Legal doctrine of self defense

You may have heard of the tragic shooting of Trayvon Martin, a 17 year old African-American on 26 February. The shooter was a neighbourhood watch volunteer* who believed the young man was acting suspiciously.

There has been an outpouring of sentiment for the plight of young Black males in America and much chastisizing of the racist bias, racial stereotyping and violent culture which made such a crime possible. The most interesting article I've read on the subject however deals with Florida's self defense legislation which made it difficult for the police to investigate or prosecute the shooter. I think this might be of particular interest to those of you interested in the American legal system.

In 2008, the Florida legislature passed a "Stand your ground" law which extended the "castle doctrine" (you are allowed to shoot if you are at risk in your own house) to public places. If under attack you were no longer required to retreat as far as you could before using deadly force. The change was mainly directed at protecting victims of domestic violence who employed deadly force against their abuser. But, in fact, the concept of self defence was much broadened, and if that is what you were acting under, you could not be charged with the crime.

George Zimmerman has since been charged but there was about a week's delay before the police launched the investigation.

*you may have seen a form of this type of watered-down vigilantism in TV shows and movies. It was, for instance, recently featured on Dexter, season 4.

the Emancipation Proclamation

NPR has a very good segment on the Emancipation Proclamation and the diverging opinions historians have on its meaning. As usual, I recommend you listen to the 9 minute broadcast which can readily be downloaded from the website.

Here is a quick reminder of the debates surrounding the interpretation of the Proclamation:

- Was the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation a momentous text meant to radically alter the situation of American Blacks?

- Was it merely a political gimmick, a tactical decision to save the Union?

- What did Lincoln believe he was doing when he signed the text which had been sitting in a drawer for several months?

- What should we make Lincoln's earlier declarations against Black freedom when he went as far as to blame the Negro for the war. In so doing was he asserting deeply held beliefs or trying to assuage the fears of his fellow Northerners?

In a new book on Lincoln and the Proclamation, Holzer reexamines the story of how Lincoln came to sign the document: massaging his hand so as not to quake and suggest that he had hesitated. This would suggest that the president was aware that this single piece of legislation might represent his most important legacy.

Holzer also looks at how the newly freed slaves interpreted Lincoln's actions and how they recognized him as the cause of their emancipation.

The second section of the article is devoted to the iconography of the Proclamation and is also well worth a glance.

the Pentagon Papers

The full set of documents composing the Pentagon Papers were released last week on the anniversary of their leak to the press.

Read more : Ellsberg's regrets.

the doll test today and other stories

Do you remember the psychological experiment that the supreme court justices referred to in the Brown v. Board decision? It has been conducted again. Here is a short video that one of you send me on this subject. It's a little troubling and strange (albeit 21 children makes for a very small panel and there seems to be no test panel with white children).

I also thought of you when I listened to this interview with the author of a book on a Comanche Indian born of a white mother and an Indian father. The woman was actually captured by the Native Americans in a raid. This is a story of violence and atrocities on both sides. It also offers interesting insights into the question of personnal identity ( can you stop being white? the consequences of being mixed race in the 19th century on the frontier...)

You can download this interview as a podcast on the NPR page or on i-tunes ( NPR: Fresh Air , 20 May 2011).

And finally, what does it mean to be Irish in America today? From the discrimation to McCartyism, JFK and Obama... Yet another quality podcast from Americana, a weekly BBC's programme on the US. I strongly recommend signing up to this podcast: a weekly 20 minute immersion in American life and politics.

I hope your exams went well,

AMZ

Church and State in America

Do you know the very liberal Daily Show host Jon Stewart?
Sometimes he is led to discuss constitutional matters, notably on the popular issue of separation of Church and State. Are the power of the States limited by the Bill of Rights?

If you can't remember, watch :

The Daily Show - Exclusive - Richard Beeman Extended Interview Pt. 1
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Part II :

The Daily Show - Exclusive - Richard Beeman Extended Interview Pt. 2
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

To find out more about David Barton you can watch an interview with Jon Stewart ( in which he makes the case against separation of Church and State) or you may want to read this short article from the NYTimes.

Conseil Constitutionel vs Supreme Court

A fellow student has called my attention to this interesting video from LCP. Jean-Louis Debré and Stephen Breyer, a Supreme Court Justice appointed by Bill Clinton in 1994 discuss the role of the judicial branch in government.

Not only is this discussion and the comparison relevant to what we've studied in seminar 11 but it is also very much related to what you've been doing in French and American Law.

Enjoy!

political ads 1950s-1960s

1. The first television commercial for an electoral campaign created by Roy Disney for candidate Dwight Eisenhower in 1952. His stature as a war hero and his appeal to both parties ( remember that the Democrats had asked him to run as President as well) and the well managed electoral campaign indeed got him in the White House. Note the three donkeys representing the Democratic party ( the donkey had become the symbol of the party under the Presidency of Grant).




2. The emotionally potent ad issued by the Johnson campaign for President in 1964. Although the ad was only aired once on television, it sent a shockwave through the country. It became a news item and was thus aired by the media as such, offering free air time to the Democratic ticket. This clip is famous for its suggestion that Barry Goldwater was not fit to be president because he was trigger happy and too likely to use nuclear weapons on foreign theaters of operation. However, when you listen carefully to the short speech that follows the explosion, I believe that the issues it raises are not germane to foreign policy tactics. Watch:



The terms "a world in which all God's children can live together"; "we must either love each other or die" suggests an allusion to something other than the Cold War and the nuclear threat. What do you think it might refer to?
(hint: consider why Barry Goldwater was gaining momentum at the time and who was supporting him)

For more ads of the 1964 campaign :

Lyndon B. Johnson : on nuclear testing, and on poverty. Note how the causes of poverty are reassessed in this ad, breaking away from the American tradition of portraying the poor as irresponsible and lazy). Finally, see how the legacy of JFK was used to bolster Johnson's Great Society platform. The tone of the campaing could turn quite sour and negative ads were aired.

Barry Goldwater ads : against Big Governement, on graft in Washington and integrity, and a response to Kruschev, on the no-win war in Vietnam.