Idea: National Museum of (American) Law

For all of us who live in the Washington DC area, the Smithsonian museums reflect the diverse range of things Americans think about. A walk through the area of town that houses the Smithsonian Museums is a walk through through a reflection of the greatest thoughts and triumphs of humankind. Included in the Smithsonian are museums dedicated to great art, history, and nature. I suspect that over the course of the many years that Americans have been traveling to Washington to explore the museums, those trips have inspired people to explore new fields and advance their own education.

To me, it is striking that there is no National Museum of American Law. Although law gets a mention in all the museums that cover American history, there is no museum where one can dedicate oneself to understanding the role of law in society as a whole, and American society specifically.

I write here to propose the establishment of a National Museum of (American) Law to advance the knowledge and appreciation among the general public of law itself, and American law specifically.

My most recent inspiration for this post came from my visit to the museum of Crime and Punishment. There, there visitor walks through world history of the adjudication and punishment of crime (and alleged crime), with panels specifically discussing those infamous criminals and crimes that are still the subjects of coversations among many Americans, like Al Capone. The attendees to that musuem walk away with a (albeit superficial) idea of the history of crime in the world and the history of how civilized society has addressed crime.

As law is not merely a subject of esoteric discussion, but a real aspect of all American lives, it is important that a museum of American law go beyond appreciating world history, or the history of American law. My vision would be that each attendee see their own potential for impacting American democracy, whether it be directly participating in town meetings or involvement in advocacy organizations at the local, state, or national levels. And frankly, history is full of stories where individuals of no particular stature make drastic effect on the law in the scope of speaking on behalf of his or her rights or business needs.

For instance, I imagine an exhibit where attendees are invited to consider the proper form of government for a theoretical new country, much as the founders of this nation had to do. In this exhibit, one would walk through the the basic forms of government that made up the ancient world, walking through world history. I imagine each panel could include an description of a form of government and examples of where that government was instituted, and an image of the kind of legislative issue that is unique to that government system. Perhaps a picture and a story reflecting how constitutional decisions were made. Other exhibits could focus more closely on ways in which common citizens engage with the law. Ways in which the law affects them at school, work, housing, community associational decisions, and even their engagement with religious institutions. Frankly, any subject matter that makes up a unit of study in a school of law is necessarily worthy of consideration in a museum of law because any subject of dispute in law derives from substantive disputes in society to which American can relate. Even the esoteric subject of intellectual property comes to life when one considers the musician who wishes to profit from his music or the painter who wants to negotiate with his boss for rights to the paintings he does while at work. Even the subject of international law comes alive when one considers their desire to sell his American made wares in a store in Canada. Other exhibits could consider the moral questions that serve as the source of law. Examples include classic questions of whether it is right to harm a few individuals for the good of the whole society (utilitarianism) and whether one has the right to city services like fire service if he or she doesn't pay required taxes. This last question is often asked as an esoteric question but became very real when on or around October 5, 2010, a family in Tennessee lost their home when the fire department refused to extinquish a fire in their home due to the fact that the family failed to pay their fire service fee. See: http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101005/pl_yblog_upshot/rural-tennessee-fire-sparks-conservative-ideological-debate. There may be numerous ethical stories like these that pose dynamic legal questions, and thus may be used to demonstrate the role of law in society. The ideas in this essay require more thought. However, I write this in hope to advance the dialogue of how best to engage all Americans in the legal world that affects them so. I further desire that any audience to such a museum be inspired to engage in their own study and investigation into the laws that affect them, and thus feel empowered to advocate for their alteration to the extent appropriate.