The Constitution was the expression not only of a political faith but also of political fears. It was wrought both as the organ of the national interest and as the bulwark of certain individual and local rights.

My mother's family were full-on Irish Catholics - faith in an elaborate old fashioned highly conservative and madly baroque style. I sort of fell out of the tribe over women's rights and social justice issues when I was just 13 years old.

By gold all good faith has been banished by gold our rights are abused the law itself is influenced by gold and soon there will be an end of every modest restraint.

Let me go over this again on the reclaiming the civil rights movement. People of faith that believe that you have an equal right to justice - that is the essence. And if it's not the essence then we've been sold a pack of lies. The essence is everyone deserves a shot - the content of character not the color of skin.

And it's one thing to give people freedom and something else to deny the rights of Christians to assert their faith in order to keep Hindus from feeling upset.

Although we have in theory abolished human slavery recognized women's rights and stopped child labor we continue to enslave other species who if we simply pay attention show quite clearly that they experience parental love pain and the desire for freedom just as we do.

Making movies is a very different experience in a lot of ways. It's difficult when you're used to owning the copyright and having a landlord's possessory rights - I rent my plays to the companies that do them and if I'm upset I can pull the play. But the only two directors I've worked with are pretty great.

A commitment to human rights cannot be fostered simply through the transmission of knowledge. Action and experience play a crucial role in the learning process.

The American experience influenced my understanding of individuality basic human rights freedom of expression and the rights and responsibilities of citizens.

My image had always been very heterosexual very straight. So it was a nice experience for me a chance to clarify my own feelings about gay and lesbian civil rights.