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PBS’ Constitution USA set is a fun 4-hour civics lesson

Constitution USA
Constitution USA

What is it? Constitution USA, four hour-long episodes on two discs from PBS

When? Tuesday

How much? $29.99

Sounds appropriate for the Fourth of July holiday. Yes, it is. Though I certainly hope that you know that July 4, 1776, was the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution came 11 years, two months, 13 days and one war later.

This PBS series is an in depth look at what one of the experts calls the historical equivalent of the Big Bang. While it may be almost 226 years old, the document is a living, changing, growing thing.

The word “constitutional” is thrown around a lot today, frequently in heated debates over hot-button topics such as same-sex marriage, gun control and free speech. But what does the Constitution actually say? What does it mean? What did the founding fathers intend when they framed it during those four long, hot months in 1787?

National Public Radio host Peter Sagal tries to answer those questions as he travels the country on a custom motorcycle.

The show is divided into four parts:

A More Perfect Union: Sagal visits Hoover Dam and Little Rock Central High School, among other places, to examine the delicate balance between state and federal government.

It’s a Free Country: Sagal turns his attention to the Bill of Rights and its dust-stirring topics like free speech, freedom of religion and criminal procedure.

Created Equal: The 14thAmendment provides background on the struggle for equality, from the Civil War and the civil rights movement to today’s battles over immigration, affirmative action and same-sex marriage.

Built to Last?: What’s the future of the Constitution? It faces some major challenges, particularly with the polarization and stalemate in which we seem to be hopelessly mired.

Sounds like a civics lesson. Well, it is, in a way. But it’s not a dry, boring recitation of dates, facts and dead men’s names.

Sagal is a funny, casual and smart host and the experts he talks with, like the Yale law professor whose love for the document is passionate and contagious, are able to boil down the complexities of the Constitution’s language, history and intent into layman’s language.

The point is to make this all entertaining and accessible and to stimulate debate. The series and the experts don’t answer questions as much as give viewers context and facts to make a more informed decision. In a time and place where the battles over issues just seem to get louder and more polarized, it’s helpful to have informed individuals setting it all out in plain, simple English.

Just as helpful, Sagal talks to Average Joe citizens whose lives have been affected, for better or worse, by some of these Constitutional battles, such as the fireman who sued his town when Affirmative Action went too far and the young woman who, at 16, was arrested under the Patriot Act. Some are particularly moving, like the story of the man who sued Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., for picketing at the funeral of his son, who was killed in Iraq, as an anti-gay protest.

It’s not all serious. The series makes generous use of silly graphics - like using dogs playing poker to explain the system of checks and balances.

What really comes out in the end, no matter on what side of the issues these people fall, is a love and respect for this country and its possibilities. As a Somalian immigrant says, it’s not perfect, but it’s a country that is constantly trying to be better, and that alone is something to be proud of.

Are there extras? Yes. There’s a 7-minute behind the-scenes piece with producer interviews. There’s also a short interview with Sagal and a few additional interview segments that were apparently trimmed from the episodes for time reasons.

New this week: The Dick Van Dyke Show, Season 4; The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Complete Series.

Next week: Bonanza, Season 6; Dynasty, Season 7; How the States Got Their Shapes, Season 2; Portlandia, Season 3; Quincy, M.E., Season 6; Unforgettable, Season 1; Warehouse 13, Season 4.

Style, Pages 46 on 06/30/2013

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