RESEARCH PAPER: RIGHT TO PRIVACY ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
You will write a research paper covering one of the most controversial of all the rights in
American politics—the right to an abortion- which is built upon the foundation of the right to
privacy. You will have the opportunity to explore the legal underpinnings of the right to an
abortion and the opportunity to explore whether the right to privacy was correctly interpreted as
the foundation for the right to an abortion. The purpose of this assignment is to help you analyze
the rights of privacy and abortion and to think through the issues surrounding these rights in the
context of our legal, constitutional, and religious history.
You will also have the opportunity to tie together many macro course themes in this assignment:
1) an assessment of where our country is today in light of our legal and religious heritage; 2) an
analysis of the importance of competing visions of constitutional interpretation, and 3) a deep
dive into a major public policy issue that has divided Americans for the past half century and
continues to be a major 21st century policy debate.
The right to privacy was first created in American politics by the Supreme Court in its 1965
Griswold v. Connecticut ruling. Eight years later, in its 1973 decision Roe v. Wade, the Court
determined that the right to privacy was broad enough to include the right to an abortion. Half a
century later in 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s
Health Organization. Consequently, in this paper, you’ll explore the specific, constitutional
underpinnings of the abortion debate.
Access Griswold v. Connecticut, Roe v. Wade, and Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health
Organization from any reputable website (two excellent resources can be found in the reading
material for Module 7: Week 7 – Explore: Oyez and Explore: Legal Information Institute.
Analyze these cases from both a loose constructionist and a strict constructionist perspective.
Apply the principles and knowledge that you have gained in this course regarding America’s
religious and legal history. In light of our Constitutional heritage and principles that you have
learned in this course, which side is more consistent with our Constitutional heritage? Since Roe
v. Wade was based upon Griswold, was the Roe decision grounded upon a strong, constitutional
basis? Similarly, is the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization grounded upon a
strong, constitutional foundation? Explain and discuss.
INSTRUCTIONS
Explain the assignment in detail. Specify the exact requirements of the assignment. Items to
include are outlined as follows:
Length of assignment: 4-5 pages excluding the title page and reference section.
Format of assignment: Latest edition of APA
Number of citations: at least five scholarly sources
Acceptable sources: scholarly articles, published books, course texts, and the Bible.
Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.
