POL 115 Advocacy and Activism in Law
This course will examine several key social and political movements in the United States and the way that “impact litigation” strategies have helped to drive progress towards expanded rights under the United States Constitution. Specifically, the course will explore the litigation strategies employed by the Civil Rights movement, the fight for gender equality under law, and the struggle for LGBTQ rights and the right to same-sex marriage. Our examination will be conducted through analysis of landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions that paved the way for progress, as well as law review articles and other academic scholarship discussing these movements. Attention will also be paid to current issues of social and political importance (such as climate change and environmental activism) and students will analyze, evaluate, and discuss the likelihood of successful litigation strategies in these areas. Finally, the course will explore the concept of “judicial activism” and the ways this approach has been both decried and employed by activists. GE 5B or GE 6 unlinked.
Distribution
POL