Nov

2

Is Health Care a Human Right?

Posted by: Lisa J. Laplante | November 2, 2009 | 9 Comments

As Congress enters the final stretch in pushing forward a health care reform bill, I have been struck by the fact that during the ongoing debate very few people seem to pose the question of whether access to health care constitutes a human right.  Yet, in many countries around the world, this perspective forms the [...]

Oct

29

Truth and Reconciliation, Stories from the Diaspora

Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | October 29, 2009 | 2 Comments

Several months ago I blogged about the situation of Liberians who fled their country for the United States (but who did not receive official status as refugees) and who have lived here for years in a “temporary” status, while it remained unsafe to return to Liberia. As I explained in those posts, these US residents face [...]

Oct

18

Who Are Our People?

Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | October 18, 2009 | 17 Comments

You may have heard that the Del Rio, Texas school district is policing a bridge that crosses the border with Mexico. Children crossing the bridge to attend school in the morning have been given letters seeking verification of their residency and explaining that non-residents will be expelled.
When you live in walking distance from the US-Mexico border, Newsweek [...]

Aug

28

Papal Encyclical – Caritas in Veritate

Posted by: Paul M. Secunda | August 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Mitch Rubinstein from Adjunct Law Prof Blog writes to me that, “this is a bit different, but I think readers may be interested in this posting about the Pope’s encyclical supporting unions.”  Here’s the post and a taste of Caritas in Veritate, issued on June 29, 2009:
While reflecting on the theme of work, it [...]

Jun

26

“Well, a satirical piece in the Times is one thing, but bricks and baseball bats really get right to the point.”

Posted by: Richard M. Esenberg | June 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment

So said Woody Allen (as Isaac Davis in Manhattan) in response to the suggestion that a Nazi march was “devastated” by a mocking piece in the New York Times.
In Sunday’s  Times, there was an article about a group calling themselves “The Nationalist Socialist Movement – Springfield Unit.”  It has been allowed to participate in Missouri’s adopt-a highway program. [...]

Jun

11

Outlawing Amnesty: The Return of Criminal Justice in Transitional Justice Schemes

Posted by: Lisa J. Laplante | June 11, 2009 | 1 Comment

Until recently, immunity measures like amnesties were considered an acceptable part of promoting transitional justice in countries seeking to address past episodes of systematic violations of human rights.  The politically sensitive context of countries seeking to broker peace between oppositional forces often outweighed the moral imperative of punishing those responsible for perpetrating human rights atrocities.  [...]

Jun

5

MULS 2009 Works-In-Progress Workshop (June Session)

Posted by: Irene Calboli | June 5, 2009 | Leave a Comment

To open my month as faculty blogger, I would first like to thank my colleague Michael O’Hear, whose dedication to, and work for, the Marquette Faculty Blog since its creation last summer have been incredible.  This is very much one of the major reasons why this project has been so successful and brought so many wonderful [...]

Apr

22

Supreme Court Determines That Traditional Stay Continues to Be Available to Aliens Appealing from Removal Orders

Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | April 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment

As I blogged about previously, in January the United States Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case of Nken v. Holder, which raised the question of whether the 1996 amendments to judicial review provisions that removed the automatic stay of deportation pending appeal had replaced the automatic stay with a traditional stay standard or [...]

Apr

15

Brave Afghani Women Protest Law Change

Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | April 15, 2009 | 2 Comments

Did you see this article in the New York Times this morning, about the 300 women protesting a new law that would give men in the Shiite minority community virtually complete control over the lives of their wives?  The NYT describes the law this way:
The law, approved by both houses of Parliament and signed by President Hamid Karzai, [...]

Apr

13

More Thoughts on Marriage

Posted by: Richard M. Esenberg | April 13, 2009 | 2 Comments

Sean Samis has posted a lengthy response to my post expressing “different” thoughts on the Iowa decision on same-sex marriage. I thank him for his response and, while I think he has got it wrong, he’d get a great grade for his efforts in my Law & Theology seminar or Wisconsin Supreme Court class and so [...]

Apr

7

Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori Sentenced to 25 Years for Human Rights Abuses

Posted by: Lisa J. Laplante | April 7, 2009 | 3 Comments

Today, the Peruvian Supreme Criminal Court convicted former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) of human rights abuses and sentenced him to 25 years in prison.  An historic sentence, this ruling represents one of the few times that a wholly domestic court has tried a former president for international crimes.  In particular, the Peruvian state convicted Fujimori [...]

Apr

7

Thoughts on the Iowa Supreme Court’s Marriage Decision

Posted by: Sean Samis | April 7, 2009 | 25 Comments

First, let me thank Prof. Slavin for inviting me to contribute to the blog.  I shall try not to be dull, and in that effort, I begin my blogging stint with a controversial topic, the Iowa Supreme Court’s recent decision striking down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.
My take on same-sex marriage begins with my [...]

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