
Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places
Why State Constitutions Contain America's Positive Rights
Emily Zackin(Author)
Princeton University Press
Published on 21. April 2013
Book
Paperback/Softback
248 pages
978-0-691-15578-4 (ISBN)
Description
Unlike many national constitutions, which contain explicit positive rights to such things as education, a living wage, and a healthful environment, the U.S. Bill of Rights appears to contain only a long list of prohibitions on government. American constitutional rights, we are often told, protect people only from an overbearing government, but give no explicit guarantees of governmental help. Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places argues that we have fundamentally misunderstood the American rights tradition. The United States actually has a long history of enshrining positive rights in its constitutional law, but these rights have been overlooked simply because they are not in the federal Constitution. Emily Zackin shows how they instead have been included in America's state constitutions, in large part because state governments, not the federal government, have long been primarily responsible for crafting American social policy. Although state constitutions, seemingly mired in trivial detail, can look like pale imitations of their federal counterpart, they have been sites of serious debate, reflect national concerns, and enshrine choices about fundamental values.
Zackin looks in depth at the history of education, labor, and environmental reform, explaining why America's activists targeted state constitutions in their struggles for government protection from the hazards of life under capitalism. Shedding much-needed light on the variety of reasons that activists pursued the creation of new state-level rights, Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places challenges us to rethink our most basic assumptions about the American constitutional tradition.
Zackin looks in depth at the history of education, labor, and environmental reform, explaining why America's activists targeted state constitutions in their struggles for government protection from the hazards of life under capitalism. Shedding much-needed light on the variety of reasons that activists pursued the creation of new state-level rights, Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places challenges us to rethink our most basic assumptions about the American constitutional tradition.
Reviews / Votes
One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2014 "This is an excellent contribution to the literature and yet another compelling reason that scholars should not limit themselves to only the federal Constitution and courts."--Choice "I am hopeful that Zackin's thoughtful and timely book will invigorate the debate, reminding readers along the way of the vibrant role states have played, and should continue to play, in defining new statutory and constitutional rights. Whether 'we want more' rights or not, we would be lucky to have more scholarship from Zackin about the states' essential role in the American constitutional law tradition."--Jeffrey S. Sutton, Harvard Law ReviewMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
2 line illus. 8 tables.
Dimensions
Height: 231 mm
Width: 155 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
454 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-15578-4 (9780691155784)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Emily Zackin
Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places
Why State Constitutions Contain America's Positive Rights
E-Book
06/2015
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
from
€126.95
Available for download
Person
Emily Zackin is assistant professor of political science at Hunter College, City University of New York.
Content
Acknowledgments vii Chapter 1: Looking for Rights in All the Wrong Places 1 Chapter 2: Of Ski Trails and State Constitutions: Silly Details or Serious Principles? 18 Chapter 3: Defining Positive Rights 36 Chapter 4: Why Write New Rights?: Understanding Constitutional Development Apart From Entrenchment 48 Chapter 5: Education: A Long Tradition of Positive Rights in America 67 Chapter 6: Workers' Rights: Constitutional Protections Where (and When) We Would Least Expect Them 106 Chapter 7: Environmental Protection: Positive Constitutional Rights in the Late Twentieth Century 146 Chapter 8: Conclusion 197 Bibliography 215 Index 229