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Structured Controversy Topics

Get help researching various controversial topics for TRW. Contact a librarian if your topic is not listed below.

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Medicine & Science
ADHD: whether or not to medicate
AIDS in Africa 
Alternative medicine and insurance  
Animal testing or experimentation for medical research 
Assisted suicide/ euthanasia | Right to die
Birth Control and insurance | Emergency Contraception
Cloning | Genetic engineering
Cosmetic plastic surgery
Depression and Mental Illnesses
Dietary supplements
Electroconvulsive (Shock) Therapy
Gender differences
Genetically modified foods
Hormone replacement therapy
Human embryonic stem cell research | Cord Blood Banking
In vitro fertilization | Surrogate mothers
Managed care
National health insurance
Nature vs. Nurture
Organ donation, organ transplantation, organ harvesting
Pregnant women who abuse drugs or alcohol
Prescription Drugs | Pharmacists' right to refuse prescriptions
Vaccination
Steroid Use and Women
 

Children and Education
ADHD: whether or not to medicate
Adoption and adoption rights | Interracial adoption
Children as witnesses 
Financial aid for students in private colleges
Freedom of speech on college campuses
Funding of Arts Education
Harry Potter books 
Home schooling 
Homosexual student groups and Catholic colleges
Intelligent design / Creationism
Mainstreaming / Inclusion
Mandatory Vaccination
No Child Left Behind
Outcome-based education
Prayer in public schools
School uniforms
School vouchers
Sex education in schools
Single-gender education
Working parents
 

Religion
Catholic Church: Policy on homosexuality | GLBT Clergy
Celibacy vs. marriage 
Homosexual student groups and Catholic colleges
Intelligent design / Creationism
Prayer in public schools
Separation of Church and State
Women as priests in the Catholic Church
 

Legal
Abortion | Parental notification laws
Capital punishment 
Children as witnesses 
Community notification laws | Sex offenders  
Concealed-carry gun laws | Gun control 
Diplomatic immunity
DNA Evidence
Drinking age 
Geneva Conventions 
Hate Crimes 
Juveniles tried as adults
Marijuana and other illegal drugs
Mandatory sentences and Three-Strikes Law
Polygamy
Prayer in public schools
Prison: punishment or rehabilitation
Prostitution: Legalization 
Racial Profiling
Same-sex marriage
Steroids and professional sports


See also Supreme Court Decisions

Homosexuality
Adoption by gays and lesbians
Boy Scouts and Gay Leaders 
Catholic Church: Policy on homosexuality | GLBT Clergy  
Homosexual student groups and Catholic colleges
Gays in the military
Same-sex marriage
 
The Media, Computers, and Technology
Censorship on the Internet
Fahrenheit 9/11 (Michael Moore )
Media and Women's self-image   
Movie ratings
News media coverage
Privacy: Invasion of privacy | For public figures
Pornography 
Reality Television
Violence and Television
 
Government
Afghanistan War, 2001-
Anti-terrorism 
Confederate flag
Dietary supplements 
Electoral college
Funding for the arts and humanities
Globalization
Global Warming
Immigration 
Iraq War, 2003-  
Minnesota Legislature
North Korea and the United Nations
Prescription Drug Coverage
Reparations for slavery
School of the Americas
Separation of Church and State
Torture and U.S. Policy
Social Security Debate 
Trade/Economic Sanctions
Welfare reform
 
Social Issues
Adoption: Adoption rights | Birth vs. adoptive parents | By gays and lesbians
Affirmative action
Alternative fuels 
Drug Testing:   high school or college | workplace
Elderly / Geriatric Issues
Employment: Glass ceiling | Minimum wage
English as the official language
Female Genital Mutilation/Circumcision
Genocide and Human Rights
Global Warming
Homelessness
Hurricane Katrina Issues
Labor unions
Mass transit 
Mandatory sentences and Three-Strikes Law
Outsourcing and Offshoring
Oil Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Parental notification laws
Population control  
Prisoners and education
Steroids and professional sports
Sex Trafficking and Modern Slavery
Smokers' vs. nonsmokers' rights
Sweatshops
Welfare system
Women in combat
 
Women's Issues
Abortion
Birth Control and insurance | Emergency Contraception
Female Genital Mutilation/Circumcision
Glass ceiling
Hormone replacement therapy
In vitro fertilization | Surrogate mothers
Media and Women's self-image
Prostitution: Legalization 
Pregnant women who abuse drugs or alcohol
Steroid Use and Women
Women as priests in the Catholic Church
Women in combat
 


Supreme Court Decisions
Many controversial social issues (e.g., affirmative action, gun control, privacy) have been brought before the U.S. Supreme Court at one time or another. Use the links below to obtain information about current and historical decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court.

LexisNexis Academic
LexisNexis is an online database to which St. Kate's subscribes. One category of it contains news, another legal information. Select: Legal Research, then Federal Case Law. You can then limit your search to Supreme Court decisions.

The Legal Information Institute
  (http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/)
The Legal Information Institute offers Supreme Court opinions under the auspices of Project Hermes, the court's electronic-dissemination project. This archive contains nearly all opinions of the court issued since May of 1990, as well as a collection of over 600 of the most important historical decisions of the Court prior to that date. Contains links to other info on the Supreme Court, such as biographies and photos of the Justices.

The Official Web Site of the Supreme Court of the United States
  (http://www.supremecourtus.gov/)