The United States was founded in response to discontent with social, political, cultural and economic systems. As a result, social discontents themselves became legitimated through the making of the Constitution. This year’s Constitution Day panel considers “discontents” as they are shaped by the American constitutional framework. We will discuss how broad understandings of “liberties” and specific understandings of “rights” contribute to today’s discontents. Panelists will explore how citizens’ discontents are codified in laws, cultures and practices, and how we might re-think the constitution according to how American discontents are framed and enacted.

Speakers

Rich Benjamin
Political analyst, cultural anthropologist, author

Rosina Lozano
Associate Professor of History, Princeton University

Rhacel Salazar Parreñas
Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies, University of Southern California

Patricia Fernández-Kelly (moderator)
Professor of Sociology, Princeton University; Associate Director, Effron Center for the Study of America