Five American Documents All Students Should Read

Together, these five documents showcase the ideas that built America and its journey towards “a more perfect union” – and how we can keep it that way.

Why this list matters: It is the responsibility of every American to understand and participate in the “American Experiment” in self-governance. That experiment is defined by principles found in these documents: liberty, order, pluralism, equality, and justice. To fully engage as a citizen, and to appreciate our constitutional republic, students must understand these precepts and how they shaped – and will keep shaping – the country.

A shocking number of Americans don’t know or understand their own country or its constitutional traditions. This ignorance is especially true of young people. At every level, our schools fail to deliver adequate civic knowledge. Primary documents are one remedy to civic ignorance. Every student should start with these:

1. The Declaration of Independence: Without the Declaration of Independence, there would be no American Experiment. This document, penned by Thomas Jefferson in 1776, asserted our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness while establishing that those rights come from “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” — not from government. It further asserted that power comes from the consent of the governed. Careful reading of the colonies’ list of grievances can awaken students to the rights they take for granted today.

2. The U.S. Constitution & Bill of Rights: These documents provide the structure of American government — as well as its limitations. Close reading of the Constitution demonstrates to students the balance of power necessary to safeguard our liberties and also sows appreciation of the deliberate process created by America’s founders to limit and decentralize power. The Constitution also reveals the philosophical foundations of our republic, including the rule of law, due process, and federalism. All are built into the delicate design of the Constitution itself.

Photo by: Luke Michael (Unsplash)

3. Federalist Papers No. 10: If students can only read one of the Federalist Papers, it should be Number 10 by James Madison, the “Father of the Constitution.” In it, Madison argues that only a large federal government can “control the violence of faction” and prevent the tyranny of the majority. Especially pertinent as Americans become more divided, this essay advises that since differences of opinion are “sown in the nature of man,” we must learn to live together in a carefully constructed pluralist society.

4. The Gettysburg Address: Abraham Lincoln’s short remarks following the Battle of Gettysburg have become one of the most famous speeches in American history. More importantly, Lincoln calls our “new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal” an “unfinished work.” Lincoln’s words emphasize that American ideals, especially the idea of “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” are worth preserving and advancing even in the face of human moral failings.

5. Letter From Birmingham Jail: Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous letter from his Alabama jail cell is a powerful call for justice and “constitutional and God-given rights” for all Americans. Despite its calls for change, the letter is a defense of the principles that shaped our founding. King also outlines the process for nonviolent protest against injustice. His template of fact-finding, negotiation, and direct action is a wise guide for today’s students, who often erroneously believe that censorship and violence are appropriate answers to offensive speech.

THE BOTTOM LINE

In order for students to appreciate and appropriately exercise their rights, privileges, and responsibilities as American citizens, they must first understand them. States should make this civic understanding a priority by adopting legislation modeled on the REACH Act, which requires all public university students to take a civics course grounded in primary documents.