The Politics and Ethics of Emergencies

Catalog description

This course explores historic and present day cases, ranging across Europe and the US, in which liberal democratic governments, under stress because of subversion, sabotage, invasion, rebellion, or the effects of economically caused chaos, take on emergency powers to become so-called “states of exception.” While in some cases such states have imposed mild and limited emergency measures, others have employed more draconian measures, suspending, if not dissolving, constitutionally guaranteed civil liberties, often for indeterminate and protracted periods. How various states have behaved in emergency situations will be the major content of this course. Note: This course is cross-listed as POL 346 . Students may not get credit for both HLS 346 and POL 346 .