When At Times The Mob Is Swayed: A Citizen's Guide to Defending Our Republic

(Hardback)

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From a leading constitutional lawyer who has sued every president since LBJ, a masterful explication of the true pillars of our democracy

On November 9, 2016and again on January 6, 2021many Americans feared that our democracy was on the verge of collapse. But is it In an erudite and brilliant evaluation of the current state of our government, noted constitutional scholar Burt Neuborne administers a stress test to democracy and concludes that our unprecedented sets of constitutional protections, all endorsed by both major parties, stand between us and an authoritarian federal regime: namely the division of powers between the three branches, the rights reserved to the states, and the Bill of Rights.

Neuborne parses the genius of our constitutional system and the ways its built-in resilience will ultimately survive current attempts to dismantle it. While many important issue areaswomens right to choose, LGBTQ rights, separation of church and staterisk erosion, Neuborne argues that the Constitutions inherent defense mechanisms can buy us time. But only an active citizenry will enable us to defend our cherished rights and protections, fulfilling Ben Franklins charge to keep our republic.

Reviews

Praise for When at Times the Mob Is Swayed:
His pragmatic tone and realistic approach to what needs to change, and why, makes for a nuanced discussion of civic minutiae, current affairs and historical context that is approachable.
--Shelf Awareness (Starred Review)

Praise for Burt Neuborne's Madison's Music:
A veteran civil liberties lawyer delivers the sobering message.... Neuborne sees how different readings and interpretations of the Constitution will always cause problems. The Constitution is not above politics; it is often shaped by it.... [T]imely, frightening, and, hopefully, galvanizing reading.
--Kirkus Reviews

Neuborne's elegant book... provides an important guide, grounded in the First Amendment itself, for those working toward an electoral system more deserving of the label of democracy.
--David Cole, The New York Review of Books

[A] detailed history of the transformation of First Amendment law.
--Adam Liptak, The New York Times

A bold new approach to Interpreting the Constitution.
--The Huffington Post

An urgent message that deserves a wide readership.
--Kirkus Reviews

[E]legantly examines James Madison's intent when he initially drafted the First Amendment
--Erwin Chemerinsky, The Chronicle of Higher Education

Author Bio

Burt Neuborne is the Norman Dorsen Professor of Civil Liberties and founding legal director of NYU School of Laws Brennan Center for Justice and has participated in more than two hundred cases in the U.S. Supreme Court. Neuborne is the author of Madisons Music and When at Times the Mob Is Swayed: A Citizens Guide to Defending Our Republic (both from The New Press) and lives in New York.