A BILL OF RIGHTS . . . 'WOULD GIVE GREAT QUIET TO THE PEOPLE.'

                      —GEORGE MASON

The Constitution, as it was written, provided rules for running the Government that have endured for more than 200 years. But the Constitution did not contain a declaration of human rights. Americans demanded that protection of human rights be spelled out in their Constitution. On December 15, 1791, about one year after the Constitution had been ratified, the Bill of Rights was added to the document. This book tells the story of how the Bill of Rights was born and what it means to all Americans.

From the Weekly Reader edition