American political activist
Peter H. Irons (born August 11, 1940) is an American political activist,civil rights attorney, legal scholar, and professor emeritus ofpolitical science . He has written many books on theU.S. Supreme Court and constitutional litigation.
Irons graduated fromAntioch College (an early incubator ofprogressive politics ).
He embarked on his current path in 1963 when he was sentenced to three years imprisonment at theFederal Correctional Institution inDanbury, Connecticut for refusingmilitary induction on the ground that the Federal government perpetuated racial discrimination. While serving most of that sentence, he began corresponding withHoward Zinn , who sent him books on civil liberties and American politics. His conviction was ultimately reversed by a federal judge on the ground of prosecutorial misconduct. Later, PresidentGerald Ford granted him apardon for refusing induction.
Irons completed aPhD atBoston University in 1973.[ 1] Daniel Ellsberg , who was under federalprosecution at the time for stealing thePentagon Papers . His work at thelaw firm would later serve as motivation for him to pursue aJ.D. degree fromHarvard Law School , which he received in 1978.[ 1]
Upon graduating, he taught atBoston College Law School and theUniversity of Massachusetts before moving to theUniversity of California, San Diego . There in 1982 he established theEarl Warren Bill of Rights Project , of which he is the director. He was chosen in 1988 as the firstRaoul Wallenberg Distinguished Visiting Professor of Human Rights atRutgers University .[ 2] [ 1]
He was also elected to two terms on the national board of theAmerican Civil Liberties Union .[ 1]
In addition to teaching and authoring several books, he has also helped reopen the wartime internment cases ofFred Korematsu ,Minoru Yasui , andGordon Hirabayashi . JudgeMarilyn Hall Patel heard the Korematsu case.
He is anEmeritus Professor ofPolitical Science at theUniversity of California, San Diego [ 1] Montana Law Review .
Starting in 1989, Irons represented the plaintiffs in theMount Soledad case in San Diego, pro bono. He discontinued his involvement in the case in 1998 when threats made him fear for the safety of his two daughters.[ 3]
1984 – Durfee Award[ 4] 1986 – UCSD certificate of excellence[ 5] 1989 – Ceil Podoloff Award by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)[ 6] 1989 –American Bar Association Certificate of Merit awardThe Courage of Their Convictions: Sixteen Americans Who Fought Their Way to the U.S. Supreme Court [ 7] Irons, Peter H. (1982).The New Deal lawyers . Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.ISBN 0-691-04688-3 Irons, Peter H. (1983).Justice at war Oxfordshire : Oxford University Press.ISBN 0-19-503273-X Irons, Peter H. (1988).The Courage of Their Convictions: Sixteen Americans Who Fought Their Way to the Supreme Court ISBN 0-02-915670-X Irons, Peter H. (1989).Justice delayed: the record of the Japanese American internment cases ISBN 0-8195-6175-4 Irons, Peter H. (1991).Making Law: The Case for Judicial Activism . Free Press.ISBN 0-02-915671-8 Stephanie Guitton; Irons, Peter H. (1993).May It Please the Court: The Most Significant Oral Arguments Made Before the Supreme Court Since 1955 ISBN 1-56584-036-4 Irons, Peter H. (1994).Brennan vs. Rehnquist: the battle for the Constitution ISBN 0-679-42436-9 Irons, Peter H.; Stephanie Guitton (1995).May It Please the Court: Arguments on Abortion/Book and 2 Cassettes . New York: New Press.ISBN 1-56584-223-5 Irons, Peter H. (1997).May It Please The Court: The First Amendment . Diane Pub Co.ISBN 0-7567-7619-8 Irons, Peter H. (1999).A People's History of the Supreme Court ISBN 0-670-87006-4 2000 Silver Gavel Award Honorable Mention 2003 Silver Gavel Award Winner ^a b c d e "Peter H. Irons" . University of California, San Diego. Archived fromthe original on April 28, 2013. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .^ "Peter Irons appointed as the Raoul Wallenberg Distinguished Visiting Professor of Human Rights at Rutgers" . University of California, San Diego. July 20, 1987. Archived fromthe original on January 14, 2013. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .^ Irons, Peter (July 27, 2007).Peter Irons - God on Trial . RetrievedJuly 29, 2017 .^ "Peter Irons receives Durfee Award" . University of California, San Diego. November 21, 1984. Archived fromthe original on December 15, 2012. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .^ "Chancellor's Associates honor Alan F. Hofmann for excellence in research; David R. Miller for excellent in teaching; and Peter Irons for excellence in community service" . University of California, San Diego. December 2, 1986. Archived fromthe original on January 14, 2013. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .^ "Professor Peter Irons from UCSD receives ACLU Award" . University of California, San Diego. March 3, 1989. Archived fromthe original on December 15, 2012. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .^ "UCSD professor receives American Bar Association Award" . University of California, San Diego. June 17, 1989. Archived fromthe original on June 14, 2012. RetrievedNovember 25, 2012 .University of California, San Diego Peter H. IronsAppearances onC-SPAN "Peter H. Irons" . Department of Political Science,University of California, San Diego . Archived fromthe original on October 17, 2007. RetrievedNovember 4, 2007 ."An Interview with Peter Irons" (PDF) .2003 Silver Gavel Awards for media and the arts .American Bar Association . 2003. Archived fromthe original (PDF) on November 28, 2007. RetrievedNovember 4, 2007 .Gay Seidman (December 12, 1975)."Out of Irons, Into the Dock" .The Harvard Crimson . RetrievedNovember 4, 2007 . Gay Seidman (January 31, 1977)."Law Student Gets Presidential Pardon: Ford Clears Draft Resistor" .The Harvard Crimson the original on April 12, 2009. RetrievedNovember 4, 2007 . Bazelon, Emily (August 21, 2005)." .The New York Times
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