Document Type
Article
Comments
“How America’s Constitution Affirmed Freedom of Speech Even Before the First Amendment,” 38 Cap. U. L. Rev. 503 (2010)
Abstract
In this essay, I hope to say a little something about both constitutional substance and constitutional method. Substantively, I shall try to bring into view a heretofore hidden argument in support of the constitutional right of Americans to engage in a robust, wide-open, virtually uncensored conversation about government and society-a conversation in which participants may let fly scathing criticisms (and tart defenses, for that matter) of the status quo. Methodologically, I hope to show how this hidden argument travels through a recognizable version of standard originalism, but with some interesting twists.
Date of Authorship for this Version
2010
Recommended Citation
Amar, Akhil Reed, "How America’s Constitution Affirmed Freedom of Speech Even Before the First Amendment" (2010). Faculty Scholarship Series. 787.
https://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/fss_papers/787