Melvin Urofsky's Books

Dissent and the Supreme Court

Its Role in the Court's History and the Nation's Constitutional Dialogue

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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Dissent and the Supreme Court

Its Role in the Court's History and the Nation's Constitutional Dialogue

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

“Highly illuminating ... for anyone interested in the Constitution, the Supreme Court, and the American democracy, lawyer and layperson alike." —The Los Angeles Review of Books In his major work, acclaimed historian and judicial authority Melvin Urofsky examines the great dissents throughout the Court’s long history. Constitutional dialogue is one of the ways in which we as a people reinvent and reinvigorate our democratic society. The Supreme Court has interpreted the meaning of the Constitution, acknowledged that the Court’s majority opinions have not always been right, and initiated a critical discourse about what a particular decision should mean before fashioning subsequent decisions—largely through the power of dissent. Urofsky shows how the practice grew slowly but steadily, beginning with the infamous and now overturned case of Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) during which Chief Justice Roger Taney’s opinion upheld slavery and ending with the present age of incivility, in which reasoned dialogue seems less and less possible. Dissent on the court and off, Urofsky argues in this major work, has been a crucial ingredient in keeping the Constitution alive and must continue to be so.

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546

Publisher

Vintage

Published Date

ISBN 10

030774132X

ISBN 13

9780307741325

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

A Comprehensive and Honest Exploration of One of the Most Controversial Legal and Social Issues in US History

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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The Affirmative Action Puzzle

A Comprehensive and Honest Exploration of One of the Most Controversial Legal and Social Issues in US History

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

A rich, multifaceted history of affirmative action from the Civil Rights Act of 1866 through today’s tumultuous times From an acclaimed legal historian, a history of affirmative action from its beginning with the Civil Rights Act of 1866 to the first use of the term in 1935 with the enactment of the National Labor Relations Act (the Wagner Act) to 1961 and John F. Kennedy’s Executive Order 10925, mandating that federal contractors take “affirmative action” to ensure that there be no discrimination by “race, creed, color, or national origin” down to today’s American society. Melvin Urofsky explores affirmative action in relation to sex, gender, and education and shows that nearly every public university in the country has at one time or another, successfully or not, instituted some form of affirmative action plan. Urofsky traces the evolution of affirmative action through labor and the struggle for racial equality, writing of World War I and the exodus that began when some six million African Americans moved northward between 1910 and 1960, one of the greatest internal migrations in the country’s history. He describes how Harry Truman, after becoming president in 1945, fought for Roosevelt’s Fair Employment Practice Act and, surprising everyone, appointed a distinguished panel to serve as the President’s Commission on Civil Rights, as well as appointing the first black judge on a federal appeals court in 1948 and, by executive order later that year, ordering full racial integration in the armed forces. In this important, ambitious, far-reaching book, Urofsky writes about the affirmative action cases decided by the Supreme Court: cases that either upheld or struck down particular plans that affected both governmental and private entities. We come to fully understand the societal impact of affirmative action: how and why it has helped, and inflamed, people of all walks of life; how it has evolved; and how, and why, it is still needed.

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Page Count

592

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1510769870

ISBN 13

9781510769878

Letters of Louis D. Brandeis: Volume IV, 1916-1921

Mr. Justice Brandeis

By: Louis Dembitz Brandeis,Melvin L. Urofsky

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Letters of Louis D. Brandeis: Volume IV, 1916-1921

Mr. Justice Brandeis

By: Louis Dembitz Brandeis,Melvin L. Urofsky

During his long career of public service, first as a reform-minded lawyer and later as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Louis Dembitz Brandeis (1856-1941) had a profound influence upon American life in this century. In the words of Max Lerner: "Years from now, when historians can look back and put our time into perspective, they will say that one of its towering figures--more truly great than generals and diplomats, business giants and labor giants, bigger than most of our presidents--was a man called Brandeis." Other respected authorities have asserted that, except for John Marshall and Oliver Wendell Holmes, no jurist has exerted so broad and enduring influence upon American jurisprudence as Brandeis. Now assembled for the first time and planned for publication in a five-volume series are the Brandeis letters. In Vol. 1, (1870-1907): Urban Reformer, are letters written by Brandeis during his first years as a lawyer and social activist. They illuminate, in a day to day way, seemingly small areas of social action which are rarely documented and are so often lost in historical haze. They show what liberal reformers were thinking and doing in the Progressive Era and reveal the techniques, tactics, and strategies they employed in working within the system to find solutions to the human and urban problems of their day. In the process, they focus on many problems of contemporary concern and furnish insights into ways of organizing citizen pressure to effect social change.

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Page Count

624

Publisher

SUNY Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0873952979

ISBN 13

9780873952972

The Campaign Finance Cases

Buckley, McConnell, Citizens United, and McCutcheon

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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The Campaign Finance Cases

Buckley, McConnell, Citizens United, and McCutcheon

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

Rarely does the Supreme Court reverse itself as quickly and profoundly as it did in recent campaign finance cases, with the Citizens United decision of 2010 undoing the constraints of the McCain-Feingold Act upheld in McConnell v. Federal Election Commission (2003). And rarely have the stakes seemed so high, as billionaires vie for elected office and dark money floods political campaigns. In timely fashion, this new edition updates Melvin Urofsky’s classic study of campaign finance law, bringing his cogent analysis of the relevant statutes and court cases up to date. Urofsky explains in clear and convincing language what was—and is—at stake in the twists and turns of campaign finance laws taken up by the nation’s highest court in the past decades. Beginning with Buckley v. Valeo (1976) and moving through McConnell, Citizens United, and finally McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission (2014), Urofsky discusses the two principles at issue in these cases: freedom of political speech, and the protection of the political process from undue influence. Conventional wisdom holds that in such cases liberals want greater restrictions and conservatives want corporations to have greater freedom to influence voters. But working from a rich store of primary sources, probing the motivations and ideas of all participants in the campaign finance legal story, Urofsky reveals a far more complex picture, one whose significance transcends simple political ideologies. In a time of controversies over political speech in the blogosphere, social media, and cable news, and claims of electoral fraud, The Campaign Finance Cases offers a much-needed, balanced account of how issues critical to American democracy figure in the adjudication of campaign finance law, and how a changing political and media landscape might alter the process.

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Page Count

255

Publisher

University Press of Kansas

Published Date

ISBN 10

0700629882

ISBN 13

9780700629886

Louis D. Brandeis

A Life

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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Louis D. Brandeis

A Life

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

As a young lawyer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Louis Brandeis, born into a family of reformers who came to the United States to escape European anti-Semitism, established the way modern law is practiced. He was an early champion of the right to privacy and pioneer the idea of pro bono work by attorneys. Brandeis invented savings bank life insurance in Massachusetts and was a driving force in the development of the Clayton Antitrust Act, the Federal Reserve Act, and the law establishing the Federal Trade Commission. Brandeis witnessed and suffered from the anti-Semitism rampant in the United States in the early twentieth century, and with the outbreak of World War I, became at age fifty-eight the head of the American Zionist movement. During the brutal six-month congressional confirmation battle that ensued when Woodrow Wilson nominated him to the Supreme Court in 1916, Brandeis was described as “a disturbing element in any gentlemen’s club.” But once on the Court, he became one of its most influential members, developing the modern jurisprudence of free speech and the doctrine of a constitutionally protected right to privacy and suggesting what became known as the doctrine of incorporation, by which the Bill of Rights came to apply to the states. In this award-winning biography, Melvin Urofsky gives us a panoramic view of Brandeis’s unprecedented impact on American society and law.

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Page Count

978

Publisher

Schocken

Published Date

ISBN 10

0805211950

ISBN 13

9780805211955

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, Volume Two: Since 1896

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, Volume Two: Since 1896

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

Supreme Decisions: Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, covers twenty-four Supreme Court cases (twelve per volume) that have shaped American constitutional law. Interpretive chapters shed light on the nuances of each case, the individuals involved, and the social, political, and cultural context at that particular moment in history. Discussing cases from nearly every decade in a two-hundred-year span, Melvin I. Urofsky expounds on the political climate of the United States from the country's infancy through the new millennium. Featuring Marbury v. Madison, Dred Scott v. Sandford, Miranda v. Arizona, Brown v. Board of Education, and many more, this text covers foundational rulings and more recent decisions. Written with students in mind, Melvin I. Urofsky's voice offers compelling and fascinating accounts of American legal milestones.

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Page Count

263

Publisher

Routledge

Published Date

ISBN 10

0429972601

ISBN 13

9780429972607

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, Volume Two: Since 1896

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, Volume Two: Since 1896

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

Supreme Decisions: Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact, Volumes 1 and 2, covers twenty-four Supreme Court cases (twelve per volume) that have shaped American constitutional law. Interpretive chapters shed light on the nuances of each case, the individuals involved, and the social, political, and cultural context at that particular moment in history. Discussing cases from nearly every decade in a two-hundred-year span, Melvin I. Urofsky expounds on the political climate of the United States from the country's infancy through the new millennium. Featuring Marbury v. Madison, Dred Scott v. Sandford, Miranda v. Arizona, Brown v. Board of Education, and many more, this text covers foundational rulings and more recent decisions. Written with students in mind, Melvin I. Urofsky's voice offers compelling and fascinating accounts of American legal milestones. Supreme Decisions can be purchased as a single combined volume or conveniently split into two volumes, providing a breadth of information for survey courses in U.S. Constitutional History.

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Page Count

260

Publisher

Hachette UK

Published Date

ISBN 10

0813347343

ISBN 13

9780813347349

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

A Living History from Reconstruction to Today

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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The Affirmative Action Puzzle

A Living History from Reconstruction to Today

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

A rich, multifaceted history of affirmative action from the Civil Rights Act of 1866 through today’s tumultuous times From acclaimed legal historian, author of a biography of Louis Brandeis (“Remarkable” —Anthony Lewis, The New York Review of Books, “Definitive”—Jeffrey Rosen, The New Republic) and Dissent and the Supreme Court (“Riveting”—Dahlia Lithwick, The New York Times Book Review), a history of affirmative action from its beginning with the Civil Rights Act of 1866 to the first use of the term in 1935 with the enactment of the National Labor Relations Act (the Wagner Act) to 1961 and John F. Kennedy’s Executive Order 10925, mandating that federal contractors take “affirmative action” to ensure that there be no discrimination by “race, creed, color, or national origin” down to today’s American society. Melvin Urofsky explores affirmative action in relation to sex, gender, and education and shows that nearly every public university in the country has at one time or another instituted some form of affirmative action plan--some successful, others not. Urofsky traces the evolution of affirmative action through labor and the struggle for racial equality, writing of World War I and the exodus that began when some six million African Americans moved northward between 1910 and 1960, one of the greatest internal migrations in the country’s history. He describes how Harry Truman, after becoming president in 1945, fought for Roosevelt’s Fair Employment Practice Act and, surprising everyone, appointed a distinguished panel to serve as the President’s Commission on Civil Rights, as well as appointing the first black judge on a federal appeals court in 1948 and, by executive order later that year, ordering full racial integration in the armed forces. In this important, ambitious, far-reaching book, Urofsky writes about the affirmative action cases decided by the Supreme Court: cases that either upheld or struck down particular plans that affected both governmental and private entities. We come to fully understand the societal impact of affirmative action: how and why it has helped, and inflamed, people of all walks of life; how it has evolved; and how, and why, it is still needed.

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Page Count

593

Publisher

Pantheon

Published Date

ISBN 10

1101870885

ISBN 13

9781101870884

New York Times v. Sullivan

Civil Rights, Libel Law, and the Free Press

By: Kermit L. Hall,Melvin I. Urofsky

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New York Times v. Sullivan

Civil Rights, Libel Law, and the Free Press

By: Kermit L. Hall,Melvin I. Urofsky

Illuminating a classic case from the turbulent civil rights era of the 1960s, two of America's foremost legal historians-Kermit Hall and Melvin Urofsky-provide a compact and highly readable updating of one of the most memorable decisions in the Supreme Court's canon. When the New York Times published an advertisement that accused Alabama officials of willfully abusing civil rights activists, Montgomery police commissioner Lester Sullivan filed suit for defamation. Alabama courts, citing factual errors in the ad, ordered the Times to pay half a million dollars in damages. The Times appealed to the Supreme Court, which had previously deferred to the states on libel issues. The justices, recognizing that Alabama's application of libel law threatened both the nation's free press and equal rights for African Americans, unanimously sided with the Times. As memorably recounted twenty years ago in Anthony Lewis's Make No Law, the 1964 decision profoundly altered defamation law, which the Court declared must not hinder debate on public issues even if it includes "vehement, caustic, and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials." The decision also introduced a new First Amendment test: a public official cannot recover damages for libel unless he proves that the statement was made with the knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false. Hall and Urofsky, however, place a new emphasis on this iconic case. Whereas Lewis's book championed freedom of the press, the authors here provide a stronger focus on civil rights and southern legal culture. They convey to readers the urgency of the civil rights movement and the vitriolic anger it inspired in the Deep South. Their insights place this landmark case within a new and enlightening frame.

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Page Count

232

Publisher

University Press of Kansas

Published Date

ISBN 10

0700618031

ISBN 13

9780700618033

Supreme Decisions

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

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Supreme Decisions

Great Constitutional Cases and Their Impact

By: Melvin I. Urofsky

Compellingly written, accessible, and interpretive, Melvin I. Urofsky's stories of major Supreme Court cases and the impact of each ruling on American constitutional law make a readable book for every student.

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Page Count

450

Publisher

Westview Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0813347351

ISBN 13

9780813347356

A Genesis of Religious Freedom

The Story of the Jews of Newport, RI and Touro Synagogue

By: Melvin I. Urofsky,John Langeloth Loeb (Jr.),George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom

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A Genesis of Religious Freedom

The Story of the Jews of Newport, RI and Touro Synagogue

By: Melvin I. Urofsky,John Langeloth Loeb (Jr.),George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom

In A Genesis of Religious Freedom: The Story of the Jews of Newport, RI and Touro Synagogue, Dr. Melvin I. Urofsky recounts the unique history of Jewish settlers in Rhode Island - the first colony to grant its citizens freedom to worship in the manner of their choosing. Drawn to the promise that in Roger Williams’ Rhode Island colony “none shall be disturbed in their worship,” Newport’s Sephardic Jewish settlers were innovators, helping lead the town into its economic “Golden Age.” It was to the Newport Jewish community that George Washington wrote his powerful “Letter to the Hebrew Congregation” in 1790, promising that the U. S. government would give “to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.” Newport’s diversity and religious tolerance enabled this community to thrive and, in 1763, to dedicate a synagogue –America’s oldest standing synagogue and a National Historic Site. Now celebrating the 250th anniversary of its dedication, Touro Synagogue remains home to an active Jewish congregation continuing in the spiritual tradition of Newport’s early settlers. Written for a general audience of all ages, in a captivating and easy-to-read format, Urofsky explores the richness of this ethnic community in a cosmopolitan New England seaport. Full-color illustrations illuminate participation in political, social, economic and civil life. The book provides readers of all religions with insights into an often overlooked, important and inspiring aspect of American history. Urofsky further notes that, “Starting in the late 1890’s, a remarkable series of events led to the revitalization of the community and Touro Synagogue. In 1947, Congress declared the building a national historic shrine. Since then, Jews of Newport and across the United States have restored and beautified the Touro Synagogue and its surrounding park.” The latest chapter in the synagogue’s history began in 2009 with the opening of the Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitors Center, gateway to Touro Synagogue National Historic Site. Dr. Urofsky is Professor Emeritus of History at Virginia Commonwealth University. This is the fifty-fourth book he has either written or edited, several of which have won prestigious awards.

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Page Count

144

Published Date

ISBN 10

1939706009

ISBN 13

9781939706003

A Voice That Spoke for Justice

The Life and Times of Stephen S. Wise

By: Melvin I. Urofsky,Professor of History and Public Policy Melvin I Urofsky

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A Voice That Spoke for Justice

The Life and Times of Stephen S. Wise

By: Melvin I. Urofsky,Professor of History and Public Policy Melvin I Urofsky

In the first half of this century, a talented and charismatic leadership restructured the American Jewish community to meet the demands and opportunities of a pluralistic, secular society. The work of this generation of titans still guides the current modes of American Jewish life. The last of these giants was the influential reformer Stephen S. Wise--a progenitor of American Zionism, creator of the American and World Jewish Congresses, and founder of the Jewish Institute of Religion. As rabbi of the Free Synagogue, Wise led the fight for a living Judaism responsive to social problems. This engrossing study is more than a chronicle of an ethnic community's adjustment to a host society. Thanks to Melvin Urofsky's painstaking research, it succeeds in revealing the true story behind a legendary and controversial figure in American Jewish history.

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Page Count

458

Publisher

SUNY Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0873955382

ISBN 13

9780873955386

The Bill of Rights in Modern America

Third Edition, Revised and Expanded

By: David J. Bodenhamer,James W. Ely, Jr.

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The Bill of Rights in Modern America

Third Edition, Revised and Expanded

By: David J. Bodenhamer,James W. Ely, Jr.

As the 2020s began, protestors filled the streets, politicians clashed over how to respond to a global pandemic, and new scrutiny was placed on what rights US citizens should be afforded. Newly revised and expanded to address immigration, gay rights, privacy rights, affirmative action, and more, The Bill of Rights in Modern America provides clear insights into the issues currently shaping the United States. Essays explore the law and history behind contentious debates over such topics as gun rights, limits on the powers of law enforcement, the death penalty, abortion, and states' rights. Accessible and easy to read, the discerning research offered in The Bill of Rights in Modern America will help inform critical discussions for years to come.

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Page Count

347

Publisher

Indiana University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0253060729

ISBN 13

9780253060723

Book's by Melvin Urofsky

Dissent and the Supreme Court

Dissent and the Supreme Court

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

Letters of Louis D. Brandeis: Volume IV, 1916-1921

Letters of Louis D. Brandeis: Volume IV, 1916-1921

The Campaign Finance Cases

The Campaign Finance Cases

Louis D. Brandeis

Louis D. Brandeis

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

Supreme Decisions, Volume 2

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

The Affirmative Action Puzzle

New York Times v. Sullivan

New York Times v. Sullivan

Supreme Decisions

Supreme Decisions

A Genesis of Religious Freedom

A Genesis of Religious Freedom

A Voice That Spoke for Justice

A Voice That Spoke for Justice

The Bill of Rights in Modern America

The Bill of Rights in Modern America

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