About this episode

The episode explores the concepts of liberty and justice through historical references and philosophical discussions.

Mack gives examples from real life, Steves waxes philosophical about liberty, and Anne pursues happiness. REFERENCES The idea of liberty and justice for all has been a thing from the beginning, but the phrase is best known from the Pledge of Allegiance: Greene, Charlotte. “The Pledge of Allegiance.” USConstitution.net. https://usconstitution.net/pledge-html/ Can we start with the property-owning white men: Johnston, Mindy. “Timeline of Voting Rights in the United States.” August 28, 2024. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Timeline-of-Voting-Rights-in-the-United-States A 700-year monarchy: Britannica Editors. “Kings and Queens of Britain.” Updated December 5, 2024. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/place/Kings-and-Queens-of-Britain-1856932 Many of the states, on their own by the early to mid-1800s, are expanding who can vote: University of North Texas. “A Brief History of Voting in America.” https://guides.library.unt.edu/voting/history-of-voting-America Take the free exercise of religion: Constitution Annotated. “Amdt1.4.1 Overview of Free Exercise Clause.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/amdt1-4-1/ALDE_00013221/ Originally the Bill of Rights did…

People in this episode

Host: Anne Trominski

Guests: Mack, Steves

Topics covered

• liberty
• justice
• voting rights
• history
• philosophy
• religion

Keywords

• liberty
• justice
• Pledge of Allegiance
• voting rights
• Bill of Rights
• Fourteenth Amendment
• free exercise of religion

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: USConstitution.net, Britannica, University of North Texas, Constitution Annotated, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School

Books & works: The Pledge of Allegiance

More episodes of Civics on the Rocks

• Note to Our Listeners · September 7, 2026 · 0 min
• Untethered Tangent on Hitler · August 17, 2026 · 9 min
• We’re Three! · August 3, 2026 · 39 min
• Untethered Tangent on a Cocktail Idea · July 20, 2026 · 5 min
• Untethered Tangent on Quoting the Constitution · June 22, 2026 · 9 min
• What is Continuity of Government? · June 8, 2026 · 1h 10m

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Civics on the Rocks podcast page.