All in Policy

Unbusting American Unions

CULSR Editors
Administrative, Policy

By: Max Fattal ‘25

Unions are good for workers, good for the country, and necessary to make the economy work for the middle and working class. At the same time, they’ve been completely eradicated out of many major U.S. sectors. Studies have shown that unions reduce income and wealth inequality for members and non-members alike. Therefore, it should be no surprise that as union membership has declined over the last 60s, income inequality has become substantially worse. This is no accident, and it's not for lack of support; unions are failing despite a rising approval rating well above 70%. It is a result of a concerted and consistent push against unionization on multiple fronts that has succeeded in preventing millions from joining unions and millions more from reaping the benefits. This paper attempts to examine why unionization has staggered through an examination of its laws. First, it looks at the history of union litigation and NLRB jurisprudence. Next, it examines contemporary union law, how its limitations allow for busting and how its enforcement fails to discourage violations. Finally, it examines solutions, both in reversions to past policies and through evolutions into new territory.


Anti-Homeless Legislation in the United States Violates International Human Rights Law

CULSR Editors
Constitutional, Policy, Civil

Sam Ross ‘25

I. Introduction

The “criminalization” of homelessness refers to “measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities … in public spaces.” Legislation includes laws “that make it illegal to sleep, sit, or store personal belongings in public spaces in cities where people are forced to live in public spaces.” The criminalization of homelessness in America dates back to the colonial era; anti-vagrancy laws in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries prohibited the very existence of “wanderers.” Colonial governments wanted to limit the amount of people traveling long distances to find work to keep them from taking advantage of the taxpayer-funded social safety net.

Twenty-Five Years Overdue: Reform Act 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act

CULSR Editors
Technology, Policy, Constitutional

By: Alex Herazy ‘25

I. Introduction and Overview of the 1996 Communications Decency Act

At the time of writing, yet another Facebook scandal just erupted—this time, the “Facebook Papers.” In recent months, explosive allegations from ex-Facebook employees turned whistleblowers, like Frances Haugen, have internally rocked the company. Haugen recently appeared on Capitol Hill to testify about her alleged charges of Facebook’s wrongdoing and deception. In addition to these allegations, Facebook is also battling an antitrust lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). For background, Facebook Inc. is the parent company of several major subsidiaries, most notably messaging app WhatsApp, social media platform Instagram, and virtual gaming company Oculus VR.

A Distorted Perception of the Criminal Justice System: The Effects of Crime Television and Media

CULSR Editors
Criminal, Technology, Policy

By: Kaitlyn de Armas ‘25

I. Introduction

As technology becomes a more integral part of quotidian life, it is almost inevitable that it coalesces within society. More than a basic physical dependence, the media and fictionalized television dramas are changing the way people perceive the world around them, altering the processes of thinking, political preferences, and cognitive ability. 1 With the increasing popularity of fictional realism, the portrayal of events and worlds that resemble real life,2 it is becoming increasingly challenging for avid viewers to distinguish reality from its scripted, TV counterpart.3 Furthermore, this blur of a false reality is only progressing through the increasing popularity of crime dramas. Feeding into the primary human attraction and fascination with fictional realism, crime themed TV shows have developed into a massive market, outnumbering every other drama subgenre and holding records among the most watched series on TV. 4 With the false and eccentric portrayal of the criminal justice system extending its reach across wider audiences, its effects are becoming more notable, as the public’s modified standard for the criminal justice system is now set by an impractical level.