, or those stigmatized as racially inferior.
Rejecting platitudes about the First Amendment and its international equivalents, and leaving no ideological position undisturbed, What Is Free Speech? is the unsettling history of an ideal as cherished as it is misunderstood.
Upcoming Events
Mondays:
Percussion Workshop with Joe Watts: December 29 at 12 noon. Join musician Joe Watts of Electric Moon to have a dynamic, hands-on and fun musical experience learning basic rhythm!
Tuesdays:
Craft & Chat: Tuesdays, 5-7 PM. Bring your own craft/project and socialize with other crafters while you work!
Yoga at the Library: Tuesdays, through December 16 at 5:45 PM. Bring your yoga mat, water bottle, and a towel. $5 per class payable to Dave Sivley (269-365-6315). Appropriate for ages 12 & up (ages 12-16 should be accompanied by a responsible adult.)
Wednesdays:
Noon Year’s Eve: December 31 10 AM – 1 PM. Ring in the new year with fun for all ages and still make it to bed on time! Specialty flavored sodas, prize drawings for our year-long reading challenge, games, music bingo, and a countdown celebration at noon! The library will be closing at 2 PM.
Thursdays:
Community Read: Ice Hunter by Joseph Heywood. December 18 at 5:30 PM. Check out a copy to read in advance and then join us for a prerecorded video of the author discussing the development of this novel, followed by lively community discussion with other local readers!
Fridays:
Story Hour: Fridays at 1 through May 14 (breaks follow the school calendar – no story time on Nov 28). Join Ms. Liz and Ms. Lexi for music, movement, stories & crafts intended for ages 0-5 and their parents/caregivers.
Lego at the Library: Fridays 3:00-4:30 PM. Build & create with our Lego & Duplo collections! All ages are welcome!
Saturdays:
Tech Time: Saturday Dec 13 and 20 from 10 AM-1 PM. Are you struggling with your phone? Do you need help with mel.org, the Libby App or the Marcellus Library Catalog? Drop in the library to ask Justin your IT related questions and learn to navigate your device or our computers!
Dog Man Day: December 20, 10AM-2PM. If you love Dave Piley’s Dog Man series, drop in the library for board games, puzzles, a showing of the Dog Man movie, and of course, to check out the latest Dog Man & Big Jim books!
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