This class introduces students to various constitutional systems in the world with a focus on Pakistan, India, South Africa, Chile, Haiti, UK, and the U.S. This course will involve reading constitutional cases on a broad range of topics including racial equality, criminal justice, abolition of the death penalty, housing, health, and immigration. Through this introductory level course, students will learn principles of legal interpretation, how politics influences decision-making, and what it means when judges exercise judicial restraint versus activism. Students will learn procedural aspects of the law and the use of various writs and powers of the court to enhance fundamental freedoms. We will delve in the history of constitutions, for example, India’s “Ambedkar’s constitution and its attempt to eradicate caste, Pakistan’s constitutional disruptions leading up to the 26th and 27th amendment, and South Africa’s post-apartheid constitution. The course will integrate concepts of critical race and gender theory that will help students pick and critique any constitutional case for their end of term presentations for discussion.
