100 Americans Making Constitutional History: A Biographical History presents 100 profiles of the key people behind some of the most important US Supreme Court cases. Edited by Melvin I. Urofsky, a respected constitutional historian, each 2,000-word profile delves into the social and political context behind landmark Court decisions. For example, while a case like Brown v. Board of Education is about an important idea - the equal protection of the law - at its heart it is the story of a little girl, Linda Brown, who wanted to go to a decent school near her home. The outcome is accessible and objective "stories" about the individuals - heroes and scoundrels - who fought their way to constitutional history. 100 Americans Making Constitutional History helps students understand the human side of the Supreme Court's decisions from the early republic to the present. Each biographical profile, written by a constitutional scholar or legal analyst, includes a discussion about the Court decision and how the specific legal issues evolved into great constitutional questions and drama. It puts a face and history to major cases by reminding the reader that there are people behind them, seeking vindication of their individual liberties and civil rights. Each profile includes a brief bibliography for further research. Excellent for undergraduate students studying American government, American history, Constitutional Law and journalism.
Melvin I. Urofsky is a professor emeritus of history at Virginia Commonwealth University, earning his A.B., M.A., and Ph.D. at Columbia University and his J.D. at University of Virginia. Urofsky is the author or editor of more than two dozen books on constitutional law, Supreme Court history, and religious freedoms.
Elias Boudinot (of The Cherokee Tobacco Case) - David Wilkins F. Drew Caminetti and Maury Diggs - David J. Langum Ada Sipuel - David W. Levy Henry Wheaton and Richard Peters - Craig Joyce "Joseph Cinque," "Dred Scott," and "Sherman Booth" - Paul Finkelman "Myra Bradwell," "Norman McCovey," and "Virginia Minor" - Sandra VanBurkleo Curt Flood - Gregg Ivers Carrie Buck - Julia Frank "Richard Nixon," and "Thomas Patterson" - James Schwartz Al Smith - Carolyn Long Jim Dale - Jonathan Lurie Scottsboro Boys - Robert Martin William Warley - Patricia H. Minter Church of Santeria - David M. O'Brien "William Bingham,: "Robert Fulton," Lampden P. Milligan," and "Homer Plessy" - Ellen H. Pearson "Walter Chaplinsky," and "Jonas Yoder" - Shawn Peters "A. Ernest Fitzgerald," and "Morton Halperin" - Richard Pious Jacob Abrams - Richard Polenberg Pat Tornollo - Lucas A. Powe Jr. "Benjamin Gitlow,' and "Anita Whitney" - Peter Renstrom "Julius and Ethel Rosenberg," and "Clement Vallandigham" - Harvey Rishikof Dollree Mapp - Gregg Russell Fong Yue Ting - Lucy E. Salyer Samuel Worcester - Philip J. Schwarz "James Hill," and "Daniel Seeger" - George Thomas Lillian Gobitis - James Van Orden Claude Screws - Christopher Waldrep Mildred and Richard Loving - Peter Wallenstein "Sally Reed," and "Ann Hopkins" - Natalie Wexler "James Bell," and "Ishmael Jaffree" - Jason Whitehead Willie Francis - William M. Wiecek "Leo Nebbia," and "Porter L. Brown" - Victoria Saker Woeste "Leo Frank," "Emma Goldman," and " Adam Clayton Powell Jr." - Michael Allen Wolf Robinson Everett - Tinsley E. Yarbrough Lawrence A. Nixon - Charles Zelden General Tomoyuki Yamashita - John Ferren Laurence Speiser - Gabriel J. Chin Larry Flynt - Rodney A. Smolla Lone Wolf - Blue Clark Hugh Hefner - Thomas Mackey "William Marbury" and "John Marshall" - Robert F. Karachuk Berea College - Linda Przybyszewski Myra Clark Gaines - Elizabeth Alexander Harry Bridges - Enoch W. Baker Cecil Roy Price - Howard Ball Pegleg Williams - David Bernstein Allen Bakke - David J. Bodenhamer "William E. Furman" and "Ernesto Miranda" - B. Keith Crew "Jane Hodgson" and "Dianne Rawlinson" - Clare Cushman Yick Wo - Lyle Denniston Paula Jones - Lyle Denniston Stephen Engel - Bruce Dierenfeld Sharon Frontiero - Francene M. Engel Dietrich Loewe - Daniel Ernst Douglas Macintosh - Ronald Flowers Gregory Lee Johnson - Robert J. Goldstein George Reynolds - Sarah Gordon Darius and Vera Swann - Robert P. Green Jr. L. B. Sullivan - Kermit L. Hall "Linda Brown," "Jagdish Rai Chadha," and "Jay Near" - Bradley Hays Eugene V. Debs - Wayne Hobson "Nancy Cruzan," "Elmer Gertz," and "Clarence Earl Gideon" - Adam Hoffman Daisy Bates - Timothy S. Huebner "Michael Hardwick," "Gordon Hirabayashi," "Demetrio Rodriguez," and "Susan Epperson" - Peter Irons Martin Luther - Randa Carolyn Issa "Estelle Griswold," and "Mary Beth Tinker" - John W. Johnson David Neagle - Paul Kens James W. McCulloch - Mark. R. Killenbeck
"Very interesting reference biographical source idea.... Very compelling, substantive and objective. Definitely worthwhile."
