Research Paper: Right to Privacy Assignment Instructions

Overview

You will write a research paper covering one of the most controversial of all the rights in the Bill of Rights—the right to privacy- which becomes the foundation for the right to an abortion. You will have the opportunity to explore the legal underpinnings of the right to an abortion and the opportunity to explore whether the right to privacy is correctly interpreted as the foundation for the right to an abortion.  The purpose of this assignment is to help you analyze the rights of privacy and abortion and to think through the issues surrounding these rights in the context of our legal, constitutional, and religious history.

You will also have the opportunity to tie together many macro course themes in this assignment: 1) an assessment of where our country is today in light of our legal and religious heritage; 2) an analysis of the importance of competing visions of constitutional interpretation, and 3) a deep dive into a major public policy issue that has divided Americans for the past half century and continues to be a major 21st century policy debate.

The right to privacy was first created by the Supreme Court in its 1965 Griswold v. Connecticut ruling. Eight years later, in its 1973 decision Roe v. Wade, the Court determined that the right to privacy was broad enough to include the right to an abortion.  Consequently, in this paper, you’ll explore the specific, constitutional underpinnings of the abortion debate.

Access Griswold v. Connecticut from any reputable website (two excellent resources can be found in the reading material for Module 7: Week 7 – Explore: Oyez and Explore: Legal Information Institute. Analyze this case from both a loose constructionist and a strict constructionist perspective. Apply the principles and knowledge that you have gained in this course regarding America’s religious and legal history. In light of our Constitutional heritage and principles that you have learned in this course, which side is more consistent with our Constitutional heritage? Since Roe v. Wade is based upon Griswold, is the Roe decision grounded upon a strong, constitutional basis?  Explain and discuss.

Instructions

Explain the assignment in detail. Specify the exact requirements of the assignment. Items to include are outlined as follows:

  • Length of assignment: 4-5 pages excluding the title page, abstract, and reference section.
  • Format of assignment: Latest edition of APA
  • Number of citations: at least five scholarly sources
  • Acceptable sources: scholarly articles published within the last five years, published books, course texts, and the Bible.