Civil Liberties and Civil RightsCivil Liberties and Civil Rights

Evolution and Public Policy

Civil LibertiesCivil Liberties Definition: The legal constitutional protections

against the government. Where are civil liberties guaranteed? How do the provisions of the Bill of Rights apply

to the states? Why is incorporation “selective”? Barron v. Baltimore (1833) Gitlow v. New York (1925)

Freedom of ReligionFreedom of Religion What is meant by the

establishment clause?– Engel v. Vitale (1962)– Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)

What is meant by the free exercise clause?– Reynolds v. U.S. (1879)– Oregon v. Smith (1990)

Freedom of Expression Freedom of Expression (Speech/Press)(Speech/Press)

What is meant by prior restraint?– Near v. Minnesota (1931)

What limits can be placed on free expression?– Schenck v. U.S. (1917)– Roth v. U.S. (1957)/ Miller v. California (1973)– NY Times v. Sullivan (1964)– Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)– Texas v. Johnson (1989)

Freedom of Expression Freedom of Expression (Speech/Press)(Speech/Press)

Is symbolic speech protected? What about commercial speech? Why is government censorship accepted for

television and radio, but not for print media? How does free press impact impartiality of trials?

Freedom of AssemblyFreedom of Assembly What limits can be placed on freedom of

assembly? Why is the right to associate protected?

Defendants’ RightsDefendants’ Rights

What is due process? Where is it

guaranteed? What are the criteria for

legal searches?– Weeks v. U.S. (1914)– Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

Defendants’ RightsDefendants’ Rights

What is self-incrimination? How are we protected

against self-incrimination?– Miranda v. Arizona

What is meant by “the right to counsel”?– Gideon v. Wainwright

Defendants’ RightsDefendants’ Rights Does plea bargaining defeat the purposes of due

process? What is meant by “a jury of peers”? Is the death penalty cruel and unusual punishment?

The Right to PrivacyThe Right to Privacy What is the right to privacy? Why is it controversial? Where is it guaranteed?

– Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

– Roe v. Wade (1973) Is euthanasia a right? Who should be allowed to

make this decision?

When should abortions be legal?

Understanding Civil LibertiesUnderstanding Civil LibertiesHow do civil liberties advance democracy?Why is “freedom versus order” a central

question in the discussion of civil liberties?

Civil RightsCivil Rights

Definition: Policies designed to protect people against arbitrary or discriminatory treatment by government officials or individuals.

Where does the Constitution provide this guarantee?

Where does the basis for civil rights come from?

What is Equality?What is Equality?

Conceptions of Equality– Equal opportunity– Equal results

How is this related to “equal protection”?

The Evolution of Civil RightsThe Evolution of Civil Rights

The Era of Slavery– Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)– The Civil War– The Thirteenth Amendment

The Era of Reconstruction and Resegregation– Jim Crow laws– Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

The Evolution of Civil RightsThe Evolution of Civil Rights

The Modern Civil Rights Movement– Brown v. Board of Education (1954)– Civil Rights Act of 1964

Other Minority Groups– Native Americans– Hispanic Americans– Asian Americans

EnfranchisementEnfranchisement

Who was able to vote in the early U.S.?How has suffrage been expanded?

Women’s RightsWomen’s Rights

What are the ongoing issues for women’s rights advocates?

Why are some issues – like comparable worth – so controversial?

Is there some disagreement about the equality women desire?

Newly Active GroupsNewly Active Groups

Older Americans Children’s Rights Disabled Gay Rights

Affirmative ActionAffirmative Action

Definition:– A policy designed to give special attention to or

compensatory treatment of members of some previously disadvantaged group.

What is the controversy? Regents of the University of California v. Bakke

(1978) Grutter v. Bollinger (2003)

Understanding Civil RightsUnderstanding Civil Rights

What is the relationship between civil rights and democracy?

What has the advance of civil rights meant for the scope of government?