Converging Dialogues #463 - Remaking America's Constitution: A Dialogue with Akhil Reed Amar
Jan 4, 2026
Akhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law at Yale, unpacks the U.S. Constitution's evolution from 1840 to 1920. He argues for America as a 'creedal nation' rooted in equality while exploring the implications of the three-fifths clause on electoral processes. Amar discusses key historical figures like Lincoln and the significance of the Reconstruction Amendments, intertwining the narratives of slavery, civil rights, and women’s suffrage. His insights reveal how constitutional history shapes modern America and its identity.
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America As A Creeded Nation
- America functions as a creedal nation organized around the proposition that "all men are created equal."
- Akhil Reed Amar argues people join the nation by adopting its creed, not by blood or origin.
Madison's Notes Reopened Founding Debates
- Madison's published 1840 notes revealed Philadelphia's behind-closed-doors compromises on slavery.
- Those notes re-shaped mid-19th-century debate by making the Constitution's slavery compromises visible.
Three-Fifths As A Political Compromise
- The Three-Fifths Clause was a political compromise to apportion representation between North and South.
- It gave slave states extra clout but wasn't about equality; its publication later exposed its moral and political cost.
