I recently signed a contract to write a book about the Bill of Rights for my favorite publisher (Abrams). It’s called Rebels, Robbers, and Radicals: The Story of the Bill of Rights and it’s for young readers, middle grade level.
Here is how I began the proposal:
The Bill of Rights—which includes the guarantee that no person may be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law—was written by enslavers who themselves deprived others of life, liberty, and property without due process of law.
At the same time, the Bill of Rights presents a soaring and far-reaching vision of fundamental and inalienable human rights. It contains one of our history’s most enduring themes: The idea that all people should be allowed to live in freedom and with dignity. In the words of constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar, the Bill of Rights “stands at the high temple of our constitutional order—America’s Parthenon.”
Therein lies the central paradox of the Bill of Rights. The struggle to resolve this paradox continues to the present day.
I also have a book on Disinformation coming out in February:
To read more about A Firehose of Falsehood, click here.