Beyond the Burning Cross

A Landmark Case of Race, Censorship, and the First Amendment

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, Civil Rights, History, Americas, United States, 20th Century
Cover of the book Beyond the Burning Cross by Edward J. Cleary, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Edward J. Cleary ISBN: 9780307801265
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group Publication: July 20, 2011
Imprint: Vintage Language: English
Author: Edward J. Cleary
ISBN: 9780307801265
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication: July 20, 2011
Imprint: Vintage
Language: English

Does our abhorrence of racism allow us to ban certain forms of speech? This is the simple yet subversive question that Edward J. Cleary posed to the U.S. Supreme Court when, in 1991, he defended a white student who had burned a cross on a black family's lawn in St. Paul, Minnesota, violating a local ordinance against hate crimes. As a progressive, Cleary detested everything his client stood for. But in this compelling argued book he describes how he overturned the St. Paul ordinance—and convinced the Court to rule that "burning a cross is reprehensible. But St. Paul has sufficient means...to prevent such behavior without adding the First Amendment to the fire."
As Cleary retraces his path from St. Paul to the courtroom in Washington, he juxtaposes the stories of previous First Amendment cases with a personal account of the unlikely alliances (with both the A.C.L.U. and a group engaged in defending the Ku Klux Klan) and antagonisms that grew out of the case. ULtimately, he shows us why a law that bands expressions of racism is as dangerous as a law that bans protests against those expressions. In Beyond the Burning Cross, Leary has given us an unparalleled insider's report of a watershed event in constitutional history that is as absorbing as any thriller.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Does our abhorrence of racism allow us to ban certain forms of speech? This is the simple yet subversive question that Edward J. Cleary posed to the U.S. Supreme Court when, in 1991, he defended a white student who had burned a cross on a black family's lawn in St. Paul, Minnesota, violating a local ordinance against hate crimes. As a progressive, Cleary detested everything his client stood for. But in this compelling argued book he describes how he overturned the St. Paul ordinance—and convinced the Court to rule that "burning a cross is reprehensible. But St. Paul has sufficient means...to prevent such behavior without adding the First Amendment to the fire."
As Cleary retraces his path from St. Paul to the courtroom in Washington, he juxtaposes the stories of previous First Amendment cases with a personal account of the unlikely alliances (with both the A.C.L.U. and a group engaged in defending the Ku Klux Klan) and antagonisms that grew out of the case. ULtimately, he shows us why a law that bands expressions of racism is as dangerous as a law that bans protests against those expressions. In Beyond the Burning Cross, Leary has given us an unparalleled insider's report of a watershed event in constitutional history that is as absorbing as any thriller.

More books from Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Cover of the book Flappers and Philosophers by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Einstein's Monsters by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book India by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Herbert: Poems by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Words Without Borders by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Aama in America by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Near Death in the Desert by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Tales from the Torrid Zone by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book The Coup by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book The Varieties of History by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Ralph Ellison by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book The Marriage-Go-Round by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Talk Talk Talk by Edward J. Cleary
Cover of the book Meditations from a Movable Chair by Edward J. Cleary
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy