I came across this book last month while I was writing about Louise Erdrich.
Fight of the Century examines 100 years of landmark ACLU cases that have gone before the United States Supreme Court through the eyes of writers – Erdrich is one of those writers.
The book was edited by Michael Chabon, one of my favorite authors, and his wife Ayelet Waldman who is also a well-known author.
I purchased it online from Birchbark Books in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This independent bookstore is owned by Erdrich and a group of people committed to the importance of small and intimate bookstores showcasing good writers, the beauty of handmade art, and the strength of Native culture. You should check out their website, www.birchbarkbooks.com
Fight of the Century is organized chronologically. Each case references previous court cases that affected the outcome of the court’s decision and parts of the U.S. Constitution that were being addressed. A short informational blurb of each case was written by students from UC Berkley Law School or Harvard Law School. The ACLU fact-checked details.
It’s worth noting that some of the cases are unpopular, and the ACLU often took considerable heat for supporting the principles outlined in the Constitution as they relate to all people. The organization could have insisted that only popular cases that made the ACLU look virtuous, and heroic be covered, but they chose to let each writer voice their opinions freely.
Writers such as Scott Turow and Sergio De La Pava, who are also lawyers, lend a legal and personal interpretation of the cases they selected. Jesmyn Ward, Michael Cunningham, Salman Rushdie, Viet Thanh Nguyen, and Louise Erdrich are just a few of the many authors who represent a strong cross-section of diverse people who can speak about their personal experiences with discrimination in reference to the issues raised by the cases they selected. The editors included a complete list of contributors after the acknowledgements.
Reading many of these cases ignited a powerful array of emotions from disbelief, anger, sadness, guilt, and joy. When the Supreme Court gets it right, everybody wins except the haters, but the victims of unjust laws often remain victims because the wheels of justice can move slowly… too slowly to save the Scottsboro Boys. Too slowly to grant the freedom to marry for so many couples waiting for Loving v. Virginia (1967) and Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) to be decided. I’m happy for the couples who have been able to legally marry because of the dedicated work of the ACLU.
In addition to the cases featured, many cases are mentioned from past centuries illustrating that justice is an ever-evolving part of our society. Many of those older cases such as Dred Scott v. Sanford and Plessy v. Ferguson have been overturned because they discriminated against large groups of people.
Discriminatory rulings by members of SCOTUS based upon narrow interpretations of the Constitution are becoming more common since 2017, but they must continue to be unacceptable. The Constitution of the United States was written and ratified by our founding fathers to protect the rights of all people living in the United States to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They didn’t get everything right because our founding fathers’ definition of “people” pretty much included only White men. People of color, women, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, Non-Christian religions, and certain ethnicities have had to fight for inclusion and must continue to fight to retain those rights.
It's one of the reasons books like Fight of the Century are so important. We all need to be reminded that our Constitution is supposed to protect and expand our rights. It must not be used to cherry-pick ways to support discrimination by vocal minorities who want to disenfranchise our most vulnerable members of society because they don’t look, live, love, speak, or worship the same way.