A More Perfect Union

"Many people have wondered why I've been speaking out on controversial issues for the last few years. They say I've neve... (more)

"Many people have wondered why I've been speaking out on controversial issues for the last few years. They say I've never held political office. I'm not a constitutional scholar. I'm not even a lawyer. All I can say to that is 'Guilty as charged.' It's true that I've never voted for a budget America could not afford. I've never raised anyone's taxes. And I've never promised a lobbyist anything in exchange for a donation. Luckily, none of that really matters. Our founding fathers didn't want a permanent governing class of professional politicians. They wanted a republic, in Lincoln's words, 'of the people, by the people, and for the people.' A country where any farmer, small-business owner, manual laborer, or doctor could speak up and make a difference. I believe that making a difference starts with understanding our amazing founding document, the U.S. Constitution. And as someone who has performed brain surgery thousands of times, I can assure you that the Constitution isn't brain surgery. The founders wrote it for ordinary men and women, in clear, precise, simple language. They intentionally made it short enough to read in a single sitting and to carry in your pocket. I wrote this book to encourage every citizen to read and think about the Constitution, and to help defend it from those who misinterpret and undermine it. In our age of political correctness it's especially important to defend the Bill of Rights, which guarantees our freedom to speak, bear arms, practice our religion, and much more. The Constitution isn't history--it's about your life in America today. And defending it is about what kind of country our children and grandchildren will inherit. I hope you'll enjoy learning about the fascinating ways that the founders established the greatest democracy in history--and the ways that recent presidents, congresses, and courts have threatened that democracy. As the Preamble says, the purpose of the Constitution is to create a more perfect union. My goal is to empower you to help protect that union and secure the blessings of liberty."--Book jacket. (less)

"When Henry O'Toole escapes the Irish famine and sails to America, he doesn't expect the anti-Irish prejudices that awai... (more)

"When Henry O'Toole escapes the Irish famine and sails to America, he doesn't expect the anti-Irish prejudices that await him. Determined to never starve again, he changes his name to Henry Taylor to secure a job and safeguard his future. Travelling south to Virginia, he meets Sarah, a slave woman torn from her family and sold to another plantation. There she must navigate the power system of the white masters as well as the hierarchy of her fellow slaves. Even though Henry's white skin represents the oppression Sarah suffers under, and even though having Sarah at his side would force Henry to abandon his hopes of prosperity, their attraction is undeniable. They soon fall in love, but in 1849 on a Virginian plantation, interracial love is considered an illegal abomination. No matter how much they want to be together, Sarah is trapped on Jubilee Plantation and owned by another man"-- (less)

"America is at a pivotal crossroads. The soul of our nation is at stake and in peril. The process of healing and creatin... (more)

"America is at a pivotal crossroads. The soul of our nation is at stake and in peril. The process of healing and creating a more perfect union in our nation must start now and must always be tied to cocreating a more just and inclusive nation. The moral vision cast by Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders of the Beloved Community, which animated and galvanized the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, provides a transformational way forward. In [this book], Rev. Adam Russell Taylor, president of Sojourners, reimagines a contemporary version of the Beloved Community that will inspire and unite Americans across generations, geographic and class divides, racial and gender differences, faith traditions, and ideological leanings. In the Beloved Community, neither privilege nor punishment is tied to race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or economic status, and everyone is able to realize their full potential and thrive. Building the Beloved Community requires living out a series of commitments, such as true equality, radical welcome, ubuntu interdependence, E Pluribus Unum ('out of many, one'), environmental stewardship, nonviolence, and dignity for all. The pursuit of the Beloved Community can help cure deep polarization and partisanship that is crippling our politics and culture, enabling our nation to live up to its best ideals and realize a more perfect union" -- (less)

"Poems at once angry and tender explore motherhood, race, sexuality, and a Black woman's complicated relationship with h... (more)

"Poems at once angry and tender explore motherhood, race, sexuality, and a Black woman's complicated relationship with her country"-- (less)

Explains the basic principles of the Constitution and the freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, explaining how chec... (more)

Explains the basic principles of the Constitution and the freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, explaining how checks and balances function in a working democracy and the challenges posed by recent political and judicial leadership. (less)

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When too many bodies start showing up around a skeletal skyscraper structure, the ironworkers union come under suspicion... (more)

When too many bodies start showing up around a skeletal skyscraper structure, the ironworkers union come under suspicion. (less)

"Many people have wondered why I've been speaking out on controversial issues for the last few years. They say I've neve... (more)

"Many people have wondered why I've been speaking out on controversial issues for the last few years. They say I've never held political office. I'm not a constitutional scholar. I'm not even a lawyer. All I can say to that is 'Guilty as charged.' It's true that I've never voted for a budget America could not afford. I've never raised anyone's taxes. And I've never promised a lobbyist anything in exchange for a donation. Luckily, none of that really matters. Our founding fathers didn't want a permanent governing class of professional politicians. They wanted a republic, in Lincoln's words, 'of the people, by the people, and for the people.' A country where any farmer, small-business owner, manual laborer, or doctor could speak up and make a difference. I believe that making a difference starts with understanding our amazing founding document, the U.S. Constitution. And as someone who has performed brain surgery thousands of times, I can assure you that the Constitution isn't brain surgery. The founders wrote it for ordinary men and women, in clear, precise, simple language. They intentionally made it short enough to read in a single sitting and to carry in your pocket. I wrote this book to encourage every citizen to read and think about the Constitution, and to help defend it from those who misinterpret and undermine it. In our age of political correctness it's especially important to defend the Bill of Rights, which guarantees our freedom to speak, bear arms, practice our religion, and much more. The Constitution isn't history--it's about your life in America today. And defending it is about what kind of country our children and grandchildren will inherit. I hope you'll enjoy learning about the fascinating ways that the founders established the greatest democracy in history--and the ways that recent presidents, congresses, and courts have threatened that democracy. As the Preamble says, the purpose of the Constitution is to create a more perfect union. My goal is to empower you to help protect that union and secure the blessings of liberty."--Book jacket. (less)