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We the Students
Supreme Court Cases for and about Students

Fourth Edition

Gain a deeper appreciation of democratic freedoms and challenges!


Other Titles in:
Law & Courts

August 2014 | 400 pages | CQ Press

We the Students is a highly acclaimed resource that has introduced thousands of students to the field of legal studies by covering Supreme Court issues that directly affect them. It examines topics such as students’ access to judicial process; religion in schools; school discipline and punishment; and safety, discrimination and privacy at school.  Through meaningful and engagingly written commentary, excerpts of Supreme Court cases (with students as the litigants), and exercises and class projects, author Jamie B. Raskin provides students with the tools they need to gain a deeper appreciation of democratic freedoms and challenges, and underscores their responsibility in preserving constitutional principles. Completely revised and updated, the new, Fourth Edition of We the Students incorporates new Supreme Court cases, new examples, and new exercises to bring constitutional issues to life.

 
Chapter 1: “We The People”: Our Constitution And Courts
Why a Constitution?

 
The American Constitution: What Is It?

 
The Constitution: Whose Is It?

 
The Constitution: What Does It Mean?

 
Federalism: How the States Share the Power

 
The Incorporation of the Bill of Rights

 
The State Action Requirement

 
Judicial Architecture: How Our Court System Works

 
Majority and Dissenting Opinions

 
How to Brief a Case

 
 
Chapter 2: Student Voices And Supreme Court Choices: The First Amendment And Speech At School
Expressive Conduct and the Right Not to Speak

 
West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette

 
The Right to Speak Freely and Protest (but Not to Disrupt)

 
Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District

 
The Confederate Flag and Other Racially Provocative Symbols

 
Hirsute Lawsuit: Do Boys Have the Right to Wear Long Hair?

 
Karr v. Schmidt

 
Double Entendres and Double Standards: Lewd and Suggestive Language in a Student Government Campaign Speech

 
“BONG HiTS 4 JESUS”: Testing the Limits of Free Speech

 
Morse v. Frederick

 
Hateful Protest by Religious Fanatics on Public Property: Snyder v. Phelps, the Protection of Obnoxious Speech, and Student Mobilization against the Westboro Baptist Church

 
Thought Control or Quality Control? The Problem of Library Book Removal

 
Viewpoint Neutrality and Religious Speech: Good News for the Free Speech Rights of Religious Americans

 
Good News Club v. Milford Central School

 
 
Chapter 3: Freedom Of The Student Press: All The News (The School Sees) Fit To Print
Freedom of the Student Press in Official School-Sponsored Activities

 
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier

 
Squelching Debate: A Different Sort of Blair Witch-Hunt

 
Cyber Censors: Rising Conflicts over Internet Homepages

 
Killion v. Franklin Regional School District

 
Insults and Ridicule versus Threats and Harassment: When Does Off-Campus On-Line Speech Actually Become On-Campus Disruption?

 
 
Chapter 4: The Wall Of Separation Between Church And School
Freedom from Establishment of Religion at School

 
Engel v. Vitale

 
Graduating from Invocation and Benediction

 
Lee v. Weisman

 
Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe

 
Government Aid to Private Religious Schools: When Does It Cross the Line?

 
Everson v. Board of Education of the Township of Ewing

 
School Vouchers: Making Education Redeemable in Secular or Religious Schools

 
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris

 
The First Amendment and the Ten Commandments

 
Stone v. Graham

 
Season’s Greetings! The Court’s Agonizing Ambivalence over Christmas Nativity Displays

 
One Nation, under Canada, with Constitutional Controversy for All: New Conflict over the Pledge of Allegiance

 
Newdow v. U.S. Congress

 
The Supreme Court’s Curious Response to Newdow v. U.S. Congress

 
The Free Exercise Rights of Religious Americans

 
Wisconsin v. Yoder

 
The Theory of Evolution and the Story of Creation: An Ongoing Duel in the Classroom

 
 
Chapter 5: The Fourth Amendment: Searching The Student Body
Reduced Privacy Rights at School

 
New Jersey v. T. L. O.

 
A Fluid Analysis of the Fourth Amendment: Drug Tests and Extracurricular Activities

 
oard of Education of Independent School District No. 92 of Pottawatomie County v. Earls

 
“Embarrassing, frightening, and humiliating”: Strip Searches and Naked Violations of the Fourth Amendment

 
Safford Unified School District #1 v. Redding

 
Metal Detectors and the Constitution

 
In Re Latasha W.

 
 
Chapter 6: The Constitution And Student Discipline: “Due Process” And “Cruel And ­Unusual Punishment” At School
Due Process

 
Goss v. Lopez

 
The Crime of Hanging Out with Gang Members: “Loitering with No Apparent Purpose” in Chicago and the Due Process Clause

 
City of Chicago v. Morales

 
Corporal Punishment

 
Ingraham v. Wright

 
Corporal Punishment in the Aftermath of Ingraham v. Wright

 
 
Chapter 7: Equal Protection Against Race Discrimination: From Jim Crow Segregation To ­Multicultural Democracy
The Persistent Legacy of Slavery and Racism

 
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

 
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: “Massive Resistance” and the Reaction to Brown

 
Cooper v. Aaron

 
Griffin v. County School Board of Prince Edward County

 
The Right to Love

 
Can Public Schools Deliberately Integrate Students Today?

 
Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School Dist. No. 1

 
Race and Ethnicity in College and Graduate School Admissions: Affirmative Action or “Reverse Discrimination”?

 
Jennifer Gratz and Patrick Hamacher, Petitioners v. Lee Bollinger et al.

 
Barbara Grutter, Petitioner v. Lee Bollinger et al.

 
 
Chapter 8: The Other Lines We Draw At School: Wealth, Gender, Citizenship, And Sexual Orientation
Rich Schools, Poor Schools: The Court’s Treatment of “Separate but Equal” School Financing

 
“Suspect” Classes and Gender-Based Segregation

 
Boys and Girls Equal: Title IX

 
Roderick Jackson, Petitioner v. Birmingham Board of Education

 
Separating Citizens from Noncitizens under the Law

 
Plyler v. Doe

 
Discrimination against Gays and Lesbians

 
Boy Scouts of America v. Dale

 
United States, Petitioner v. Edith Schlain Windsor

 
 
Chapter 9: Harassment In The Hall, Blood On The Board: Sexual Harassment, Bullying, And Gun Violence At School
When Teachers Harass Students

 
Gebser v. Lago Vista Independent School District

 
When Students Harass Students

 
Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education

 
The Rights of Gay and Lesbian Students against Harassment

 
Blood on the Board: Mass Shootings at School

 
District of Columbia v. Heller

 
Expansion of the Reach of the Second Amendment

 
 
Chapter 10: A Healthy Student Body: Disability, Privacy, Pregnancy, And Sexuality
The Rights of the “Differently Abled” under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

 
Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.

 
Peer Grading and the Right to Privacy

 
Owasso Independent School Dist. No. I-011 v. Falvo

 
Three Trimesters: Pregnant at School

 
Pfeiffer v. Marion Center Area School District

 
Curtis v. School Committee of Falmouth

 
Abortion and the Privacy Rights of Teenagers

 
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey

 

We the Students is a dynamic, riveting, but fundamental dimension of our constitutional democracy. We the Students transforms students into Justices and advocates arguing and resolving matters of grave importance to daily life."

Kenneth W. Starr
Former Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

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