New Titles in the Chastek Library

"Censorship, Digital Media and the Global Crackdown on Freedom of Expression explores the rising global phenomenon of censorship across various media platforms, in schools, universities, and public spaces. It documents physical assaults, legal restrictions, and the exclusion of critical topics from public discourse. This volume analyzes contemporary censorship methods, emphasizing the anti-democratic implications and the threat to civil society, human rights, and global democracy. It delves into the dangerous consequences of suppressing dialogue, information dissemination, and educational materials, providing insight into the challenges faced by critical media literacy and activists. The book advocates for policy alternatives, including economic restructuring of media, global agreements on freedom of the press, and educational strategies to preserve global freedom of expression." -- Back cover.

"In a striking reinterpretation of the American constitutional past, Aziz Rana connects the spread of a distinctive twentieth century American relationship to its founding document to another development rarely treated alongside it: the rise of the U.S. to global dominance. In the process, he highlights the role of constitutional veneration in shaping the terms of American power abroad, with ultimately transformative effects at home for narratives of nation and ideas of reform. In the process, Rana also explores the remarkably diverse array of movement activists--in Black, Indigenous, feminist, labor, and immigrant politics--that struggled to imagine a very different constitutional horizon, one grounded in equal and effective freedom for all and able to overcome the basic limitations of the consolidating legal-political system. These voices of opposition, including to the Constitution itself, have overwhelmingly been excised from constitutional memory. And yet they offer essential insights for making sense of our present difficulties, in which Americans find themselves bereft of the constitutional sureties that have long shaped collective life." -- Publisher site.

"This book considers institutions such as the Supreme Court to learn how citizens' expectations of political gains and losses can shape their feelings about strategies and measures involving constitutional change." -- Publisher site.

"Joshua Douglas takes us behind the scenes of significant cases in voting rights--some surprising and unknown, and some familiar--to investigate the historic crossroads that have irrevocably changed our elections and the nation. In crisp and accessible prose, Douglas tells the story of each case, sheds light on the intractable election problems we face as a result, and highlights the unique role the highest court has played in producing a broken electoral system." -- Publisher site.

"This book aims to capture some of the complex and nuanced processes involved in treaty interpretation. It spurs further reflection about how interpretation takes place against the background of concepts, categories, and insights from other disciplines. A useful tool for scholars, practitioners and researchers engaging with treaty interpretation at all levels, the book aims to enhance the reader's knowledge and mastery of the interpretive process in all its elements, with a view to making them more skilled and effective players in the game of interpretation. Enhances readers knowledge and mastery of treaty interpretation to help them become effective players in the game of interpretation. Engages with traditional issues of treaty interpretation through materials often borrowed from other disciplines and popular culture to offer a modern and accessible introduction to the subject. Fosters critical appraisal of the mainstream rule-based approach to treaty interpretation." -- Publisher site.

"This book offers the unique aspect of combining details on copyright ownership as well as authorship into a single volume on best practices for administrators, journal publishers, research managers, and policy drafters within and outside of higher education. Discover more about the definition of ‘author’—from data gatherer to writer—to inform policy development while understanding the interconnected relationships between authorship, copyright ownership, and scholarly communication. This book will also demonstrate how to develop inclusive and equitable authorship policies that reflect the range of diversity within the research endeavor and scholarly publishing." -- Publisher site.

"In The End of Everything, military historian Victor Davis Hanson narrates a series of sieges and sackings that span the age of antiquity to the conquest of the New World to show how societies descend into barbarism and obliteration. In the stories of Thebes, Carthage, Constantinople, and Tenochtitlan, he depicts war's drama, violence, and folly. Highlighting the naivete that plagued the vanquished and the wrath that justified mass slaughter, Hanson delivers a sobering call to contemporary readers to heed the lessons of obliteration lest we blunder into catastrophe once again." -- Publisher site.

"Deploying vivid cases and unflinching analysis, The Feminist War on Crime documents the failure of the state to combat sexual and domestic violence through law and punishment. Zero-tolerance anti-violence law and policy tend to make women less safe and more fragile. Mandatory arrests, no-drop prosecutions, forced separation, and incarceration embroil poor women of color in a criminal justice system that is historically hostile to them. This carceral approach exacerbates social inequalities by diverting more power and resources toward a fundamentally flawed criminal justice system, further harming victims, perpetrators, and communities alike. In order to reverse this troubling course, Gruber contends that we must abandon the conventional feminist wisdom, fight violence against women without reinforcing the American prison state, and use criminalization as a technique of last-not first-resort." -- Publisher site.

"Michael J. Glennon offers a response to the increasing censorship of America's digital marketplace of ideas, arguing that the censors are short-sighted. Quibbling over outdated distinctions misses the real threat--which is the fusion of public and private power into a modern-day cartel able to overleap longstanding constitutional safeguards. American democracy, he argues, rests on a decentralized marketplace of ideas independent of the government. In crisp, trenchant terms, Glennon shows how concrete practical concerns justify protecting admittedly harmful online speech--even speech that advocates violence or embraces hatred or apparent falsehood. The intellectual journey of Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. from absolutist to skeptic, he suggests, illuminates the value of political pluralism and the perils of the censors' the delusory certitude." -- Publisher site.

"Robin Bernstein relates a bloody tale of race, murder, and injustice that forces us to rethink the origins and consequences of America's immoral system of prisons for profit. Bernstein brings to life the story of William Freeman, a free Black man who in 1840 was forced into unpaid labor as an inmate of Auburn State Prison in New York. After his release, he murdered four members of a white family, as revenge for the theft of his labor. His trial saw the crystallization of a nefarious ideology-the idea that African Americans are inherently criminal-yet it also shaped Auburn as an important node in the long battle for Black freedom." -- Publisher site.

"University campuses in North America and Europe are deeply polarized over the character of the Jewish state and the meaning of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This book reveals the damage that antisemitism does to the identity of Jewish students, staff, and faculty. It is the first book to ask what the impact has been on the fundamental principles the academy relies on for its identity-academic freedom, free speech rights, standards for hiring or firing faculty members and administrators, and the ethics of academic conduct and debate. While Hate Speech and Academic Freedom details the chilling challenges we face, it also offers policies to use in meeting them, concluding with detailed chapters on how to use the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism." -- Publisher site.

"Presents a novel history of America from the colonial period to the present which establishes government as an essential partner with the market system in building the country. Amidst growing 'antigovernment' rhetoric, this book shows how government has been, and remains, essential for achieving the country's fundamental political values." -- Publisher site.

"This book is the first that synthesizes the legal, political, and social history of the early nineteenth century to show how deeply these constitutional questions dominated the discourse of the time." -- Publisher site.

"This book describes a political theology which provides a mode of engagement with unjust laws. It argues that the theology of Francisco Suárez, SJ, an early modern legal theorist and theologian, which was developed to combat an authoritarian view of law, may be successfully retrieved to provide a constructive model of legal engagement for Christians today, including the possibility that communities may work to change law from the ground up as they function within the legal system, not just outside it. His theory of law thus provides a theologically robust way to mount a counter-narrative to contemporary authoritarian theories of law, while still acknowledging the good in the rule of law and its imposition by a legislative authority. He acknowledges the crucial contribution of citizens to improving law's moral content, without removing the importance of law's own authority or the role of the lawgiver." -- Publisher site.

"This Element analyzes the foundational frame of legal reasoning when courts interpret the 'plain language' and 'ordinary meaning' of terms such as 'sex', 'man' and 'woman'. There is a rich and complicated line of cases on how to define these terms and how to legally categorize transgender people. When dealing with different legal issues, judges need to give a clear 'yes' or 'no,' determinate answer to a legal question. Marginal categorizations could be problematic even for experts. It analyses nine decisions that relate to transgender people's workplace protection under Title VII in United States and the right to marry in United Kingdom and Hong Kong. It brings in a historical discussion of the development of interpretative practices of law and legal categorization of transgender individuals across past decades, drawing on the intricate relationship between time and statutory interpretation." -- Back cover.

"The 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was supposed to be a stepping stone, a policy innovation announced by the White House designed to put pressure on Congress for a broader, lasting set of legislative changes. Those changes never materialized, and the people who hoped to benefit from them have been forced to navigate a tense and contradictory policy landscape ever since, haunted by these unfulfilled promises. Legal Phantoms tells their story. After Congress failed to pass a comprehensive immigration bill in 2013, President Obama pivoted in 2014 to supplementing DACA with a deferred action program (known as DAPA) for the parents of citizens and lawful permanent residents and a DACA expansion (DACA ) in 2014. But challenges from Republican-led states prevented even these programs from going into effect. Interviews with would-be applicants, immigrant-rights advocates, and government officials reveal how such failed immigration-reform efforts continue to affect not only those who had hoped to benefit, but their families, communities, and the country in which they have made an uneasy home. Out of the ashes of these lost dreams, though, people find their own paths forward through uncharted legal territory with creativity and resistance." -- Publisher site.

"Marijuana Federalism surveys the constitutional issues that come into play with this conflict, as well as the policy questions related to law enforcement at the federal versus state levels. It also describes specific areas--such as banking regulations--in which federal law has particularly far-reaching effects. Readers will gain a greater understanding of federalism in general, including how the division of authority between the federal and state governments operates in the context of policy and legal disputes between the two levels. This book also will help inform debates as other states consider whether to jump on the bandwagon of marijuana legalization." -- Publisher site.

"The New Bankruptcy explains the benefits of Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy so you can make an informed choice that addresses your financial needs. For instance, you'll learn that Chapter 7 will: wipe out credit card balances, utility bills, medical debt, and more; protect property you need to work and live, and; take about four to six months to complete. Chapter 13 bankruptcy works by keeping creditors at bay while you: catch up on a house or car payment; pay off an overdue tax or support balance, and; pay less on other debt, such as credit cards and student loans." -- Publisher site.

"What obscene pleasure in violence do so many male leaders in the Western world unleash in their supporters? Is violence always gendered and, if so, always in the same way? What is required of the human mind when it grants itself permission to enact violence? And how do we write about, visualize, and tell the truth about violence without becoming complicit? On Violence and On Violence Against Women refuses simple answers. It is a timely and urgent agitation against injustice, a provocation, and a meaningful call to action." -- Publisher site.

"Michael Breidenbach traces American secularism to an unexpected source: not Enlightenment liberalism but Catholic tradition. Suspected of dual loyalty, colonial American Catholics drew on the medieval doctrine of conciliarism to declare independence from the pope. Conciliarism inspired their push for toleration, shaping the nation at large." -- Publisher site.

"For thirty years, Clarence Thomas has been denounced as the 'cruelest justice,' a betrayer of his race, an ideologue, and the enemy of the little guy. In this compelling study of the man and the jurist, Amul Thapar demolishes that caricature. Recounting the stories of twelve cases that reached the Supreme Court, Amul Thapar shines new light on the heart and mind of Clarence Thomas. A woman in debilitating pain whose only effective medication has been taken away by the government, the motherless children of a slain police officer, victims of sexual assault-- read their eye-opening stories, stripped of legalese, and decide for yourself whether Thomas' originalist jurisprudence delivers equal justice under law. 'Finding the right answer,' Justice Thomas has observed, 'is often the least difficult problem.' What is needed is 'the courage to assert that answer and stand firm in the face of the constant winds of protest and criticism.'" -- Publisher site.

"In Policing Pregnant Bodies: From Ancient Greece to Post-Roe America, historian Kathleen M. Crowther discusses the deeply rooted medical and philosophical ideas that continue to reverberate in the politics of women's health and reproductive autonomy. From the idea that a detectable heartbeat is a sign of moral personhood to why infant and maternal mortality rates in the United States have risen as abortion restrictions have gained strength, this is a historically informed discussion of the politics of women's reproductive rights. Crowther explains why pro-life concern for fetuses has led not just to laws restricting or banning abortion but also to delaying or denying treatment to women for miscarriages as well as police investigations of miscarriages. She details the failure to implement policies that would actually improve the quality of infant life, such as guaranteed access to medical care, healthy food, safe housing, and paid maternity leave. We must understand the historical roots of these archaic ideas in order to critically engage with the current legal and political debates involving fetal life." -- Book jacket.

"In early 2018, the text of an employment contract surfaced on Twitter. Munger Tolles & Olson, a prominent Los Angeles law firm, required its summer associates to sign a contract that contained a binding arbitration clause. In and of itself, this was not unusual; binding arbitration clauses are ubiquitous in today's employment contracts. They require employees to submit all employment related grievances to a private, binding system of arbitration and to forfeit their access to the legal system. But this contract was unusually explicit in spelling out the true enormity of what it required new associates to give up. In addition to explaining that, by agreeing to arbitrate, 'you are giving up your right to a jury trial,' it specified that employment-related claims would include, 'without limitation,' all 'federal, state and local statutory, constitutional, and contractual and/or common law claims.' The contract went on to highlight a few examples, such as all claims arising under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Equal Pay Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as a variety of similar state laws. Combined with a non-disclosure requirement, the clause all but ensured that any arbitration proceedings would be kept private, no matter how grave the injury or how unsatisfactory the dispute resolution process." -- Publisher site.

"Written by a law professor (who also happens to be a wrestling fan), this book is an entertaining and informative exploration of legal cases involving professional wrestling. Relying upon judicial decisions and court documents, it discusses the legal theories and procedures involved in legal disputes involving professional wrestling and explores how the legal system--an institution devoted to arriving at the truth involved in any conflict--has dealt with the business of professional wrestling, a business with a long history of obscuring the truth. Topics include: the legal issues involved when a wrestler goes into the crowd and beats up a fan; Hulk Hogan's defamation lawsuit against World Championship Wrestling for statements made during a live pay-per-view event; and race and sex discrimination in professional wrestling." -- Publisher site.

"Within the broader context of war crimes investigations in the United States, Germany, and Australia, the authors reassess the legal and investigative processes and decisions that stymied inquiries, from the War Crimes Act itself to the restrictive criteria applied to it. Taken together, the authors argue that these -- including the interpretations of who could and should be prosecuted and decisions about the nature and amount of evidence needed for trial -- meant that many Nazi collaborators escaped justice and never appeared in a criminal court. The authors situate this history within the legacy of the Holocaust: how, if at all, do the belated attempts to address a failure of justice sit with an ever-growing awareness of the Holocaust, represented by memorialization and education? In so doing, Safe Haven provokes a timely reconsideration of the relationship between law, history, and truth." -- Publisher site.

"A significant problem within the legal profession is that many of the lawyers litigating cases and the judges deciding them have only a limited understanding of how to properly interpret empirical evidence. The goal of this book is to provide an easy way for members of the legal profession to acquire a basic understanding of the most common methods that serve as the building blocks for empirical evidence in academic articles, policy briefs, and expert witness reports. To accomplish this goal, we take a different approach than other introductory books on empirical methods. We omit the formulas and equations found in other books, and we instead focus on explaining the intuition and logic of common empirical methods. We also exclusively use examples that are relevant to law school and legal practice. By making the book accessible in this way, we hope to help counteract the aversion towards empirical evidence that is far too common in law schools, law firms, and the courts." -- Publisher site.

"A history of the U.S. executive branch from Washington to Biden that raises questions about the future relevance of the American presidency." -- Publisher site.

"In the 1970s, Washington’s center of power began to shift away from elected officials in big marble buildings to a handful of savvy, handsomely paid operators who didn’t answer to any fixed constituency. The cigar-chomping son of an influential congressman, an illustrious political fixer with a weakness for modern art, a Watergate-era dirty trickster, the city’s favorite cocktail party host—these were the sort of men who now ran Washington." -- Publisher site.

"In The Year of Living Constitutionally, A.J. Jacobs tries to get inside the minds of the Founding Fathers by living as closely as possible to the original meaning of the Constitution. He asserts his right to free speech by writing his opinions on parchment with a quill and handing them out to strangers in Times Square. He consents to quartering a soldier, as is his Third Amendment right. He turns his home into a traditional 1790s household by lighting candles instead of using electricity, boiling mutton, and—because women were not allowed to sign contracts— feebly attempting to take over his wife’s day job, which involves a lot of contract negotiations." -- Publisher site.