2005-2006 National High School Debate Topic : Civil Liberties

Resolved: The United States federal government should substantially decrease its authority either to detain without charge or to search without probable cause.

Following the devastation of 9/11, the United States government took action on many fronts. Immediately after the war in Afghanistan, a camp was set up in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to house “detainees” captured by the military. These detainees were identified as terrorists, but held without formal charges. The lack of clarity in how to handle suspected terrorists was addressed in part by “The USA PATRIOT Act,” legislation which gave broad power to the government to detain individuals suspected of terrorist activities, and to hold those individuals without access to attorney or recourse to the American court system. Upon passage of the PATRIOT Act, some members of Congress expressed concern the act could threaten civil liberties. Civil rights groups argue that the PATRIOT Act is unconstitutional and jeopardizes civil liberties in a number of ways, including the ability to conduct searches without search warrants or probable cause, and the ability to detain individuals without charges. These recent events make it important for students to discuss the various merits of current laws and practices aimed at detaining and searching individuals.

Source: 2005-2006 Debate Topic Presentation by David Glass, New York and Terri Robinson, Texas, to the National Federation of High Schools.

MSU Libraries Subscription Databases

Database:	Columbia International Affairs Online
Coverage:	Current
Description and Notes:	Provides access to many public policy working papers, conference proceeedings, journal articles, and even books. Subject coverage includes current affairs, political science, and law, among other topics. When searching, use all capital letters when using the word "AND"; otherwise search results will be very poor. Sample search: Find the advanced link by the Search icon. Type in civil liberties AND patriot act.

Database:
General OneFile

Coverage:
Indexing: 1980 to date.

Description and Notes:
A one-stop source for news and periodical articles on a wide range of topics, including current events, law, and politics. Millions of full-text articles, many with images. Updated daily. A large percentage of the cited resources are available full-text online within this collection, and other items can be found among MSU's other print and electronic collections.
Sample search: change to keyword search and type in civil liberties AND patriot act.

Database:
Proquest Research Library

Coverage:
Indexing: 1971 to date; full-text: 1991 to date.

Description and Notes:
Provides online access to an extensive collection of published material. You can search for information in thousands of different journals, periodicals, dissertations, newspapers, and magazines. Complete articles -- in full text, page image, or UMI's unique Text+Graphics format -- are available for many of the most popular and important sources. Updated daily.
Sample search: change to advanced search for multiple boxes. Try civil liberties and patriot act for example. Note that Proquest offers suggested searches in the box above your results. You may want to try some for more focused results.

Database:
Wilson Select Plus

Coverage:
1994-

Description and Notes:
Wilson Select provides full text coverage of over 400 journals. However, full text coverage varies by date from journal to journal.
Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act.

Database:
Lexis Nexis Academic

Coverage:
Current

Description and Notes:
Provides the full text of current newspapers, wire services, news magazines, newsletters, journals, as well as law reporters and court cases.
Sample search: "civil liberties" and "patriot act". Note the default on the basic search is the last six months; you can adjust the period for shorter on longer time periods.

Database:
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center

Coverage:
Current

Description and Notes:
Provides a selection of pro and con articles on numerous topics.
Sample search: Select advance search and combine civil liberties and patriot act. Be sure to change the default fields to full text for best results. Note that the MSU Libraries own many of the books from which these electronic articles have been extracted.

Database:
CQ Researcher

Coverage:
Current

Description and Notes:
Provides background information on controversial topics related to the U.S. Congress and public affairs.
Sample search: Type civil liberties in the quick search box.

Database:
CQ Weekly

Coverage:
Current

Description and Notes:
Provides background information on hot topics related to the U.S. Congress and public affairs.
Sample search: Type civil liberties in the quick search box.

Essential Journal Article Indexes:
These databases may provide some full-text material online, but are mostly large research databases of article citations. These databases cover many more resources and a longer time period than the full-text databases above. To find these materials, you must search for the title of the journal or book cited in MAGIC to find its location, whether electronic or in print.

Database:
Index to Legal Periodicals Via FirstSearch

Coverage:
1981-

Description and Notes:
Provides thorough, reliable indexing of over 842 journals, yearbooks, institutes, bar association organs, law reviews and university publications from the U.S., Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico. Covers all areas of jurisprudence, including court decisions, legislation, and original scholarship.
Sample search : civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.

Database:
LegalTrac

Coverage:
1980-

Description and Notes:
Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Provides comprehensive and cumulative indexing for approximately 1000 legal publications, including all major law reviews, seven legal newspapers, specialty law and bar association journals. Also covers law related articles from more than 1,000 additional business and general interest periodicals, as well as major legal publications from other English speaking countries. Covers law reviews, case notes, biographies, legal profession news, and legislative news and analysis. Some topics include legal specialties like copyright law, real property, international trade, labor law criminal justice, civil rights, and law office management. Updated monthly.
Sample search: Change search option to keyword; type in civil liberties AND patriot act.

Database:
PAIS International (Including Archive)

Coverage:
1915-

Description and Notes:
Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Next to the International Political Science Abstracts, this is one of the most important bibliographic databases for political science. It indexes and provides short notes or abstracts (beginning in 1985) for journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, conference papers, government publications, working papers, reports and statistical materials. Heavy emphasis on the United States; however, it does provide world coverage of politics, public policy, public administration, international relations, and current affairs. Most of the materials listed are in English, with some French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and German publications included. Updated monthly.
The PAIS Archive database comprises a retrospective conversion of the PAIS Annual Cumulated Bulletin, Volumes 1-62, published 1915-1976, containing over 1 million records of additional resources. The PAIS Archive is available as part of an enhanced subscription to PAIS International on CSA Illumina.
Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.

Database:
Social Sciences Abstracts

Coverage:
1983-

Description and Notes:
Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Covers about 400 journals in fields such as political science and law.
Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.

Selected Web Resources:

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The Patriot Act's Impact on Your Rights
American Library Association. USA PATRIOT Act and Intellectual Freedom
Annotated Bibliography on Human Rights Infringements in a Post-September 11th United States by David Aaron Pildis for Richard Wilson and the Human Rights Institute of the University of Connecticut.
The Center for Democracy & Technology has created a USA Patriot Act and other Security Issues page. If you dig through it, you can turn up various related items such as Civil Liberties at Issue in PATRIOT Act Reauthorization, CDT Policy Post, Volume 11, Number 12, June 2, 2005.
Cathy Nelson Hartman and Valerie D. Glenn from the University of North Texas Libraries have created a database of Congressional Research Service Reports addressing numerous public policy topics including interrogation of war prisoners. Try a simple keyword search with the words or phrases like "interrogation", "search warrant", "probable cause", "patriot act" or try browsing under the topics such as civil liberties, civil rights, intelligence.
Debate Central's Web Page on Civil Liberties. Provides numerous links to web sites related to the current National Debate Topic. From the National Center for Policy Analysis, a public policy research organization.
Economic Analysis of the Conflict Between the Patriot Act and Civil Liberty. Article by Hugo M. Mialon and Paul H. Rubin, Emory University, courtesy of Debate Central.
Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). The USA Patriot Act web site.
The Federation of American Scientists have compiled an Intlligence Resource Program web page pulling together various resources related to the intelligence gathering programs of the U.S. government.
Human Rights First has written a series of reports on the erosion of civil liberties in the U.S. since 9/11. These include:
Assessing the New Normal: Liberty and Security for the Post-September 11 United States
Imbalance of Powers: How Changes to U.S. Law & Policy Since 9/11 Erode Human Rights and Civil Liberties
A Year of Loss: Reexamining Civil Liberties Since September 11
Patriot Act News
http://patriotactnews.blogspot.com/
Susan Payne 's blog is a handy tool for tracking new developments regarding the Patriot Act as the weeks tick down to the showdown in Congress in early February 2006.
(Last checked 01/17/06)

The Political Information web site provides extensive coverage of politics, public policy, and political news. Try civil liberties and patriot act as a sample search. Or ethnic profiling.
Public Agenda Special Edition on Terrorism. President Bush pushed Congress to renew the USA Patriot Act on June 9, 2005, saying "terrorist threats against us will not expire at the end of the year and neither should...the Patriot Act." The controversial law, passed in the wake of 9-11, gives law enforcement additional powers to pursue suspected terrorists. Several provisions of the law are set to expire this year, and civil libertarians and even some Republican senators are calling for the law to be scaled back.
Despite the controversy, nearly six in 10 people admitted to the CBS News poll in April 2005 that they knew "not much" or "nothing" about the Patriot Act. Of those who had heard something about it, opinions were divided, with 49 percent saying it was a necessary tool while 45 percent said it "goes too far."
When people are asked more probing questions, some specific provisions of the law are unpopular. In February 2004, seven in 10 told Gallup they oppose allowing federal agents to secretly search a citizen's home. The public is split on some other Patriot Act features, with 51 percent opposing the requirement that libraries, bookstores and hospitals secretly turn over records to investigators on request.
Public Agenda's research suggests that the public's views on civil liberties can depend on two things: how threatened they feel and their own personal experience with the law. For more detail, read the full article on civil liberties in our special edition on terrorism.

Reflections on Civil Liberties in An Age of Counterterrorism by Conor Gearty, London School of Economics.
The Rights Working Group is a coalition of civil rights, civil liberties, human rights and immigrant rights advocates who seek to develop a coordinated response to policies and attitudes leading to the deterioration of civil and human rights in the aftermath of 9/11.

The U.S. Department of Justice Life and Liberty web site was set up to defend the PATRIOT Act from the U.S. government's point of view.

The University of Michigan High School Debate Topic page always mentions many resources which are also available at Michigan State University.

Please send comments or questions to:

Jon Harrison, Social Sciences Collections Coordinator, MSU Libraries

Database:	General OneFile
Coverage:	Indexing: 1980 to date.
Description and Notes:	A one-stop source for news and periodical articles on a wide range of topics, including current events, law, and politics. Millions of full-text articles, many with images. Updated daily. A large percentage of the cited resources are available full-text online within this collection, and other items can be found among MSU's other print and electronic collections. Sample search: change to keyword search and type in civil liberties AND patriot act.

Database:	Proquest Research Library
Coverage:	Indexing: 1971 to date; full-text: 1991 to date.
Description and Notes:	Provides online access to an extensive collection of published material. You can search for information in thousands of different journals, periodicals, dissertations, newspapers, and magazines. Complete articles -- in full text, page image, or UMI's unique Text+Graphics format -- are available for many of the most popular and important sources. Updated daily. Sample search: change to advanced search for multiple boxes. Try civil liberties and patriot act for example. Note that Proquest offers suggested searches in the box above your results. You may want to try some for more focused results.

Database:	Wilson Select Plus
Coverage:	1994-
Description and Notes:	Wilson Select provides full text coverage of over 400 journals. However, full text coverage varies by date from journal to journal. Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act.

Database:	Lexis Nexis Academic
Coverage:	Current
Description and Notes:	Provides the full text of current newspapers, wire services, news magazines, newsletters, journals, as well as law reporters and court cases. Sample search: "civil liberties" and "patriot act". Note the default on the basic search is the last six months; you can adjust the period for shorter on longer time periods.

Database:	Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center
Coverage:	Current
Description and Notes:	Provides a selection of pro and con articles on numerous topics. Sample search: Select advance search and combine civil liberties and patriot act. Be sure to change the default fields to full text for best results. Note that the MSU Libraries own many of the books from which these electronic articles have been extracted.

Database:	CQ Researcher
Coverage:	Current
Description and Notes:	Provides background information on controversial topics related to the U.S. Congress and public affairs. Sample search: Type civil liberties in the quick search box.

Database:	CQ Weekly
Coverage:	Current
Description and Notes:	Provides background information on hot topics related to the U.S. Congress and public affairs. Sample search: Type civil liberties in the quick search box.

Database:	Index to Legal Periodicals Via FirstSearch
Coverage:	1981-
Description and Notes:	Provides thorough, reliable indexing of over 842 journals, yearbooks, institutes, bar association organs, law reviews and university publications from the U.S., Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico. Covers all areas of jurisprudence, including court decisions, legislation, and original scholarship. Sample search : civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.

Database:	LegalTrac
Coverage:	1980-
Description and Notes:	Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Provides comprehensive and cumulative indexing for approximately 1000 legal publications, including all major law reviews, seven legal newspapers, specialty law and bar association journals. Also covers law related articles from more than 1,000 additional business and general interest periodicals, as well as major legal publications from other English speaking countries. Covers law reviews, case notes, biographies, legal profession news, and legislative news and analysis. Some topics include legal specialties like copyright law, real property, international trade, labor law criminal justice, civil rights, and law office management. Updated monthly. Sample search: Change search option to keyword; type in civil liberties AND patriot act.

Database:	PAIS International (Including Archive)
Coverage:	1915-
Description and Notes:	Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Next to the International Political Science Abstracts, this is one of the most important bibliographic databases for political science. It indexes and provides short notes or abstracts (beginning in 1985) for journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, conference papers, government publications, working papers, reports and statistical materials. Heavy emphasis on the United States; however, it does provide world coverage of politics, public policy, public administration, international relations, and current affairs. Most of the materials listed are in English, with some French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and German publications included. Updated monthly. The PAIS Archive database comprises a retrospective conversion of the PAIS Annual Cumulated Bulletin, Volumes 1-62, published 1915-1976, containing over 1 million records of additional resources. The PAIS Archive is available as part of an enhanced subscription to PAIS International on CSA Illumina. Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.

Database:	Social Sciences Abstracts
Coverage:	1983-
Description and Notes:	Covers almost 1000 law reviews, journals, and newspapers. Covers about 400 journals in fields such as political science and law. Sample search: civil liberties and patriot act; leave the default fields on keyword.