On September 17 the United States commemorates the ratification of our Constitution in 1787.  What were the debates that led up to that day?  How has the Constitution changed in the 208 years since?  What does it mean to be a citizen of the United States?

Aleinikoff, T. Alexander and Douglas Klusmeyer.  Citizenship policies for an age of migration.  JF801 .A427 2002

Barbash, Fred.  The founding: A dramatic account of the writing of the Constitution.  KF4520 .B37 1987

Barber, Sotirios A.  On what the Constitution means.  KF4550 .B26 1984

Bernstein, Richard B.  Amending America: if we love the Constitution so much, why do we keep trying to change it?  KF4555 .B47 1993

Citizenship: a bilingual overview of United States history and government (interactive DVD).  In English with Arabic, Farsi, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Somali, Spanish, Vietnamese.  JK1758 .C575x 2003.  In ESL collection

The Constitution of the United States of America (video).   KF4550 .C66x 1993

The documentary history of the ratification of the Constitution.  Volume IX: Ratification of the Constitution by the states: Virginia.  Edited by John P. Kaminski and Gaspare Saladino.  KF4502 .D63 vols. 8 and 9.

Fried, Charles.  Saying what the law is: the Constitution in the Supreme Court.

KF4550 .F728 2004

Friendly, Fred W. and Martha J. H. Elliott.  The Constitution: that delicate balance: landmark cases that shaped the Constitution.  KF4550 .F73 1984

Gerberg, Mort.  The U.S. Constitution for everyone.  KF4527 .U55 1987

Kaminski, John P., ed.  Slavery and the debate over the Constitution. 

KF4545 .S5 N43 1995

Karst, Kenneth L.  Belonging to America: equal citizenship and the Constitution.

KF4700 .K37 1989

Mee, Charles L., Jr.  The genius of the people.   KF4520 .M44 1987

Navarro, Sally A.  How to become a United States citizen.  KF4710 .Z9 S37 2002

Park, John S. W.  Elusive citizenship: immigration, Asian Americans, and the paradox of civil rights.  JV6450 .P35 2004

Peters, William.  A more perfect union: the making of the United States Constitution.   KF4520 .P48 1987

Rakove, Jack N.  Original meanings: politics and ideas in the making of the Constitution.   KF4541 .R35 1996

St. John, Jeffrey.  A child of fortune: a correspondent’s report on the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and the battle for a Bill of Rights.   KF4541 .Z9 S7 1990

The United States Constitution (video).  KF4550 .U553x 1999

Virginia and the Constitution.  Edited by A. E. Dick Howard and Melvin I. Urofsky.  KF4541 .A2 Y57x 1992

We the people: the story of the Constitution (video).  KF4541 .W4x 1997

Video-on-Demand: The Constitution:

The NVCC Television Center makes available two excellent series on the Constitution that you can access and watch on your own computer through video on demand. (A broadband connection is required.) While on the Television Center Web site, be sure to look at the other programs and resources available through Video on Demand or through the NVCC Channel on local cable-tv systems--including the new, "Is Distance Learning for You," produced by the NVCC Television Center.

THE CONSTITUTION: THAT DELICATE BALANCE - (click on VoD to get started) Constitutional issues come to life in this Emmy Award-winning series. Key political, legal, and media professionals engage in spontaneous and heated debates on controversial issues such as campaign spending, the right to die, school prayer, and immigration reform. This series will deepen understanding of the life and power of this enduring document and its impact on history and current affairs, while bringing biases and misconceptions to light. Produced by Columbia University Seminars on Media and Society.
DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA – (click on VoD to get started) This series covers The Civics Framework for the National Assessment of Educational Progress developed by the U.S. Department of Education. The 15 half-hour video programs, hosted by national television correspondent Renée Poussaint, were produced by the Educational Film Center.