Utah State History Professor Dan McInerney presented a historical perspective on the Bill of Rights. His first point was that the context of the lecture was the history of the subject, not the legal ramifications. McInerney painted an interesting, and to most, a surprising picture of the social climate when the first 10 amendments to the Constitution were adopted in 1791.

Professor McInerney delineated 10 "surprises" that most people now are unaware of:

1. The Bill of Rights was the product of suspicion and distrust, not confidence and security. Advocates were NOT confident in the continued blessings of liberty. They feared the impending collapse of liberty -- not because of anything the people might do, but because of what the government might do. They were doubtful, fearful, even paranoid about the new federal government.
2. The original proponents were more interested in states' rights than individual rights. Some historians take the argument further, claiming that proponents were not trying to restrict all government; they wanted to restrict a particular level of government. Rather than protecting individual liberties against government power in general, advocates of a Bill of Rights wanted to protect states' rights from federal encroachment
3. There was strong opposition to a bill of rights. The Bill of Rights was REDUNDANT. There already was a "bill of rights": the Constitution! (Hamilton wrote, "The Constitution is itself, in every rational sense, and to every useful purpose, a bill of rights.") It already protected privileges and rights, protected the most important privileges and rights in a republican system: the right of habeas corpus (to prevent wrongful detention); the prohibition of ex post facto laws (that defined an act as a crime after it happened); and the prohibition of titles of nobility.
4. The Bill of Rights was not, originally, ten amendments added to the constitution. Originally, states and political leaders offered over 200 proposals! Madison whittled that number down to 17 and submitted them to Congress. The House approved all 17 amendments; the Senate, by rejecting some of the House proposals, and combining others, dropped the number to 12. Recall, also, that the Senate dropped the one amendment Madison thought most important: the one concerning state government infringement on conscience and press.
5. The 1^st amendment was not "first." The original first amendment to the Constitution had nothing to do with the stirring guarantees of free speech, press, assembly and the free exercise of religion that we know today. Instead, it concerned a clunky mathematical formula for proportional representation in the House. The original second amendment dealt with Congressional pay: it would have prevented Congressmen who voted themselves a raise from collecting until after the next election. The states rejected both ideas.
6. The amendments do not declare rights clearly and comprehensively. They are filled with ambiguities. In trying to decipher the Bill of Rights, we ought to turn to experience rather than language for the meaning of the text. The amendments, seemingly specific injunctions, are not self-defining and do not necessarily exclude exceptions. There were probably no constitutional absolutes in 1791 and no guarantees that were clear and precise in meaning. It is tough to construe ambiguities strictly.
7. For most of American history, most Americans have not paid much attention to the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights has been around for 200 years. But when historians consider the effect of the first ten amendments on America's political culture, the two centuries do not seem to have made all that great an impression. For most of American history, most Americans have either slighted, disregarded, or ignored the Bill of Rights.
8. Some of the key "founding fathers" did not think much of the Bill of Rights. In June 1789, Madison rose in the House to present formal proposals for Constitutional amendments. Other speakers followed. Every one either opposed the Bill of Rights or tried to postpone discussion; they felt "there were several matters before them of more importance. The discussion would take up more time than the House could now spare."
9. In the 1790's, some states did not approve the Bill of Rights. Connecticut, Georgia, and Massachusetts never got around to ratifying the Bill of Rights until the sesquicentennial of the Constitution in 1939!
10. The actual document has been treated carelessly. There were copies of the Bill of Rights made for each state, plus one for Congress. Each copy was signed by Vice-President John Adams (the President of the Senate) and Speaker of the House Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg. Congress did not handle its copy in a particularly reverential way as historian Michael Kammen notes. In 1789, the Secretary of State was named custodian for the Declaration, the Constitution, and (later) the Bill of Rights. The documents were bundled with scores of other government papers, shuttled around from New York City to Philadelphia to D.C., and housed where few people could see them. From 1875 to 1921, the Constitution was kept in a cellar. Finally, in 1921, the Declaration and Constitution were transferred to the care of the Library of Congress. But the Bill of Rights stayed in a basement in a plain green cabinet. And the states? Five of them, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Maryland, New York, and North Carolina, can't find their copies of the Bill of Rights!

There are ten surprises about the Bill of Rights. I mean no disrespect towards the amendments by noting these historical curiosities. I'm very grateful that we have a Bill of Rights, because of 4 key achievements of the amendments:

1. Although it took many weeks for the first Congress to take up the business of the Bill of Rights, it is important to recognize that one of the first acts of the new national government was to limit its authority. That's a remarkable story in any historical period.
2. The first ten amendments stated popular rights in a dramatically new way. Most states expressed their bills of rights in the subjunctive voice: "Liberty of the press ought not be restrained." How do you like the sound of that? Does it fill you with confidence? I don't think I'd pay my magazine subscriptions too far in advance. The Bill of Rights makes its points in a far different manner, not in the subjunctive voice but in the declarative or imperative voice: Congress shall or shall not. The old expression holds true: it's not just what you say, it's how you say it.
3. Passage of the Bill of Rights helped ease years of debate over America's form of national government. It made the new, enlarged, unprecedented experiment in republicanism more acceptable. It provided a sense of legitimacy that the new government badly needed. In practical terms, when Congress passed measures in Sept. 1789, it helped encourage "hold-out" states (NC and RI) to finally join the Union.
4. Over time, the amendments have hindered the government's power from extending over the thoughts and consciences of citizens.

Professor McInerney's presentation was sponsored by the Utah Humanities Council as part of its Front Porch Series.