Law professor who rewrote the First and Second Amendments, a free press, and the right to bear arms

Kendall Tietz, DCNF

A law professor argued in the Boston Globe that the First and Second Amendments should be rewritten to change the way it defines press freedom and the right to bear arms.

Mary Anne Franks, a professor at the University of Miami School of Law and author of “The Devotion of the Constitution: Our Deadly Devotion to Guns and Freedom of Speech,” Written An op-ed in the Boston Globe argued that the Constitution has a “competitive interpretation” that “inspires religious-like fervor” leading to “irrational outcomes.”

Franks’ book argues that the Constitution “serves white male supremacy,” Second Amendment is a “conservative cultist” and First Amendment is a “freedom fetish” that is “less obvious but equally influential”, according to the work’s description written by Stanford University Press.

Mary Anne Franks @ma_franks | Neither of the First Amendments is a clear or precise model. https://t.co/CKIU6us2BI

– Boston Globe Ideas (@GlobeIdeas) December 16, 2021

“The First and Second Amendments tend to be interpreted in individualist ways that ignore the conflicting realities of competing rights,” she writes.

She argues that both the First and Second Amendments “would be improved by clearly defining the rights of individuals within the framework of “family tranquility” and “general welfare” outlined in the opening paragraph. head of the Constitution.”

The professor also believes that the First Amendment should make it clear that the right to free speech is “consistent with the rights of others and liable for abuses”.

The Second Amendment “undermines self-defense” because of its “specific and outdated focus on militia and “weapons,” and your right to life is not translated into the right to use firearms. gas, she said.

She proposed amending the Second Amendment to explain that all people have the right to “body autonomy,” including the right to defend themselves against “unlawful force and the right to self-determination in reproductive matters.” property” and the government should take “reasonable measures” to protect public health and safety.

The Franks did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.