Civil Rights Introduction o US Fair Housing Act of 1968 Can discriminate against age and sexuality Rights Natural Civil and Human o Rights Require others to either do something or not do something They grant certain privileges and immunities It is a privilege and you have immunity from persecution o Natural rights Come from nature or nature s God and cannot be taken from a person Because they do not emanate from Government they cannot be taken away by it John Locke Life Liberty Property o Civil rights Come from government or consent of the governed and can be given or taken away o Thomas Hobbes argues that all rights come from government Believes all rights are human rights Rights help specify the common good and the common good gives a reason for why rights may be constrained Commitment Problems and the Political Economy of Rights o Civil rights issues can be viewed as commitment problems Time inconsistency Even if the terms of a deal are beneficial early on one party may find that as time passes conditions change and they have an incentive to violate their promise Solutions to Commitment Problems o Commitment devices Solutions to commitment problems o Solution to the commitment problem of dating Marriage Financial and social costs of divorce are high forcing couple to make it work o Reneging To go back on a promise Civil Rights as a Commitment Problem o Audience cost Captures the notion that when the Majority is forced to backtrack on their well publicized Minority policy their supporters may punish them for their broken promise o Subgame perfect equilibrium SPE Reveals the strategy profile of each player for every subgame of the larger game tree that is also Nash equilibrium o Amendments to the Constitution are the best protections of minority rights Still not perfect Their enforcement and protection fall to the interpretation of the Supreme Court Political Speech o Campaign Speech Citizens United vs Federal Election Commission Ruled that the First Amendment forbids the regulation of independent political expenditures by businesses labor unions or associations Expanded the rights of independent groups to spend for political speech Independent groups can now make unlimited donations to political campaigns Has led to a great increase in campaign spending Supported by ACLU and Heritage Foundation The Fairness Doctrine o Established by the Federal Communications Commission in 1949 o Requires that broadcasters provide time for public service broadcasting and that they present opposing views so that the public has a diversity of opinion Ceased to enforce in 1987 and struck down in 2011 Ensured that radio and television provided balanced and fair coverage of controversial issues Dropped as a part of Reagan s deregulatory efforts Argued that 1 The growth of cable television had expanded the range of broadcasts to such an extent that the doctrine was no longer needed 2 Chilling effect Led to a reduction of speech Resurrected AM radio and created talk radio National Security and Free Speech o Most Americans disapprove of the US government s use of telephone and internet records The right to privacy o Privacy The right to be left alone in the absence of some clear public need to know about an individual s private life occupation personal habits or preferences Constitution no explicit guarantee Griswold v Connecticut The Constitution with the Bill of Rights provides zones that establish the right to privacy in marital relations Roe v Wade Women had the right to privacy in determining whether to seek an abortion Constitutional literalists like Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Clarence Thomas do not believe the Constitution gives us this right o Medical records privacy In 2009 the Obama administration invested in digitizing medical records Electronic Health Records EHR Pros Cons Managerial efficiencies less medical errors medical practitioners are certain of what drugs patients are receiving and when how to best coordinate with other providers and each patient doctor can easily access their whole medical history EHRs collect and record information that is personal and invasive System susceptible to being hacked Records may be sold to marketers Employers may gain access to potential employees Insurers may use record for risk profiling o Behavioral targeting health records Refers to the use of personal information for the purpose of marketing External agency s collection and compilation of a record of an individual s online activities Often without user agreement or knowledge The right to due process of the law Due process stated in o 5th Amendment Forbids the government from withholding life liberty or property without the due process of the law o 14th Amendment Added to gain full incorporation of the clause in the states which argued that it did not apply to all of their actions Due process clause figures prominently in cases in which citizens are denied their rights by the national or state governments The expansion of marriage rights o President Bill Clinton supported passage of the Defense of Marriage Act Anti gay marriage o 1993 Hawaii Supreme Court first state to legalize gay marriage o Obergefell v Hodges Gay marriage legal o Jeffrey Lax and Justin Philips found that opinion drives policy making in regards to gay rights Due process for people with disabilities o Right vs Impairment Rights view People with disabilities deserve the rights of others Says that accommodations are required as a condition of citizenship Impairment view Idea that the disabled are in a special class of citizenship in which special treatment is required given their circumstances Says that accommodations are nice but optional given their cost Over the past 50 years we have been switching to the rights view o Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Section 504 Established disability as a civil rights issue No disabled person will be because of that disability denied privileges or benefits or denied access to facilities that are provided by or receive financial assistance from any US government agency o Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 1975 Required persons with disabilities to be provided an Individualized Education Program which parents and schools develop together o Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 Extended Section 504 to the private sector o Critics Private sector should be free to determine whether they wish to provide services or facilities that are readily accessible to the disabled Studies show less
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