Visions of Liberty: The Bill of Rights for All Americans

Words and pictures combine here to eloquently depict the struggle for human rights in America. The first chapter traces the roots in English law and colonial experience of the Bill of Rights, ``the starting point'' and ``single most crucial event'' in the development of Americans' concept of basic, inalienable individual liberties. Then Glasser, director of the American Civil Liberties Union, provides detailed discussion of such broad topics as free speech, religious freedom, fair legal proceedings and racial equality. Photographs by Adelman, whose work has appeared in Time , Life and other newsmagazines, appear at the beginning of each chapter. The text is uniformly good; the section explaining the importance of the 1896 Supreme Court decision Plessy v . Ferguson , which permitted segregated facilities in clear violation of the 14th Amendment, is superior. But the final chapter on extending constitutionally guaranteed rights to all Americans could have included more on recent cases involving gays, the homeless and America's underclass. ( Nov. )