Cases and Controversies

This casebook--containing longer excerpts than those found in most other books-- includes cases from important Supreme Court opinions and material that places these cases and the issues they raise in a broad political, historical, and social context. The volume presents Supreme Court challenges and land mark decisions involving wartime protest and hysteria; the Great Depression; and conflicts over issues such as abortion. A focus on the "characters" who make up the stories of constitutional law--such as Dred Scott, Homer Plessy, Lillian Gobitis, Gordon Hirabayashi, Mary Beth Tinker, and Michael Hardwick--adds human faces and voices to the Supreme Court opinions, and introduces the fascinating players--with fundamental divisions of interest and values--who have had roles in making legal history. For individuals interested in constitutional law.