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Join WDET in reading the text that shaped our country.
This summer, WDET invites the Detroit region to examine and discuss the text that impacts every resident of the United States: The Constitution. At a time when the political divide seems like an insurmountable gulf and facts are up for debate, WDET aims to deliver on our commitment to community service by increasing understanding of the U.S. Constitution, its origins and intent, and its relevance today.
Every summer, WDET engages the community in reading and creating a dialogue around a book, including Ralph Ellison’s “Invisible Man,” Dr. Mona Hanna Attisha’s “What The Eyes Don’t See,” and Matthew Desmond’s “Evicted.”
While not technically a book, WDET will dedicate resources to helping our community better understand the Constitution and the context in which they were drafted and subsequently interpreted. The program will run from the Fourth of July through Constitution Day (September 17). Detroit Today, hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Stephen Henderson, will bring on legal experts and historians to help unpack the meaning of these important documents. Our award-winning news team will provide insight into how contemporary issues, including redistricting, Charter revisions, and more, are rooted in the Constitution. Even our music programs are getting in on the action with playlists dedicated to the Constitution.
We invite you to read along, engage in civil conversations with your community, deepen your understanding of the documents that have served as a foundation for our country and consider what the future of our democracy holds.
Take a deeper dive.
Check out these podcasts, books, films and more to help you better understand the Constitution.
Are you a parent, caregiver or teacher? Get your kids engaged with these books, lesson plans and activities.
Listen to the Constitutional playlist:
This project made possible with support from:
Mary Ann and Carl Fontana
Laura M. Segal
View Related Content:
Detroit Today
- Announcing the 2021 WDET Book Club: The Constitution
- Former U.S. Prosecutor Barbara McQuade Reflects on How Constitution Advances Issues of Inequality
- How the Constitution Shapes Equality and Inequality in America in 2021
- Racial Equality and the U.S. Constitution: Scholars on Shortcoming That Need to Be Addressed
- U.S. Constitution’s Intentional Omission of Voting Rights Creates Problems for Democracy Today
- How the U.S. Consitution Has Shaped Marriage from Exclusion to Equality
- Experts Debate Second Amendment’s Effects on Equality, Inequality in the United States
- The First Amendment Faces Tests Amid Black LIves Matter Protests, Insurrection
- How the U.S. Constitution Does and Does Not Protect Your Privacy
- What the U.S. Constitution Says About Immigration
- How the U.S. Supreme Court Has Shaped Our Understanding of the Constitution
- #SistersInLaw Podcast Hosts Dig Into How Constitution Shapes Criminal Justice Reform
- What the U.S. Constitution Says and Doesn’t Say About Truth
News
- The People’s Constitution
- Amending the U.S. Constitution is Easier Said Than Done
- The Constitution Protects a Well Regulated Militia. Efforts to Clarify Began Shortly After
- The Constitution Prohibits Excessive Bail and Fines, But Minors in Michigan Face Hefty Fees
- Metro Detroiters Share Their Citizenship Journey
- How the Second Amendment Built In Inequity in the Nation’s Gun Laws
- The Fight for a Right to Education: How the Courts Have Shaped Schools and Society
- Free Speech Carries Costs for Elections, Protests and Vaccines
- Local Leaders Try to Undo Racism Embedded in Constitution By Seeking Reparations
- What the Constitution Has to Do with Mail Delays in Detroit