HIST 354 Americans and Their Constitution

This is a course about how the American people - not judges and lawyers, but the public at large, beyond the courtroom - have understood and argued about their Constitution over the last almost two and a half centuries. We start with the drafting of the 1787 text and follow how Americans ever since then have celebrated and denigrated, amended and debated the nation's fundamental law. Who has the authority to interpret the Constitution, and how should they do so? How have Americans used arguments about the Constitution as they grappled with issues like slavery, economic regulation, and free speech?