Reconstructing the Right to Protest

• In Event: Democracy and Education: Authoritarianism, Resistance, and Racial Justice

Abstract

This paper explores the constitutional right to protest as a foundational but increasingly imperiled component of democratic life, particularly in response to racial injustice. Drawing on abolition constitutionalism and critical race theory, the paper critiques how current legal doctrines revert to a proslavery, originalist interpretation of constitutional rights, undermining protections for protest and political dissent.

The discussion engages with the Reconstruction Amendments to argue for a reimagined, abolitionist understanding of expressive and associational freedoms—particularly relevant for students, educators, and communities engaged in racial justice organizing. As educational institutions become flashpoints for protest and state surveillance, this work highlights the legal and policy frameworks that shape what kinds of dissent are tolerated or punished in educational settings. In doing so, the paper bridges constitutional law with education policy to argue for a more expansive, justice-oriented conception of democratic participation.

Author

• Christian Sundquist, University of Pittsburgh