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Liberty
Liberty is the second of three plays in a thought-provoking trilogy, following the ongoing struggles and triumphs of Judge Grace Porter Haverhill. Few issues merit as much rancorous debate in the 21st century than Second Amendment rights and gun control versus gun rights issues in our homes, schools, communities, and in our bipartisan Congress. Liberty shines a spotlight on Second Amendment abuses/protections, with our founding fathers witnessing the hypothetical trial of the President of the NRA, through a one-way window in the courtroom. The storyline artfully weaves between the present and the past and as the courtroom proceedings unfold, it is interspersed with the rationale and thought processes our founding fathers used in penning the Second Amendment of our Bill of Rights, questioning its applicable use as a defense for the military assault style rifles commonly used in mass shootings and killings in our public spaces, that are so readily available for purchase.
While the majority of Americans largely favor common sense gun control legislation, it has become a hotly debated partisan issue. Our founders established the Second Amendment and the Bill of Rights as part of the framework that specifically spelled out where the federal government’s power ended stating, “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed.” In its most basic of interpretations, our framers were referring to the militia of their time, having recently shed the yoke of English rule, and raising the American flag as a symbol of unity in a recently elected democratic republic. Our founders also placed great emphasis on the right to bear arms for the sake of hunting, self-defense and as a measure of protection against potential tyranny by the federal government.
Our founders were imperfect, aspirational idealists who fully recognized the necessity of our founding documents to be viewed as, “living documents,” stating that, “Laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind.” None of the amendments in our Bill of Rights are an absolute and our framers are quick to remind us that there certainly was a fair measure of gun control intact when the Second Amendment was ratified in 1791. Domestic tranquility is as much a part of our Constitution and the Bill of Rights as every other article and amendment and is central to the principles of our democracy. They are quick to question how the passage of time could culminate in their words being interpreted in a manner that threatens domestic tranquility.
As of May 2021, there had already been close to 200 mass shootings in the US. More than 15,000 of our citizens have lost their lives as a result of gun-related violence, which has become one of the leading causes of death for Americans. Sensible gun control legislation does not equate to denying citizens of their Second Amendment rights. As James Madison eloquently reflects, “There can be no true and lasting happiness without domestic tranquility. The sense of peace that comes with knowing that you, your family, and your citizenry live in safety.” Our framers created the legislative branch of government to enact laws to enhance and protect the lives of its citizenry, to be the mechanism for change, not the bottleneck to prevent it. Compromise can be reached to pass largely favored gun control measures to help ensure the safety of our people and to once more restore domestic tranquility to our country, inherently guaranteed by our Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
While the majority of Americans largely favor common sense gun control legislation, it has become a hotly debated partisan issue. Our founders established the Second Amendment and the Bill of Rights as part of the framework that specifically spelled out where the federal government’s power ended stating, “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed.” In its most basic of interpretations, our framers were referring to the militia of their time, having recently shed the yoke of English rule, and raising the American flag as a symbol of unity in a recently elected democratic republic. Our founders also placed great emphasis on the right to bear arms for the sake of hunting, self-defense and as a measure of protection against potential tyranny by the federal government.
Our founders were imperfect, aspirational idealists who fully recognized the necessity of our founding documents to be viewed as, “living documents,” stating that, “Laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind.” None of the amendments in our Bill of Rights are an absolute and our framers are quick to remind us that there certainly was a fair measure of gun control intact when the Second Amendment was ratified in 1791. Domestic tranquility is as much a part of our Constitution and the Bill of Rights as every other article and amendment and is central to the principles of our democracy. They are quick to question how the passage of time could culminate in their words being interpreted in a manner that threatens domestic tranquility.
As of May 2021, there had already been close to 200 mass shootings in the US. More than 15,000 of our citizens have lost their lives as a result of gun-related violence, which has become one of the leading causes of death for Americans. Sensible gun control legislation does not equate to denying citizens of their Second Amendment rights. As James Madison eloquently reflects, “There can be no true and lasting happiness without domestic tranquility. The sense of peace that comes with knowing that you, your family, and your citizenry live in safety.” Our framers created the legislative branch of government to enact laws to enhance and protect the lives of its citizenry, to be the mechanism for change, not the bottleneck to prevent it. Compromise can be reached to pass largely favored gun control measures to help ensure the safety of our people and to once more restore domestic tranquility to our country, inherently guaranteed by our Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
168 pages, Paperback
First published August 22, 2021
1190 people want to read
About the author
Dyanna Morrison
4 books50 followersDyanna was born and raised in Upstate NY and has spent the majority of her adult life in either Providence, RI or San Diego, CA.
She is presently writing two series.
The premise for the Justice Trilogy was put into her thoughts with the help from a dear family friend back in the late 90s and struck a chord that she ultimately chose to turn into a reality. What would the guys who wrote the stuff think if they could witness contemporary legal proceedings? Would they agree and does it matter? Both Justice and Liberty present cases through a thought-provoking lens, requiring us to really think about the prevailing factors that shaped our democracy. Dyanna started researching our founding fathers, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights in 2001 and has remained interested in the premise ever since.
Dyanna has spent twenty years trying to get her work recognized and produced and remains proud of her work. She believes strongly that she has a message to share with Americans and anyone interested in US history, regarding what is at the foundation of our democracy and the magnitude of effort that was required, allowing us to remain the oldest enduring republic in world history. Our founder’s legacy has been under renewed scrutiny as a result of the Black Lives Matter movement, which is understandable and justified. As stated in the description on the back cover of Justice, “Our founders were imperfect, aspirational idealists and they were patriots, with a vision of self-governance, the likes which had never been instituted at the scale they envisioned to incorporate and preside over.
They penned and ratified our Constitution and Bill of Rights that continue to steer the course of our democracy in the year of 2020 and continue to represent ideologies of unity and inherent freedoms, framing our current, ongoing dialogue of equality and justice for all Americans.” Dyanna includes their viewpoints on slavery at the time of the push for ratification of our Constitution/Bill of Rights and their efforts to include a phasing out of the slave trade in Justice.
Liberty shines a spotlight on Second Amendment abuses/protections, with our founding fathers witnessing the hypothetical trial of the President of the NRA, through a one-way window in the courtroom and is interspersed with the thought processes our framers used in penning the Second Amendment of our bill of rights, questioning its applicable use as a defense for the military style assault rifles commonly used in mass shootings in our public spaces that are so readily available for purchase. It is unfortunately a message that seems to grow more timely as we witness the tragedies of ever present mass shootings with no meaningful gun control legislation in sight.
Dyanna has visually pieced together the third stage play in the trilogy and plans on getting restarted on the background research and writing in the near future.
In 2021, Dyanna finally decided to also move forward and turn her poem, For the Love of Buddy, also written over twenty years ago, into a family/children’s picture book! It was a learning process and great fun working with Mike Motz and his creative team. Dyanna has also finished the poem, For the Love of Winston, about the fifteen + years she spent with her handsome tuxedo cat and their journey through life together. She is planning on also turning this poem into another family/children’s picture book.
The genres of the two series are quite different and highlight two decades of research and a heightened sense of storytelling, by a woman who brings a heartfelt message of passion and compassion to everything she writes about.
Dyanna enjoys attending community events around Providence, RI and sharing her work with book lovers of all ages!
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 11, 2021
Book Review of Liberty - Book Excellence Awards
Coming off the award-winning success of her first book, Justice, author Dyanna Morrison brings fresh perspective to American politics and history with Liberty, the second book of the notable trilogy.
Liberty is a compelling play that brings to light the importance of gun control in the 21st century. The play is structured in 3 acts: Devastation, Justification and Vindication. The writing is vivid and fast-paced. Each scene is described in a compelling manner, with just enough detail to keep you on the edge of your seat, flipping from one page to the next. The dialogue is engaging and each individual or character’s voice and tone have been well established. The inclusion of famous political figures including George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and more, brings a unique twist to the play, offering different viewpoints of the past and present.
Overall, Liberty offers a highly original concept in a unique format that has been executed brilliantly. A must read!
Liberty
Dyanna Morrison
Coming off the award-winning success of her first book, Justice, author Dyanna Morrison brings fresh perspective to American politics and history with Liberty, the second book of the notable trilogy.
Liberty is a compelling play that brings to light the importance of gun control in the 21st century. The play is structured in 3 acts: Devastation, Justification and Vindication. The writing is vivid and fast-paced. Each scene is described in a compelling manner, with just enough detail to keep you on the edge of your seat, flipping from one page to the next. The dialogue is engaging and each individual or character’s voice and tone have been well established. The inclusion of famous political figures including George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and more, brings a unique twist to the play, offering different viewpoints of the past and present.
Overall, Liberty offers a highly original concept in a unique format that has been executed brilliantly. A must read!
Liberty
Dyanna Morrison
April 7, 2022
Another winner by Dyanna Morrison. As a History teacher for 28 years I always appreciate any attempt to bring history alive. In this play we again get to hear the voices of some of our founding fathers as they comment on the trial of the NRA president for various charges mainly of inciting a lunatic that opened fire at a NRA rally killing 17. This is a very dear issue to me as a hunter and multiple gun owner. I think there’s a wrong approach for both sides in the gun control issue and that just hardens peoples feelings towards each side. As a law abiding citizen I have always felt that I have every right to my gun ownership because it doesn’t effect anyone else. Also when I hear uninformed ignorant people ( including our President) speak on the issue it’s obvious that they know very little about guns. I had a hard time totally reading the author’s opinion about gun control but I tend to agree there has to be some forum where a sensible solution could be found to protect our citizens and gun ownership and hunting rights for our American hunters and even gun owners who only own guns for home security. I sort of sense the author isn’t a big fan of former President Trump, neither am I. Even though I did vote for him over Biden , who’s destroying our country and making it hard on the majority of Americans. The Second amendment and gun control is going to be an issue in our country for the foreseeable future so I don’t think Dyanna could have picked a more poignant issue . Too much big money on both sides and the common man in the middle loses again! I enjoyed the arguments from both sides and as a common man in the middle I can’t support the radical stance of the NRA , but as a hunter I’m forced to lean that way because of the total ignorance of most spokesmen for gun control. Wow, what an issue to bring up and I commend Dyanna for that and bringing history alive ! An excellent read that as a historian I can endorse as well researched! Another winner, keep up the good work!
Ps I won’t spoil the outcome of the trial.
Ps I won’t spoil the outcome of the trial.
February 26, 2022
Liberty is the second of three plays in a book format. Judge Grace Porter Haverhill will be faced with deciding a case brought before her in regard to the Second Amendment. Liberty brings the founding fathers together as they witness the arguments in the court proceedings of a hypothetical trial of the President of the NRA, through a one-way window in the courtroom. The storyline weaves from the present to the past as each argues their thoughts on this important topic.
Being from a different era and not possibly anticipating the advances of the newly created Constitution; a line from the Second Amendment is as follows “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed.” This is hotly contested in "Liberty" and in today's political divide. Yesterday's militia is not the armed services we have today. But the right to bear arms for the sake of hunting, self-defense and as a measure of protection against potential tyranny by the federal government is expected as well as understood.
This is a thought-provoking play with wonderful characters that come to life. I really enjoyed this book/play. I believe that this is a must read to help see things from our forefather's point of view. Laws are not always black and white, there are interpretations of the "idea" of the law and should not be take literal. The Constitution is a document that for the most part stands the test of time. However, there are amendments which are added as we continue to grow and change as needed.
Being from a different era and not possibly anticipating the advances of the newly created Constitution; a line from the Second Amendment is as follows “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed.” This is hotly contested in "Liberty" and in today's political divide. Yesterday's militia is not the armed services we have today. But the right to bear arms for the sake of hunting, self-defense and as a measure of protection against potential tyranny by the federal government is expected as well as understood.
This is a thought-provoking play with wonderful characters that come to life. I really enjoyed this book/play. I believe that this is a must read to help see things from our forefather's point of view. Laws are not always black and white, there are interpretations of the "idea" of the law and should not be take literal. The Constitution is a document that for the most part stands the test of time. However, there are amendments which are added as we continue to grow and change as needed.
July 20, 2022
So this could have been great! It is very smart and creative. I loved the founding fathers perspective! What a great premise! I found the judge and her husband to be very one dimensional. Would have liked to see them drive the narrative in a stronger way! The story revolving around the trial seemed very contrived… and it often times was very one sided even though it seemed like it was trying to be non-biased. Which came across as almost manipulative. This is a very important topic and there were moments of greatness (in research and portrayals). However, it never quite soared to its potential. Which was disappointing. Also, where did Aaron Burr go?!? I loved his participation and comic relief. Would have loved to see is character have an arc! As a former “theatre kid”, I saw many areas that could make this work AMAZING! I hope it gets staged and some of the kinks can be worked out. So I definitely enjoyed and I definitely didn’t, at times. And sometimes I just rolled my eyes
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 21, 2022
At the beginning, I felt this book was going to be presented in a neutral perspective. As the play went on, it was clear the story is more liberal than conservative. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, I’m saying it as a warning for the conservative, right wing, Republican, gun enthusiast crowd. I find some of the circumstances in the play have mimicked actual events. Of course, people’s names have been changed and some circumstances are completely fictional. It is a good read. I enjoyed it. And I would read the remainder of the series.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews