"Conversations on the Constitution: The Bill of Rights, " Sep. 16 (W) at 3:30pm

[Daniel Lake]

 *The Institute for Ethics in Public Life invites you to join us for
"Conversations on the Constitution: The Bill of Rights," on Wednesday, Sep.
16, at 3:30pm with special guest Dr. Ray Carman, Assoc. Prof. and Chair of
Political Science, in person or on Zoom.*

The Constitution is the founding document of US democracy, yet most of us
have probably not read it or thought much about what it says or why.
Understanding how our government was supposed to function and why the
founders set it up that way is particularly important today due to the
ongoing battles over government powers playing out in the courts and
society.

For the fifth of the "conversations on the Constitution" hosted at the
Institute, and the first of the 2026-27 academic year, we will be
discussing civil liberties and the Bill of Rights
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights/what-does-it-say&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1789562925857124&usg=AOvVaw1ucaRa2MfKLxvzXjdB_8-3>.
The "Bill of Rights" is the first ten amendments to the Constitution, and
was a response to opposition to the ratification of the Constitution
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights/how-did-it-happen&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1789562925857124&usg=AOvVaw3tir-QrBmI6p_1_-i_KTnK>.
Many Americans opposed the Constitution because it did not contain a Bill
of Rights that specifically limited the powers of the federal government.
While supporters of the Constitution such as James Madison, who drafted the
proposed amendments, did not think a Bill of Rights was necessary (arguing
that the federal government only had the powers granted by the
Constitution), Madison became a fierce advocate for the passage of the
proposed amendments (12 were originally submitted to the states for
ratification) after he saw how important spelling out these rights were to
voters.

The Bill of Rights is also important for how it reflects and builds upon
the Declaration of Independence. While the institutional structure of the
US government laid out in the Constitution reflected both the problems of
the overly weak government established by the Articles of Confederation and
the desire to prevent monarchical tyranny (as critiqued in the
Declaration), the Bill of Rights directly refer back to several of the
grievances expressed in the Declaration.

Note: the 5th Amendment's Due Process Clause is the subject of a future
"Conversation on the Constitution" along with the Equal Protection Clause,
currently scheduled for Oct. 14.

Dr. Raymond V. Carman, Jr., is Assoc. Prof. and Chair of Political Science.
He teaches courses on public law, constitutional law, civil rights and
liberties, legal research and writing, and judicial politics. He is the
author of Making Good Law or Good Policy?: The Causes and Effects of State
Supreme Court Judges’ Role Orientations (Springer 2017).

Please join us in person in the Thomas Moran Seminar Room of the Institute
for Ethics in Public Life (Hawkins 233) or on Zoom (see below).

Topic: Conversations on the Constitution: The Bill of Rights
Time: Sep 16, 2026 03:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/82527528365
<https://www.google.com/url?q=https://plattsburgh.zoom.us/j/82527528365&sa=D&source=calendar&ust=1789562925857124&usg=AOvVaw12wPQp7iJbDg7D6lncmtSs>

Meeting ID: 825 2752 8365


-- 

*Daniel Lake*

(pronouns: he/him/his)

Professor of Political Science

Director, Institute for Ethics in Public Life

Hawkins 149A

101 Broad Street
<https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g>

Plattsburgh, NY 12901
<https://maps.google.com/?q=101+Broad+Street+Plattsburgh,+NY+12901&entry=gmail&source=g>

(o) 518-564-5833 <(518)%5645833>

*plattsburgh.edu <http://plattsburgh.edu/>*
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