Mr. Curran

United States History

A. Philip Randolph Campus High School

INTER ARMA SILENT LEGES*

*in times of war the laws fall silent

A Project SAVE Web Quest

Introduction:

While our Constitution, specifically the Bill of Rights, was formed to protect our individual civil liberties against the abuses of an all-powerful central government, this has not always been the case. During times of conflict, the Federal government has curtailed or suspended our Constitutional rights to protect what they consider to be the “collective good” of the country. The above Latin phrase is used to describe such government action. Taken literally, it means that when a country is threatened during war, laws can be ignored in favor of more security. Needless to say, these actions never receive universal approval by the public and can cause greater instability than they try to prevent. Are there ever times in which the Federal government is justified in curtailing our liberties in favor of greater protection or are the Bill of Rights guaranteed to us even (or especially) during times of national emergency?

At this very moment, the Federal government is debating this issue. Some in Congress believe that the Federal wiretapping of telephone communications and the imprisonment of suspected terrorists without trial violates the Constitution. Others believes that America is in a time of “national emergency” and lives will be lost and grave danger will result if civil liberties are not curtailed. Our greatest presidents have suspended civil liberties. John Adams (Alien & Sedition Acts), Abraham Lincoln (Civil War), Woodrow Wilson (World War I) and Franklin Roosevelt (World War II). The debate will rage so long as democracies exist. Is the federal government justified in suspending individual rights granted by our Constitution?

Task:

In this Web Quest you will be asked to research one specific instance of the Federal government’s suspension of our Civil Rights. After researching your action, you will create a poster board in which you will either defend or condemn the action taken by the Federal government. You will then present your findings and your position to the class in the form of a presentation. The Poster Board:

Should contain both graphics and text

Should contain all elements of the CompuLegal process as stated in the “process”.

Should be an integral part of your oral presentation

Process:

The class will be divided into 6 groups. Each group will be given a specific Government action to either defend or condemn. The 6 groups are as follows:

Defend Lincoln’s suspension of Habeas Corpus during the Civil War	Condemn Lincoln’s suspension of Habeas Corpus during the Civil War
Defend the limits placed on Free Speech during WWI	Condemn the limits placed on Free Speech during WWI
Defend the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII	Condemn the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII

For the purposes of this project, your groups will research your positions by analyzing three landmark Supreme Court cases. These cases are:

Government Action	Supreme Court Case
Lincoln’s Suspension of Habeas Corpus	Ex Parte Milligan
Free Speech during WWI	Schenck v United States
Internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII	Korematsu v United States

Resources:

Your group will analyze the Supreme Court Cases using the CompuLEGAL website. Using the website, each group will:

Study the FACTS and the Visual of the case

Complete “Facts & Issue Question” format

Complete Reasoning guide

Use “Precedents & the Constitution in your Reasoning guide format

Clicking on your case above will take you to the website. Follow the instructions for each step outlined. All steps must be completed and all work handed into me for approval before you begin your poster boards. In addition to the CompuLEGAL website, you may use the following additional resources:

General Internet Search Engine (Google)

The Federal Supreme Court website

FindLaw.com

Cornell’s Legal Information Institute

The Oyez Project

Evaluation:

Topic	Score of 4	Score of 3	Score of 2	Score of 1
Organization	Extremely well organized; logical format that was easy to follow; flowed smoothly from one idea to another and cleverly conveyed; the organization enhanced the effectiveness of the project	Presented in a thoughtful manner; there were signs of organization and most transitions were easy to follow, but at times ideas were unclear	Somewhat organized; ideas were not presented coherently and transitions were not always smooth.	Choppy and confusing; format was difficult to follow; transitions of ideas were abrupt.
Content Accuracy	Completely accurate; all facts were precise and explicit	Mostly accurate; a few inconsistencies or errors in information	Somewhat accurate; more than a few inconsistencies or errors in information	Completely inaccurate; the facts in this project were misleading
Research	Went above and beyond to research information; solicited material in addition to what was provided; brought in personal ideas and information to enhance project	Utilized materials provided to their full potential; at times took the initiative to find information outside of school	Used the material provided in an acceptable manner, but did not consult any additional resources	Did not utilize resources effectively; did little or no fact gathering on the topic
Presentation/Creativity	Was extremely clever and presented with originality; a unique approach that truly enhanced the project All members of the group effectively participated	Was clever at times; thoughtfully and uniquely presented All members of the group participated in some capacity	Added a few original touches to enhance the project but did not incorporate it throughout Some members did not participate during the presentation	Little creative energy used during this project; was bland, predictable, and lacked “zip” Most members of the group did not participate during the presentation
Presentation Mechanics	Was engaging, provocative, and captured the interest of the audience and maintained this throughout the entire presentation; great variety of visual aids; visual aids were colorful and clear	Was well done and interesting to the audience; was presented in a unique manner and was very well organized; some use of visual aids	Was at times interesting and was presented clearly and precisely; was clever at times and was organized in a logical manner; limited variety of visual aids and visual aids were not colorful or clear	Was not organized effectively; was not easy to follow and did not keep the audience interested; no use of visual aids

NY State Standards Addressed:

Social Studies

Standard 1:   History of the United States

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.

Standard 5: Civics, Citizenship, and Government

Use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the U.S. and other nations; the U.S. Constitution; the basic civic values of American constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.

English Language Arts

Standard 1:   Language for Information and Understanding

Students will listen, speak, read, and write for information and understanding. As listeners and readers, students will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and use knowledge generated from oral, written, and electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information.

Standard 2:   Language for Literary Response and Expression

Students will read and listen to oral, written, and electronically produced texts and performances from American and world literature; relate texts and performances to their own lives; and develop an understanding of the diverse social, historical, and cultural dimensions the texts and performances represent. As speakers and writers, students will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language for self-expression and artistic creation.

Standard 3:   Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation

Students will listen, speak, read, and write for critical analysis and evaluation. As listeners and readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to present, from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues.

Standard 4:   Language for Social Interaction

Students will listen, speak, read, and write for social interaction. Students will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language for effective social communication with a wide variety of people. As readers and listeners, they will use the social communications of others to enrich their understanding of people and their views.

Conclusion:

"It is neither desirable nor is it remotely likely that civil liberty will occupy as favored a position in wartime as it does in peacetime."

This quote from former Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist was taken before the events of September 11^TH and the current Iraqi war. After 9/11, Our country is once again arguing whether or not our liberties pose too great a risk to our security. Some are arguing that we must not allow our enemies to use the freedoms we have as a sheild to protect them from capture. Others argue that it is precisely those freedoms that we are fighting to keep and that they should not be taken away from us.

After completing this Web Quest, answer the following questions:

How accurate is Rehnquist’s quote?

Does history validate or refute his statement ?

What faults can you find in what he says?

Where do you stand on this important issue facing our country?

Let’s hope this web quest made you aware of this critical issue. Moreover, you should be keenly aware that democracy requires participation and debate. Without it, democracy turns authoritarian.