American Values ...

WE THE PEOPLE: The 500-Year Battle Over Who Is American by Ben Railton is part of the American Ways Series from Rowman & Littlefield. Railton is Professor of English Studies and Coordinator of American Studies at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts.  In this new text he provides a general introduction, noting that ‘we’ is “an ambiguous pronoun” which has “consistently moved between two poles,” an exclusionary one and an inclusive one. Railton then uses eight chapters to discuss specific “case studies” from the history of the Americas, such as the Conquistadors, later Indian removal, Chinese exclusion, Japanese internment and discrimination against Muslims to illustrate his points, often by citing actions AND reactions of lesser known figures. The xenophobic and white supremacist comments he includes from the 1920s are chilling. Of course, this is also such a timely topic – The New York Times recently ran an article on What Makes an American? and today published a story on changing policy relative to green card holders.  

Although Railton clearly favors one perspective, he advocates for greater understanding and notes a significant number of sources, many of which, like Roger Daniels’ Coming to America, are in our collection and used frequently.  One that Railton neglected to mention is A Place at the Table by Maria Fleming which is similar in that it discusses (although much more briefly) several of the same examples of exclusionary practices in a generally chronological format. Also worth noting is Linda R. Monk’s use of numerous primary sources (and again, a chronological presentation) in her text titled Ordinary Americans that looks more at everyday experiences. Overall, Railton’s additional suggestions appear especially useful in that they encompass a number of publishers and relatively recent titles.  

JEFFERSON, MADISON, AND THE MAKING OF THE CONSTITUTION by Jeff Broadwater is a newly published work from The University of North Carolina Press. Broadwater is an historian who has written texts about James Madison, George Mason and also about other revolutionary founders. This latest work is clearly well-researched (roughly a fourth of the book is notes and source lists) and likely to be of interest to faculty members. Broadwater makes the points “neither Jefferson nor Madison got the Constitution that he really wanted” and offers a thorough exploration of the two men’s “evolution of thought,” particularly in the context of events between 1776 and 1789. 

I originally requested  a preview of this title because I thought it might be used in our Civics classes in order to probe some of the history and concepts related to the Constitution.  Unfortunately, I think Broadwater’s text is too dense and assumes too much prior knowledge of American history (on the part of our students) to be useful in that way for high school classes. Other academics and historians are more likely to appreciate his work in comparing and contrasting these two statesmen, debating, for example Broadwater’s summary comment: “Jefferson left a more profound imprint on the American psyche. Madison made a greater impact on American law.”

History in perspective ...

Here are thoughts on some recent non-fiction books dealing with historical topics:

IF YOU ASK ME by Eleanor Roosevelt contains her “essential advice” on ten issues that reverberate today, including women, race, politics, religion and health.  Based on her advice column which appeared in Ladies Home Journal, this will be a fun – and eye opening – book for students to consult.  Each answer is followed by the date it appeared in brackets, like this: “Do you really think all men are created equal? Yes, but they do not always have an equal opportunity for development, either before or after birth. [November 1943]” IF YOU ASK ME has a short introduction written by one of Roosevelt’s granddaughters, several pages of notes, a bibliography, and suggested additional reading, plus a series of photographs on the end papers.   

Readers, especially students, will be surprised by the relevance to today of many of the comments that “ahead-of-her-time” Eleanor Roosevelt made decades ago. 

HEIRS OF THE FOUNDERS by H. W. Brands is subtitled “The Epic Rivalry of Henry Clay, John Calhoun and Daniel Webster, the Second Generation of American Giants” and focuses on a period of history about which I particularly enjoy reading.  These three men were indeed political titans and skilled orators. Brands does an excellent job of relating key events in their lives, including multiple failed attempts to achieve the Presidency. The debate over nationalism versus states’ rights, plus regional differences (East vs. West and North vs. South) of this era (roughly 1810 to 1850, from the war of 1812 to the Missouri Compromise) are highlighted as well.   

A best-selling author, Brands holds the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin; two of his books, The First American (about Benjamin Franklin) and Traitor to His Class (about FDR), were finalists for the Pulitzer Prize. Teachers and students of American history will find HEIRS OF THE FOUNDERS to be very readable – almost like a novel. It contains pictures of the three men at various ages and of their homes and offers extensive notes and a comprehensive index.  HEIRS OF THE FOUNDERS received a starred review from Library Journal.   

 

IMPEACHMENT: AN AMERICAN HISTORY is the combined work of four authors: Jeffrey A. Engel (who writes about the Constitution and discusses Donald Trump in an Introduction and Conclusion); Jon Meacham (on Andrew Johnson); Timothy Naftali (on Richard Nixon); and Peter Baker (on Bill Clinton).  Clearly, these writers are knowledgeable scholars and have created a powerful text, filled with relevant quotes like this one from Gerald Ford (1970): “What is an impeachable offense? An impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the House of Representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history.” They contrast the circumstances and motivations of the three times when impeachment has been used, arguing that there were strong political motivations in the cases of Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, but more bipartisan support for the clearer case of “high crimes and misdemeanors” involving Richard Nixon’s actions. IMPEACHMENT: AN AMERICAN HISTORY received a starred review from Kirkus ("impeccably researched and well-presented").

On a related note, see also Meacham’s recent reflection in The New York Times on George H. W. Bush. 

Exploring Freedom ...

THE BILL OF RIGHTS by Linda R. Monk is a fabulous resource (as are Monk’s other works in our collection: The Words We Live By and Ordinary Americans).  This new version of THE BILL OF RIGHTS: A User’s Guide has a foreword by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In the initial section, Monk provides a brief history of the Bill of Rights, including its philosophical underpinnings. Each section then describes one of the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution, giving the actual text and an interpretation, plus examples of its application with case studies and excerpts from legal opinions. There also is a chapter devoted to the Fourteenth Amendment which addresses citizenship and equal protection of the laws. Finally, Monk comments briefly on rights in the future: should they be “positive” (a right to education, health care and/or employment) rather than “negative” (forbidding government intervention)? 

Images (photographs, political cartoons and other items) are dispersed throughout and a glossary, bibliography, endnotes and case index are helpfully included.  Students will really value the information in this easy to read text. 

SPEAK FREELY by Keith E. Whittington looks more specifically at the right to free speech on college campuses. Whittington, the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Politics at Princeton University, presents a reasoned discussion in which he says, “The argument I want to develop here is that we should understand free speech as central to the mission of a modern university.”  He goes on to discuss the connections between the mission and free speech, to offer reasons for protecting free speech, to then apply those to some recent controversies, and to explore worries about "viewpoint diversity" on campuses. Whittington provides extensive footnotes and his introduction begins with an eyewitness account of a protest at the University of California, sounding as though it took place recently when in fact it was a 1903 reaction to an appearance by Carrie Nation. This text is filled with valuable examples and will certainly interest students curious about concepts such as trigger warnings and safe spaces, although it seems a bit dry for many others. Kirkus called SPEAK FREELY “a timely defense of intellectual debate and critical thinking.”