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Constitution

Doctor Benjamin Rush As Founding Father

June 24, 2020 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldIn this episode of the Ben Franklin’s World podcast, Stephen Fried, an award-winning journalist and author of Rush: Revolution, Madness, and Benjamin Rush, the Visionary Doctor Who Became a Founding Father (Crown, 2018), joins us to explore the life and deeds of one founder we don’t always talk about, Benjamin Rush.

[Read more…] about Doctor Benjamin Rush As Founding Father

Filed Under: History, New York City Tagged With: American Revolution, Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Medical History, Podcasts, Political History

4-20: New York State’s Forgotten Birthday

April 5, 2020 by Bruce Dearstyne 3 Comments

New York State’s 243rd Birthday is coming up on April 20.

That is the day that the convention of representatives, an outgrowth of the New York Provincial Congress, approved the first state constitution in 1777, at Kingston. (Some people say the appropriate date is actually two days later, April 22. On that day, the convention’s secretary Robert Benson, read the new constitution aloud to Kingston citizens in front of the court house. In effect, Benson’s dramatic reading proclaimed the new state into existence.) [Read more…] about 4-20: New York State’s Forgotten Birthday

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, History, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: American Revolution, AmRev, Constitution, Kingston, Political History

Interpreting the Fourth Amendment

November 6, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldHistory is an important tool when it comes to understanding American law. History is what the justices of the United States Supreme Court use when they want to ascertain what the framers meant when they drafted the Constitution of 1787 and its first ten amendments in 1789. And history is also the tool we use when we want to know how and why the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Constitution and its amendments have changed over time.

[Read more…] about Interpreting the Fourth Amendment

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Constitution, Podcasts, Supreme Court

Creating the Fourth Amendment

October 30, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldThe Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution doesn’t always make headlines, but it’s an amendment that undergirds foundational rights. It’s also an amendment that can show us a lot about the intertwined nature between history and American law.

In this episode of Ben Franklin’s World, the third in our 4th Doing History series, we explore the early American origins of the Fourth Amendment with Thomas Clancy, a Professor Emeritus at the University of Mississippi School of Law and an expert on the Fourth Amendment.
[Read more…] about Creating the Fourth Amendment

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Bill of Rights, Constitution, Early American History, Podcasts

Bill of Rights: Creating the First Ten Amendments

October 23, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldHow and why did Congress draft the First Ten Amendments to the Constitution?

In the United States, we use the Constitution and Bill of Rights to understand and define ourselves culturally. Americans are a people with laws and rights that are protected by the Constitution because they are defined in the Constitution. And the place where the Constitution defines and outlines our rights is within its First Ten Amendments, the Bill of Rights. [Read more…] about Bill of Rights: Creating the First Ten Amendments

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Bill of Rights, Constitution, Early American History, Podcasts, Political History

How The Bill of Rights Developed

October 16, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldLaw is all around us. And the basis of American Law comes not only from our early American past, but from our founding documents.

This episode begins our 4th Doing History series. Over the next four episodes, we’ll explore the early American origins of the Bill of Rights as well as the history of the Fourth Amendment. The Fourth Amendment will serve as our case study so we can see where our rights come from and how they developed from the early American past. [Read more…] about How The Bill of Rights Developed

Filed Under: History Tagged With: American Revolution, Bill of Rights, Civil Rights, Constitution, Early American History, National Archives, Podcasts, Political History

Birthright Citizenship

September 18, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldWho gets to be a citizen of the United States? How does the United States define who belongs to the nation?

Early Americans asked and grappled with these questions during the earliest days of the early republic. [Read more…] about Birthright Citizenship

Filed Under: Books, History Tagged With: African American History, Birthright, Citizens, Citizenship, Constitution, Early America, Early American History, Immigration, Podcasts

Handwritten Draft of NY’s First Constitution in Albany April 15-20

April 12, 2019 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Albany Cultural Education Center State Museum Archives and LibraryThe handwritten manuscript draft of New York State’s 1777 state constitution, adopted in Kingston on April 20, 1777, will be on public display on the 11th floor of the Cultural Education Center, 222 Madison Avenue, Albany, from Monday, April 15 through Saturday, April 20 from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. The display marks the 242nd anniversary of the state constitution and the establishment of New York as a state. [Read more…] about Handwritten Draft of NY’s First Constitution in Albany April 15-20

Filed Under: Capital-Saratoga, Events, History Tagged With: Albany, Constitution, New York State Archives

Copyright & Fair Use in Early America

March 6, 2019 by Liz Covart Leave a Comment

ben_franklins_worldIn the 21st century, we are all creators and users of content. We take original photos with our smartphones, generate blog posts, digital videos, and podcasts. Some of us write books and articles. And nearly everyone contributes content to social media.

Given all of the information and content we generate and use, it’s really important for us to understand the principles of copyright and fair use, principles that have an early American past. [Read more…] about Copyright & Fair Use in Early America

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Constitution, Copyright, Documentary, Early America, Early American History, Fair Use, Media, Podcasts, Publishing, United States

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