CIVIL RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES

This purpose of this course is to acquaint students with the scope and boundaries of the protections of civil rights and civil liberties under the United States Constitution. We approach this task by analyzing the decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court that have, over time, given meaning to the sometimes vague or broad protections guaranteed in the Bill of Rights and the Civil War Amendments. We will pay considerable attention to the legal, political and environmental influences upon the Court in our effort to understand and explain its decisions. After a short refresher on the Constitution and Bill of Rights and an introduction to the Supreme Court, the course examines the protections of religion, speech and press under the First Amendment. We then explore the rights of the accused under the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendments. Finally, we look at the protections against discrimination guaranteed by the 14th and 15th Amendments. Along the way, we will discuss many controversies currently before the Supreme Court (or soon to be there), including the PATRIOT Act, the Pledge of Allegiance case, and others.

Upon completion of the course, students should demonstrate:

1) An understanding of the scope and limits of individual rights protected by the U.S. Constitution, and how changes in constitutional interpretation have led to changes in the government's powers.
2) The ability to evaluate legal reasoning and to justify legal arguments through the application of precedent.
3) Recognition of the various extralegal factors that influence courts (especially the Supreme Court) and their effects on court decisions.

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