Research Symposium

BIO

I am a first-year political science student from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. My research interests are domestic and international human rights, including freedom of expression, suppression of the media, and voting rights. I am also interested in activism and the suppression of activist groups, which relates to my current research project. In the future, I would like to continue research on human rights worldwide and work in policy formulation.

How Protests Affect Policy Change: Determinants of Anti-Protest Legislation

Abstract

In the last few years, states across the United States have seen an uptick in legislation restricting the right to assemble, including protests blocking traffic, protests near critical infrastructure, easing penalties for actions against protesters, and other ways that restrict protests. For this project, our research team has analyzed the different factors that contribute to these laws, including the motives and reasonings for why these bills are sponsored and voted on. We will have a better understanding on how an individual legislator’s background, constituency, and party affects their way of voting. We first collected and organized roll call votes on Microsoft Excel regarding all anti-protest bills passed in all state legislatures since 2017; the team then collected information on each state legislator, including political affiliation, demographic background, and other components that allow us to find patterns in voting. Although results are preliminary, factors indicate heavy partisan influence. Exploring these aspects is crucial for understanding how partisan politics can influence constitutionally divisive issues.

Keywords: Protests, partisan, reactive, legislation, lawmaker