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The U.S. Constitution has a rich history. Just as Americans have struggled through the years to interpret and apply its meaning, scholars have engaged in great debates over the Constitution's legacy. When President George W. Bush signed H.R. 4818, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (Omnibus Spending Bill), on December 8, 2004, nearly all educators were forced into a debate on the Constitution. For buried in the 650-page law was a rider that amended Title 36 of the United States Code (Patriotic National Observances, Ceremonies, and Organizations) that substituted "Constitution Day" for "Citizenship Day." The amendment read: "Each educational institution that receives Federal funds for a fiscal year shall hold an educational program on the United States Constitution on September 17 of such year for the students served by the educational institution." In other words, any school receiving federal funds-from head start to private universities whose students receive federal financial aid-must teach about the Constitution on or around the 17th. This short, nationalistic, and seemingly innocuous amendment had tremendous ramifications. As many educators found out, the law raised more questions than it answered: What constitutes an "educational program?" Who should put on the program? What should be taught?
Before answering these questions, it is helpful to understand the context in which Americans remember and celebrate the Constitution. Of course the first promoters of the document were Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay. They wrote a series of polemics, which were designed to convince state legislatures to adopt the newer constitution and were published from October 1787 to May 1788 as the Federalist. Because of their participation in the Constitutional Convention as well as their eloquent arguments, Hamilton, Madison, and Jay have been inducted into the celebrated club known as the Founding Fathers. What about the three delegates at the Convention who refused to sign the document: Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts and Edmund Randolph and George Mason of Virginia? Should we celebrate Patrick Henry, George Clinton and Samuel Adams, all prominent revolutionary heroes who balked at ratifying the new document? Didn't they provide an important role in shaping the Constitution and its debate? Shouldn't their efforts be remembered? After all, the Federalist was written in response to and anticipation of Anti-Federalist arguments.
Like most good debates, a...