This thesis discusses the current status of voting rights in the United States. In 1965, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to eliminate various “tests and devices” that disenfranchised minority voters. The Act received bipartisan support and was reauthorized on four separate occasions between 1965 and 2006. In 2013, the Supreme Court in Shelby County v. Holder struck down Section 4(b), a key provision in the Voting Rights Act. After the Court made this decision, states across the country began enacting second-generation voting barriers that have made it more difficult for minority citizens to vote. This is a direct result of the racial fears that emerged after the election of Barack Obama, America’s first black president. The purpose of this paper is to argue that Shelby County v. Holder was wrongly decided, and that Congress must act immediately to restore Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act.

This paper will discuss how USA Gymnastics (USAG), Michigan State University (MSU), and the United States Olympic Committee (MSU) failed to properly investigate and take corrective action of former physician and now convicted serial pedophile, Larry Nassar. This includes a description of the powerful individuals who worked with or oversaw Nassar, how they received complaints of his sexual assault, and an explanation of the institutional environment that fostered a culture of silence and obedience. To provide a comparative analysis, this paper will analyze other athletic organizations (such as USA Swimming and USA Diving) which are also overseen by the USOC in order to compare their previous cases and reactions to sexual assault. This will be followed by recommended corrective policies for athletic organizations if claims of sexual assault arise. These policies and procedures will aim to prevent sexual assault in the future, reduce any culture of silence and vulnerability within similar organizations, and hopefully be implemented throughout athletic organizations everywhere.

This paper will discuss Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, a federal law that states: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal assistance”. The act was passed by the 92nd Congress of the Unites States, a legislative body comprised of only fifteen females out of all 535 representatives. The original act of legislation did not address athletics or sports at all, it was meant to promote gender equality for faculty and student enrollment among American educational institutions. It was not until 1973 that Congress began addressing the issue of athletic representation with the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. In 1987 the Civil Rights Restoration Act formally brought athletics within the scope of activities covered by Title IX. This addition requires athletic departments to comply with Title IX regulations based on gender representation, creating standards that must be met to prove institution’s athletic departments are complying with Title IX.
This paper seeks to prove that while Title IX has been successful in terms of providing opportunity for females to pursue intercollegiate sports, the opposite has become the case in terms of coaching and administrative roles. Instead, males have seized the positions that have opened up from the repercussions of Title IX, an unintended consequence that has severely limited a female’s ability to pursue a career in coaching or administrative sport. The growing prestige and salary that is awarded to head coaches of female teams has drawn attention and brought prestige to the position, urging male coaches to take on the role of coaching female teams. Meanwhile, females are not given the same opportunity to coach their male counterparts, creating an unfair advantage for males pursuing coaching careers. This therefore leaves women with a much more limited scope of opportunity for coaching positions, contributing to the unbalanced representation of male/female in sport.

This thesis discusses the court-martial of Army Captain Rogelio "Roger" Maynulet and the public reaction to the trial. Maynulet's court-martial took place in 2005 for the mercy killing of an Iraqi during his deployment in 2004. While in pursuit of Muqtada al-Sadr, who was considered a high value target, Maynulet killed the driver of the car which intelligence said al-Sadr was a passenger. Maynulet was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and dismissed from the military. The goal of this research is to show Maynulet was rightly convicted and delve into how public reaction reveals varied and divisive opinions toward mercy killing and military behavior.

Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit substance in the United States with over two million pounds seized annually and with a usage rate estimated at 19.8 million people in 2013 (SAMSHA, 2014). Currently there is a nationwide movement for the legalization of recreational marijuana via referendum at the state level. Three states and the District of Columbia have already adopted amendments legalizing marijuana and over a dozen more currently have pending ballots. This report explores what would be the impact of legalizing marijuana in Arizona through the examination of data from Colorado and other governmental sources. Using a benefit/cost analysis the data is used to determine what the effect the legalization of marijuana would have in Arizona. I next examined the moral arguments for legalization. Finally I propose a recommendation for how the issue of the legalization of recreational marijuana should be approached in Arizona.

Does the USA PATRIOT Act place unconstitutional pressure on the telecommunications industry to comply with federal surveillance requests for information at the determent of their domestic and international operations? Is the Act in direct violation of the Fourth Amendment protection against unlawful search and seizures due to its vague language and lack of judicial oversight or adequate safeguards? In this thesis I will analyze whether, the USA PATRIOT Act infringes on a corporation's civil liberties through both historical references of both its legislative structure and design as well as current issues at the center of Congressional controversy. The forced cooperation demanded of the telecoms by the government subjects these businesses to possible consumer distrust, financial burdens, and inability to ensure confidentiality of communications for their multinational clients. The U.S. based telecommunications firms will continue to grow in the global marketplace; however, their competitive advantage will be limited by the excessive misuse of Federal powers to access United States' consumer information through third-party enterprises. Therefore, the provisions relating to the government's unchecked access to telecommunication data are unconstitutional because they do not serve a legitimate government interest in the least restrictive manner possible. They should be revised to balance both national security concerns and a telecom's right to protect its corporate infrastructure and brand.