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"Red Sox Spirit" and Constitutional Theory

An new approach to state constitutional law.

Ilya Somin | 7.19.2026 8:01 PM

In the course of a post criticizing the Hawaii Supreme Court's recent "Aloha Spirit" decision interpreting the Hawaii state constitution, co-blogger Josh Blackman suggests that "Red Sox Spirit" might be relevant to interpreting the Massachusetts constitution. It's surprising that it took a New York fan like Josh to see it. But Red Sox Spirit is indeed relevant! Even though I myself didn't see it, previously, despite growing up in Massachusetts.

Red Sox Spirit is all about protecting liberty and resisting tyranny, especially that of the self-proclaimed Evil Empire of Baseball. David "Big Papi" Ortiz - the greatest-ever exponent of Red Sox Spirit summarized it best: "This is our f-ing city and nobody gonna dictate our freedom":

Under the "history and tradition" approach to constitutional interpretation applied by the US Supreme Court in the 2022 Bruen Second Amendment case, the Massachusetts Constitution should be interpreted in accordance with that principle!

Resisting tyranny is central to the Massachusetts constitutional tradition, at its best. The American Revolution began in Massachusetts, in response to British imperial tyranny, and its........

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