Themistice

The Bill of Rights—Now in Kid-Sized Portions We talk a lot about the Constitution on this blog. But what if I told you your 10-year-old could understand it too? I'm excited to share that I’ve published a new book called 10 Rights Every Ten-Year-Old Should Know . It’s a short, accessible guide to the Bill of Rights , written specifically for kids—but honestly, adults can learn from it too. Why write a book like this? Because our rights shouldn’t feel like legal secrets. They’re for everyone. And that includes the next generation. The book breaks down each of the first ten amendments in plain language, connecting these core freedoms to situations kids might actually encounter—like school rules, protests, privacy, and more. It’s educational without being preachy, and it’s meant to spark questions, conversations, and curiosity. 📚 Self-published, yes. But not self-serving. This book is about empowering young minds to know what protections they have under the law—and why that matters. ...

Because your phone knows more about you than your best friend—and that’s kinda weird. Let’s be honest: if the Founding Fathers saw us asking Alexa to play our guilty pleasure playlists while TikTok tracks our every blink, they’d probably assume the British finally won. We live in a world where our location, browsing habits, and conversations are collected, stored, and sometimes sold faster than you can say “accept cookies.” So the question becomes: what do our constitutional rights—especially that old Fourth Amendment—say about all this? Can a document written with quills and powdered wigs really protect us from Google, iPhones, and government surveillance drones? Turns out... it can. Sort of. Let’s talk about it. The Fourth Amendment: Your OG Privacy Shield You probably remember this one from civics class—or Law & Order reruns: "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures..." Back in 1791,...

Because democracy shouldn’t come with a price tag—or a pop quiz. If voting in America were a movie, it would be a historical epic with plot twists, villains, unexpected heroes, and a never-ending sequel. It’s the story of how a country said, “We the people,” but spent two centuries figuring out who exactly counted as “the people.” So grab your popcorn (and your voter registration card)—we’re taking a ride from the earliest days of voting rights to the ballot battles of today. 🎩 Act I: Landowners Only, Please When the United States got rolling in the late 1700s, voting was basically a VIP party for white, land-owning men. If you were poor, a woman, Black, Indigenous, or literally anyone else—you were out of luck. The Founders talked a big game about liberty and equality, but when it came to voting, it was a very exclusive club. For example, in 1790, only about 6% of the population could vote. That’s like throwing a party and locking 94% of the guests outside. 🛠️ Act II: Reconstruction...

Because the Constitution didn’t stop with the original 10-track album. Let’s be honest: most of us hear “Bill of Rights” and immediately think, “Ah yes, those ten famous amendments—freedom of speech, no unreasonable searches, trial by jury—got it!” But the Constitution didn’t stop there. Nope. The Founding Fathers might’ve kicked things off, but the rest of America kept writing verses. If the Bill of Rights was the Constitution’s breakout album, the later amendments are the deep cuts and bonus tracks that bring the whole story together. So today, we’re flipping the vinyl to Side B and diving into the amendments that came after the OG ten. Spoiler: some of them are straight-up bangers. 🧹 Amendment 13 (1865): Slavery, Officially Abolished The 13th Amendment is the “enough is enough” moment. It abolished slavery and involuntary servitude—except as punishment for a crime (a little asterisk we’ll get to another time)—and it was passed in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War. Sure, the ...

If the Constitution were an album, the Bill of Rights would be the original vinyl, and the Supreme Court would be the remixer. Over the past two centuries, the Court has spun some absolute bangers—interpretations of the Constitution that fundamentally shaped the way we live and what rights we can count on. From freedom of speech to the right to privacy, here’s a tour of some of the Supreme Court’s biggest civil liberties hits. These cases didn’t just drop the mic—they rewrote the script. Brown v. Board of Education  (1954) – “Separate But Equal” Gets Canceled Before this landmark decision, the idea that schools could be “separate but equal” was the law of the land, thanks to  Plessy v. Ferguson  (1896). Spoiler: they weren’t equal. Then came  Brown . In a unanimous decision, the Court ruled that racial segregation in public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The opinion, delivered by Chief Justice Earl Warren, famously declared that “...

Spoiler: It wasn’t just about citizenship—it’s the secret sauce behind a lot of modern justice. If the U.S. Constitution were a movie cast, the 14th Amendment would be the unsung hero who shows up halfway through the film and saves the day. It may not have the star power of the 1st or 2nd Amendments, but behind the scenes? It’s working overtime—powering everything from school desegregation to same-sex marriage. Let’s unpack this civil rights heavyweight: where it came from, what it does, and why it keeps showing up in Supreme Court blockbusters. Where It All Started: A Post-Civil War Makeover Picture it: 1868. The Civil War is over, slavery is abolished (thanks, 13th Amendment), and America is trying to figure out what "freedom" actually means. Into this legal chaos walks the 14th Amendment. Here’s what it brought to the table: Citizenship for All  – If you’re born or naturalized in the U.S., congratulations, you’re a citizen! (Looking at you, formerly enslaved people.) Due P...

When the Founding Fathers penned the U.S. Bill of Rights in 1791, they probably didn't imagine it would become the hottest legal trend worldwide. Yet, here we are, centuries later, and the Bill of Rights has inspired constitutions across the globe. It's like the Founding Fathers unknowingly created the ultimate international bestseller. 🇫🇷 France: A Revolutionary Remix In the heart of the French Revolution, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen was born. Drafted in part by Thomas Jefferson, this document echoes many principles found in the U.S. Bill of Rights. For instance, both documents champion freedom of speech, religion, and the press. It's like the French took the American original and added their own flair, creating a revolutionary remix that resonated globally. 🇨🇦 Canada: A Neighborly Nod Just north of the U.S., Canada crafted its own Bill of Rights in 1960, influenced by its southern neighbor. The Canadian Bill of Rights guarantees freedoms li...

Because sometimes your “vote” gets passed to a guy who goes rogue. We all love a good electoral plot twist—okay, maybe “love” is strong. But few things get the political drama juices flowing like the  Electoral College , that bizarre group project from 1787 that still picks our presidents. But what happens when one of those electors—those mysterious humans behind the ballots—says, “Nah, I’m good,” and votes for someone  else ? Welcome to the world of  faithless electors —the constitutional glitch you didn’t know existed but now can’t stop thinking about. Let’s dig in. Who  Are  These Electors? When you vote for president, you’re not directly voting for Biden or Trump or whoever’s on the bumper sticker. You’re actually voting for a  slate of electors —real humans—who’ve pledged to vote for that candidate in the Electoral College. Each state gets a number of electors equal to its Senators + Representatives. In total? 538. And a candidate needs  270 ...

Because sometimes the line between church and state is thinner than communion wafers. Ah, religion in America. It's one of those topics that can bring people together—or start a Thanksgiving food fight faster than you can say “pass the stuffing.” And when it comes to  public  life—schools, government, protests, politics—it gets even spicier. Can you pray at a football game? Put up a Ten Commandments statue at city hall? Start a Satan Club at a public school? (Yes, actually—but we’ll get to that.) The First Amendment gives us two major protections:  freedom of religion   and   freedom from government-imposed religion . It’s a balancing act, and the courts have spent centuries trying not to fall off the metaphorical beam. Let’s break down where the line is (usually), when it gets blurry, and why it matters that we keep asking. 🧱 The Wall Between Church and State (Sort of) Let’s start with the basics. The First Amendment says: “Congress shall make no law respectin...

  Because even the highest court in the land sometimes does things… off the record. Okay, imagine this: you're binging a new show, you wake up the next morning, and suddenly—boom—a major Supreme Court decision dropped  in the middle of the night.  No oral arguments, no fiery dissents read from the bench, no dramatic law student podcasts about it yet. Surprise! That’s the  Shadow Docket  at work—and yes, it’s real, and yes, it kind of sounds like a Marvel villain. Let’s dive into what it is, why it exists, and how it’s quietly making some really big decisions while you’re asleep or refreshing TikTok. What  Is  the Shadow Docket? The “Shadow Docket” isn’t a term you’ll find in the Constitution. It was coined in 2015 by law professor William Baude to describe the part of the Supreme Court’s work that flies under the radar:  emergency orders, unsigned rulings, and procedural decisions  that don’t go through the full, traditional hearing process. ...

The Tenth Amendment: States vs. Uncle Sam The Constitution’s Tenth Amendment is all about setting boundaries. It’s not flashy, but it’s foundational to how power is divvied up in the U.S. Let’s dive into what it says and why it matters. The Tenth Amendment states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” This amendment is  all about dividing power between the federal government and the states. The gist is simple: if the Constitution doesn’t give a specific power to the federal government, and it’s not explicitly denied to the states, then the states or the people get to call the shots. Mini Lesson on Federalism: Federalism is the separation of powers between state and federal government. In the very first constitution (the Articles of Confederation), almost all of the power was given to the individual states while little-to-no power was given to the federal gov...