THE 28TH AMENDMENT

ABOUT

The 28th Amendment Project was a yearlong public undertaking by the Brooklyn Public Library that united hundreds of voices during 32 town halls, representing people across diverse backgrounds, to deliberate and exchange ideas on how to strengthen our country and its founding document. 

At each town hall, moderators posed the same three questions:

1. What protections, ideas, or language would you like to see included in the Constitution?

2. In the era of Covid-19, when so much has been revealed or fundamentally changed, what new protections would you like to see included in the Constitution to prepare against future crises?

3. Whoever wins the upcoming presidential election will face a United States that is charged, challenged, and changed in ways like never before. What new Constitutional amendment would you want that president to heed?

Notetakers captured ideas from those conversations, and from their notes, the town hall moderators and our Constitutional Framers created a two-part document of radical proportion that sets forth the People’s response to the pressing needs of our time. In October 2020, BPL released the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on behalf of the people of Brooklyn - 28 years after the last amendment was passed, in 1992. 

Part One is a legal proposal for a 28th Amendment drafted by the Framers: Anand Giridharadas, Susan Herman, Kimberly Peeler-Allen, and Nathaniel Rich. Part Two is a narrative summary, crafted by moderators Brian Tate and Craig Manbauman, that seeks to capture the voices of the people who participated in this project.

THE 28TH AMENDMENT: THE LEGAL PROPOSAL 

Whereas the government of the United States should represent all of the people of the United States equally,

Section 1. The Electoral College shall be abolished and the President selected by popular vote; Senate membership shall be reallocated to reflect more accurately the distribution of the national population, with a minimum of one seat per state; Election Day shall be a national holiday; elections shall be publicly financed. All citizens of the United States, including those living in its territories and the District of Columbia, shall have the same electoral rights and representation as residents of a State; all citizens of voting age shall have the unencumbered right to vote in federal, state, and local elections. Congress shall have the power and obligation to enforce these provisions by appropriate legislation.

Section 2. In recognition of the inherent dignity of all persons, Congress shall have the power and obligation to enact appropriate legislation to secure all rights guaranteed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including the right to education, healthcare, housing, employment, food security, and a clean and healthy environment.

THE 28TH AMENDMENT: THE NARRATIVE TEXT

BPL kept detailed notes of participants' ideas at each 28th Amendment town hall. The following is the edited, narrative text using verbatim quotes from the participants. This text and the notes are the sole sources of the suggested 28th amendment.

Section 1. POLITICAL AND PRESIDENTIAL REFORM

Section 2. THE INSTITUTION OF EQUAL RIGHTS

Section 3. SOCIAL WELFARE AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

Section 4. LABOR REFORM

Section 5. UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE

Section 6. LEGAL AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM

Section 7. REGULATORY REFORM

Section 8: EDUCATION REFORM

Section 9. IMMIGRATION REFORM

Section 10. GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP & EARTH STEWARDSHIP

To view the full document, visit The 28th Amendment.

PROJECT TEAM

Brian Tate, 28th Amendment Drafter, Moderator & Project Advisor  
Craig Manbauman, 28th Amendment Drafter, Moderator & Project Advisor  
Anand Giridharadas, 28th Amendment Framer
Susan Herman, 28th Amendment Framer 
Kimberly Peeler-Allen, 28th Amendment Framer 
Nathaniel Rich, 28th Amendment Framer 
Laszlo Jakab Orsos, Vice President of Arts and Culture, Brooklyn Public Library
Meredith Walters, Director, Programs and Exhibitions Brooklyn Public Library
Brynna Tucker, Senior Manager of Innovation, Brooklyn Public Library

RELATED PROJECTS