Akhil Reed Amar: Born Equal
Wed Feb 04 2026
In this episode of Library Talks, prizewinning constitutional historian Akhil Reed Amar talks about his new book Born Equal: Remaking America's Constitution, 1840–1920.
Born Equal recounts the dramatic constitutional debates that unfolded across eight decades, across those eight decades four amendments abolished slavery, secured Black and female citizenship, and extended suffrage regardless of race or gender. An ambitious narrative history and a work of legal and political analysis, Born Equal is a new portrait of America's winding road toward equality.
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In this episode of Library Talks, prizewinning constitutional historian Akhil Reed Amar talks about his new book Born Equal: Remaking America's Constitution, 1840–1920. Born Equal recounts the dramatic constitutional debates that unfolded across eight decades, across those eight decades four amendments abolished slavery, secured Black and female citizenship, and extended suffrage regardless of race or gender. An ambitious narrative history and a work of legal and political analysis, Born Equal is a new portrait of America's winding road toward equality.