This December marks the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment. Banning slavery throughout the United States, the Thirteenth Amendment began a wave of constitutional transformations that many scholars describe as our nation’s “Second Founding,” writing President Lincoln’s promise of “a new birth of freedom” into our Constitution and restoring liberty and equality to a central place in our constitutional order.
This program commemorates this milestone and explores the challenges that remain, including the enduring issue of race. Moderated by Jeffrey Rosen, President, National Constitution Center, panelists include Rep. G.K. Butterfield, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; Judge Bernice Donald, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; Judge James Wynn, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit; Thavolia Glymph, Professor of History, Duke University; author and journalist Richard Brookhiser; and Kate Masur, Professor of History, Northwestern University.
Presented in partnership with the Constitutional Accountability Center and the National Constitution Center.
