Forty-five words guarantee every U.S. citizen five essential freedoms - the right to free religious practice, free speech, free press, peaceable assembly, and freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances. This important guarantee, as embodied in the First Amendment of the Constitution, complements the Declaration of Independence, that revolutionary document which remains to this day the fundamental moral and ethical document upon which we base our daily lives. However, author John Frohnmayer writes, as a nation, "...we have lost - or are losing - the common basis of agreement and understanding that we call the social contract". Are we so squeamish about giving offense because of race, religion, or gender that we would, instead, sacrifice vital freedoms? In this book of reflective essays on the meaning of the First Amendment, Frohnmayer provides a clear perspective on how we, as citizens in a free society must work to protect and enforce our democratic birthright.

John Frohnmayer is a noted speaker, writer, ethicist, and legal scholar. His book Leaving Town Alive (1993) describes his turbulent chairmanship of the National Endowment for the Arts during the first Bush administration. He is a frequent visitor to schools and colleges, where he teaches a short course based on this book.