Putting Precedent in Its Place, Part 1 | America's Unwritten Constitution with Akhil Reed Amar

"Judicial power" appears in the Constitution but is never fully defined. Akhil Reed Amar breaks it into five components and uses them to reread the Warren Court. This lecture distinguishes the power to interpret, to implement, to render a binding judgment (res judicata), to set precedent (stare decisis), and to remedy. Amar shows how the distinction between interpreting equality and implementing it explains puzzles in Brown v. Board: why the Court shifted the burden of proof onto segregation and why it confined its 1954 holding to education, waiting until Loving v. Virginia in 1967 to strike down bans on interracial marriage. Chapters: 00:00 Judicial power and the unwritten Constitution 04:24 Five components of judicial power 09:45 Brown as interpretation versus implementation 14:33 Why Brown stopped at education 19:11 School prayer: separation versus equality 22:11 One person, one vote as clean implementation 📚 Learning objectives: After watching, you'll be able to: - Identify the five components of judicial power - Distinguish interpreting the Constitution from implementing it - Explain why Brown shifted the burden of proof and limited its holding to education - Apply the interpretation-implementation distinction to school prayer and voting rights 📺 Watch the full playlist on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLABHWcbOLwlY 🎓 Enroll on Coursera for assessments and a certificate: https://www.coursera.org/learn/unwritten-constitution 🌐 Explore more learning opportunities on Yale Online: https://online.yale.edu/courses/americas-unwritten-constitution