Liberty's First Crisis: Adams, Jefferson, and the Misfits Who Saved Free Speech

Description: Product Description When the United States government passed the Bill of Rights in 1791, its uncompromising protection of speech and of the press were unlike anything the world had ever seen before. But by 1798, the once-dazzling young republic of the United States was on the verge of collapse: partisanship gripped the weak federal government, British seizures threatened American goods and men on the high seas, and war with France seemed imminent as its own democratic revolution deteriorated into terror. Suddenly, the First Amendment, which protected harsh commentary of the weak government, no longer seemed as practical. So that July, President John Adams and the Federalists in control of Congress passed an extreme piece of legislation that made criticism of the government and its leaders a crime punishable by heavy fines and jail time. InLiberty’s First Crisis, writer Charles Slack tells the story of the 1798 Sedition Act, the crucial moment when high ideals met real-world politics and the country’s future hung in the balance.From a loudmouth in a bar to a firebrand politician to Benjamin Franklin’s own grandson, those victimized by the Sedition Act were as varied as the country’s citizenry. But Americans refused to let their freedoms be so easily dismissed: they penned fiery editorials, signed petitions, and raised liberty poles,” while Vice President Thomas Jefferson and James Madison drew up the infamous Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions, arguing that the Federalist government had gone one step too far.Liberty’s First Crisis vividly unfolds these pivotal events in the early life of the republic, as the Founding Fathers struggled to define America off the page and preserve the freedoms they had fought so hard to create. Review Praise for Liberty's First CrisisJust a few years after the 1791 adoption of the First Amendment . . . the Federalists in the John Adams administration felt sufficiently threatened by their opposition that they passed the so-called Sedition Act of 1798, placing limits on scandalous and malicious’ writings or utterances against the government. InLiberty’s First Crisis author Charles Slack revisits that nearly forgotten episode with storytelling flair and a keen eye for the latter-day implications of this early challenge to one of the country’s bedrock principles. . . . In lucid English, Slack mounts a strong case against the contemporary inclination to legislate against speech that might offend.”Boston GlobeSlack does more than just tell the story of the Sedition Act and the political crisis it created; he recasts the story as a chapter in a larger narrative about the philosophical right to be heard even when the opinion offered proves unpopular or even dangerous. . . . The lesson seems clear from Slack’s well-written and well-researched work: Free speech and free expression don’t have to be respected by society, but they must always be protected by law.”Dallas Morning NewsAmong its other virtues,Liberty’s First Crisis presents several healthy reminders that elected officials have always been capable of uncivilized behavior toward their colleagues . . . Slack has written a hearty work of history that is entertaining, educondition info: May contain some writing or highlighting. Ships FAST, directly from !

Price: 25 USD

Location: Leicester, Massachusetts

End Time: 2025-02-01T10:23:23.000Z

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