Stephen Rohde is a constitutional lawyer, lecturer, writer, and political activist. He is immediate past chair of the ACLU Foundation of Southern California; National Chair of Bend the Arc, a Jewish Partnership for Justice; a founder and current president of Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace; and a chair of Death Penalty Focus. Mr. Rohde is the author of American Words of Freedom, Freedom of Assembly (part of the American Rights series), numerous articles and book reviews on civil liberties and constitutional history, and co-author of Foundations of Freedom. He was a 2012 recipient of Bend the Arc’s “Pursuit of Justice” Award. Mr. Rohde received his BA degree in Political Science from Northwestern University and his JD degree from Columbia Law School. He practices civil litigation, appellate, intellectual property, and civil rights law.
CONTRIBUTOR ARTICLES
First and Last, the First Amendment
Stephen Rohde’s reflection on his career as an LA civil rights lawyer, particularly regarding the First Amendment....
A Stronger Constitution: Carol Berkin’s “The Bill of Rights”
Stephen Rohde reviews a book on of one of our nation’s most important political and historical documents: The Bill of Rights....
Big Brother Is Watching You: Is America Becoming Orwell’s Nightmare?
Is America at risk of becoming Orwell's nightmare?...
The Importance of Dissent
The very first dissent was written by Justice Thomas Johnson in the long forgotten case of "Georgia v. Brailsford" (1793)....
A Lawyer for Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Beyond his impressive legal career, Charles Rembar wrote three fascinating books, which have just been released in ebook format....
From Discontented Barons to Predator Drones
It's the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta....
Spying on Students
Patriotic Betrayal is a cautionary tale about how our government compromises well-meaning people in the name of fighting “our enemies.”...
Is the First Amendment Poetic?
While paying lip service to the “poetry” of the First Amendment, Burt Neuborne turns his book into an argument in favor of less First Amendment protection....
Dead Man Walking
Jake Heggie talks with LARB's Stephen Rohde about his opera, "Dead Man Walking" and its treatment, musically and dramatically, of the death penalty....
Freedom from Religion
Why would a pluralistic and secular society single out for special treatment any system of belief?...
An Illiberal Reading of the Constitution
Stephen Rohde parses Richard A. Epstein's preference for the “classical liberal” interpretation of the US Constitution....
Flip-flopping on Free Speech
Oliver Wendell Holmes changed all our minds about the 1st Amendment....
Taking Over the Judiciary: The Impact of the Federalist Society
John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito are all current or former members of the Society....
“A Pall Is Cast over the Classroom”: Legislating Academic Freedom
AMERICAN HISTORY IS STAINED by recurring periods when our founding ideals — of an open society that upholds the free marketplace of ...
Is a Taco a Sandwich?: Interpreting the Law
SHOULD THE TERM "sandwiches" in a commercial lease include "tacos, burritos and quesadillas"? Does the U.S. Constitution include a right ...
