The Great Dissenter

The Story of John Marshall Harlan, America's Judicial Hero

By: Peter S. Canellos

Narrated by: Arthur Morey

The “superb” (The Guardian) biography of an American who stood against all the forces of Gilded Age America to fight for civil rights and economic freedom: Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan.

They say that history is written by the victors. But not in the case of the most famous dissenter on the Supreme Court. Almost a century after his death, John Marshall Harlan’s words helped end segregation and gave us our civil rights and our modern economic freedom.

But his legacy would not have been possible without the courage of Robert Harlan, a slave who John’s father raised like a son in the same household. After the Civil War, Robert emerges as a political leader. With Black people holding power in the Republican Party, it is Robert who helps John land his appointment to the Supreme Court.

At first, John is awed by his fellow justices, but the country is changing. Northern whites are prepared to take away black rights to appease the South. Giant trusts are monopolizing entire industries. Against this onslaught, the Supreme Court seemed all too willing to strip away civil rights and invalidate labor protections. So as case after case comes before the court, challenging his core values, John makes a fateful decision: He breaks with his colleagues in fundamental ways, becoming the nation’s prime defender of the rights of Black people, immigrant laborers, and people in distant lands occupied by the US.

Harlan’s dissents, particularly in Plessy v. Ferguson, were widely read and a source of hope for decades. Thurgood Marshall called Harlan’s Plessy dissent his “Bible” - and his legal roadmap to overturning segregation. In the end, Harlan’s words built the foundations for the legal revolutions of the New Deal and Civil Rights eras.

Spanning from the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement and beyond, The Great Dissenter is a “magnificent” (Douglas Brinkley) and “thoroughly researched” (The New York Times) rendering of the American legal system’s most significant failures and most inspiring successes.

©2021 Peter Canellos. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Book not as great as its subject

Was a bit all over the place, in part because of the decision to profile Robert Harlan in parallel. That the Justice had personal experience with the lives and merits of educated Blacks is relevant to his defense of civil rights, but it meant a lot of familial byways and anecdotes pretty far afield. Still, a nice mix of history, legal history, and personal story of an important figure.

best book I've heard on audible

the right book at the right time. read by a narrator who knows how to pronounce everyone's name.

Heart for humanity and respect for the constitution

I did not know of Supreme Justice John Marshall. I also did not know his impact upon our country’s major legal decisions. It speaks loudly that he is revered by both conservative and liberal Supreme Court Justices. His history and Robert James Harlan’s life are compelling stories of the impact of race after the Civil War. I recommend this book to anyone seeking to understand our US history from the Civil War period to today.

Fantastic

I found this biography fascinating. The book is about John Marshall Harlan (1833-1911). Harlan is remembered for three outstanding dissents in the Court’s most disconcerting rulings. He is the lone dissenting vote (8-1) in Plessy V Ferguson in 1896. This is “the separate but equal” doctrine.

I found the sections of the Court battles about income tax and labor laws most interesting and in many ways the arguments have not changed. Particularly the reasons the rich gave for why the rent payments they received should not be taxed or why government had no right to tell them to limit employee’s hours to no more than twelve hours per day. I found it most helpful to pause and see where the Court has been before in controversial discissions.

The author, Peter Canellos, did an excellent job researching information for this book and presenting a fairly unbiased report. If you are looking for a great biography to read this summer, try this book.

The book is nineteen hours and twenty-three minutes. Arthur Morey does a good job narrating the book.

A story that needs to be heard.

Well written. Well narrated. It is a story of how people can change for the better and for worse. It is also a story that exemplifies why it is worth it to choose the right path even when it is against the tide and the full impact is not immediately known.

Brilliant, wonderful book

I cannot praise this book enough. Wonderfully written and told story about a giant in American history. In a world with a history absent segregation, Harlan would be even more well known today. I’m grateful to Mr. Canellos for telling Harlan’s story. Also appreciative to Arthur Morey for his outstanding performance. I highly recommend this book for all those interested in American history.

Pleasantly surprised.

I truly enjoyed this book. Senate minority leader recommended it on Book TV. I highly recommend this book.

Magnificent Biography

Every American should read this man’s story. His courage and prescience will stand testament against the revisionists who portray our sad and tumultuous history as purely a chronicle of racism. Justice Harlan turned the tide of American history toward a colorblind society that most strive to achieve. God Bless him!

An eye opening experience

Justice Harlan was unknown to me before listening to this book.
He was an individualist, certainly the great dissenter and as proven by much later decisions of the highest court in our land shown to be not only right on his decisions but many many years ahead of his time.
I think you will learn much and enjoy the journey by listening to this book.

Very enjoyable and enlightening

Great story of an American hero unknown to many. This story would make a good movie.