Antifascism and the Law is a comparative and historically grounded course examining the relationship between law, democratic government, and fascist or authoritarian movements. The course begins with the historical development of fascism and the legal transformations that accompanied the rise of fascist governments, particularly in Italy and Germany. Students will examine how democratic constitutions and legal institutions were weakened or repurposed; how emergency powers, legislation, executive authority, courts, policing, citizenship laws, and administrative institutions were used; and how legal professionals responded to these developments. The course will also consider experiences outside the classic European cases, including authoritarianism and democratic breakdown in Latin America, apartheid South Africa, and other constitutional systems. Throughout, students will distinguish between fascism as a specific historical phenomenon and the broader concept of authoritarian or anti-democratic governance, while considering the usefulness and limitations of historical analogies in evaluating contemporary American institutions.
The second half of the course turns more directly to the role of American law and lawyers. Students will examine constitutional structures and doctrines that may protect democratic governance—including separation of powers, federalism, due process, equal protection, freedom of speech and association, voting rights, judicial independence, and limits on executive power—as well as legal mechanisms that may be exploited to weaken democratic institutions. Particular attention will be given to lawyers' professional responsibilities, government lawyers, prosecutorial discretion, judicial independence, election law, political violence, civil disobedience, resistance to unlawful government action, and the representation of unpopular clients and movements. The course will not prescribe a single political or ideological response to these issues. Instead, it will require students to analyze difficult questions from the perspective of constitutional law, statutory interpretation, professional responsibility, comparative legal history, and legal ethics. The central objective is to prepare future lawyers to recognize threats to the rule of law, understand the legal choices available to them, and thoughtfully consider when and how the legal profession can serve as a safeguard against democratic collapse.