This course covers civil and individual rights at the federal level. Emphasis is on the due process and equal protection clauses of the 14th Amendment, including substantive due process, privacy, discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual preference and other characteristics, fundamental rights and affirmative action. The 1st Amendment is also reviewed, including the freedoms of speech, the press, association and religion.

By the end of this course, students should:

• Understand how the Equal Protection Clause has been applied in cases alleging race discrimination (including desegregation and affirmative action),

• Understand how the Equal Protection Clause has been applied in cases alleging sex discrimination, as well as other potential grounds for Equal Protection claims such as disability and sexual orientation,

• Understand how the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause has been applied in cases asserting fundamental rights such as access to contraception, abortion, sexual activity and marriage,

• Understand the “tiers of scrutiny” used in constitutional review, and what sorts of equal protection challenges trigger which tier,

• Understand some of the prominent methodologies of constitutional interpretation, especially originalism, textualism and the living constitution, and why they would impact the results in individual cases.

• Understand the interaction of constitutional law with historical events, government policy and public opinion.