High School Essay Contest

Thank you to all participants in this year’s high school essay contest. We have made final decisions and notified finalists accordingly. We have also emailed all other participants announcing the end of the contest. Thank you again for your wonderful efforts and we look forward to your submissions next year. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Freedom of Speech and Social Media: The Battle Between Censorship and Misinformation

Freedom of speech, a principle embedded in the First Amendment of the US Constitution, is regarded as a pinnacle of American freedom. The First Amendment allows one to speak against the government without consequence and to engage in discussion with those who hold differing opinions. In the current social media age, free speech frequently occurs on online platforms that are monitored by corporations such as Meta and X. An interesting case currently on the Supreme Court docket, Murthy v. Missouri, will analyze whether and how social media platforms can limit freedom of speech to reduce misinformation – an issue that would not have reached the docket 10 years ago.

Prompt Question

Given the importance of the First Amendment regarding the freedom of expression and the right to access information, do you believe that removing harmful ideas is an adequate way to combat misinformation on social media platforms and the internet? Your essay should balance the principle of free speech with the value of suppressing speech that could lead to societal harm, such as Covid-19 medical misinformation or hate speech. Discuss in your response whether you think restricting speech, for any reason, should be allowed under the First Amendment.[1] [2] [3] 

Please submit any questions via email to CULR’s Online Co-Executive Editors Andrea Ruiz ‘25 (acr2209@columbia.edu) and Devon Hunter ‘25 (dmh2226@columbia.edu) with the subject line “CULR High School Essay Contest Inquiry.”

Past Results

2024 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Freedom of Speech and Social Media: The Battle Between Censorship and Misinformation

Freedom of speech, a principle embedded in the First Amendment of the US Constitution, is regarded as a pinnacle of American freedom. The First Amendment allows one to speak against the government without consequence and to engage in discussion with those who hold differing opinions. In the current social media age, free speech frequently occurs on online platforms that are monitored by corporations such as Meta and X. An interesting case currently on the Supreme Court docket, Murthy v. Missouri, will analyze whether and how social media platforms can limit freedom of speech to reduce misinformation – an issue that would not have reached the docket 10 years ago.

Given the importance of the First Amendment regarding the freedom of expression and the right to access information, do you believe that removing harmful ideas is an adequate way to combat misinformation on social media platforms and the internet? Your essay should balance the principle of free speech with the value of suppressing speech that could lead to societal harm, such as Covid-19 medical misinformation or hate speech. Discuss in your response whether you think restricting speech, for any reason, should be allowed under the First Amendment.[1] [2] [3] 

First Place:

“Media Literacy and Accountability in the Age of Misinformation”
Katie Kim

Runner-Up:

“Balancing Freedom of Speech and Combating Misinformation: Navigating the Digital Age”
Ethan Bai

2023 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Education and the Law: A Way Forward

Education has long been viewed as the great equalizer, breaking boundaries that separate race, gender, and social class in the relentless pursuit of knowledge. While the law has served as a transformative force in how citizens interact with the educational system, it has also been weaponized to deny equal access to a vital public good to historically-marginalized groups. International treaties have been successful in helping eliminate unjust discrimination and in expanding equal access to education, especially for women and girls. Civil rights legislation, First Amendment jurisprudence, and other constitutional principles have all impacted the public education system in the United States. The proliferation of book bans and restrictions on the teaching of pedagogical theories attempt to use the law to restrict learning.

Given the various ways in which the law affects educational opportunities in the United States and around the world consider one of the following questions:

  • How has the law been used to expand or deny equal access to education, especially for marginalized groups? 

  • What should be the role of the law in determining school curricula? 

  • How can schools strike a delicate balance between affording legal rights to their students while preserving an environment conducive to learning?

Discuss these questions with reference to at least one court case or legal document (treaty, legislation, etc.), which can come from any legal system (state or national courts in any country or international courts and tribunals). Please feel free to draw from any of the aforementioned topics and/or bodies of law in your response.

First Place:

“Prison Education: Laying the Groundwork for Accountability and Rehabilitation”
Ashwin Telang, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South

Runner-Up:

"The Invisible Battle: Legal Landscapes and Educational Equity for Children with HIV/AIDS"
Haotian Pan, Raffles Institution

2nd Runner-Up:

"A Student 'Bill of Rights': Student Dress Codes and Its Freedom of Expression Violations"
Deborah Chung, Bergen County Technical High School - Teterboro

Honorable Mentions:

"Balancing Legal Rights and a Conducive Learning Environment: Strategies for Schools"
Alex Yu, Broadneck High School

"Preserving Inclusivity: Using the Law to Protect Critical Race Theory"
Jackson Mills, Little Rock Central High School

 

2022 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Reimagining Gender Justice in the Law

The problem of establishing gender justice in domestic and international legal systems has taken on renewed significance in recent years, both in light of gendered inequities worsened by the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing military and political conflicts, and work by activists across the world for legal recognition of gendered harassment, violence, and barriers to social mobility. In your view, in what ways—and to what extent—can demands for gender justice be realized in our legal system(s)? Discuss this question with reference to at least one court case or legal document (treaty, legislation, etc.), which can be from any legal system (state or national courts in any country, or international courts and tribunals). Your answer can focus on one or more aspects of gender justice, such as employment and labor law, gendered violence and harassment, and intersections of gender with race, disability, or religion. You can work within a context that is national (i.e. one nation’s state or constitutional law), comparative (i.e. comparing two or more countries’ legal systems), or international (i.e. studying international courts, tribunals, and bodies).  

This contest was launched in collaboration with in partnership with the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Project at Columbia Law School, advised by Katherine Franke, James L. Dohr Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, and Ting Ting Cheng, civil rights attorney and Director of the ERA Project.

First Place:

“Building A Gender-competent International Legal Framework on Sexual Violence”
Qirui Jiang, Desheng School

Runner-Up:

“Women as Equals: The Application of the Equal Protections Clause in Current Discussions Concerning Abortion and Pregnancy”
Lauren Mukavitz, Veritas Preparatory Academy

Honorable Mentions:

“Gender-Based Harassment and Violence at Work in China”
Yawen Yuan, The Spence School

“Gender Justice in Brazil: a long and poorly paved road”
Helena Ribeiro do Prado, St. Paul’s School

“The Amplification of Privacy to Progress the Substantive Framework on Gender Justice”
Emma He, Wuhan Yangtze International School

Finalists:

Jerry Chen, High School for Math, Science, and Engineering

Sai Sharan Prabhakar Chettiar, Global Indian International School

Gavin Jacono, Manhasset Secondary School

Antonia Park, University High School

 

2021 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Explain the implications COVID-19 has had on an individual’s “right to privacy.” You may wish, but certainly are not required, to talk about contact tracing, vaccine passports, mandatory quarantine which may track an individual’s location, etc. to support your response. Your essay can explore the implications of privacy infringement within the context of any country and its relevant legal systems. This question can also be explored within the context of international law including, but not limited to, treaty law, customary law and International Court of Justice litigation. Please cite sources in Chicago Citation format.


First Place:

"The Legality and Creation of an Ethical COVID-19 Vaccination Passport in the United States of America"
Alexandra Li, James Caldwell High School

 Runner-Up:

"The Suspension Principle and Its Threat against Privacy as a Result of the COVID-19 Pandemic"
Jack Zhang, BASIS Independent Silicon Valley

Honorable Mentions:

"A Plea for Privacy during the Pandemic"
Rohan Naval, Greenwood High, Bangalore

"Privacy and Electronic Health Records During COVID-19"
Yarden Shestopal, Newton South High School

 

2020 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Judicial activism and judicial restraint are two major legal philosophies to which judges may ascribe. Find an example of at least one U.S. Supreme Court opinion from the last 50 years. Briefly analyze whether this case ascribes to judicial activism or judicial restraint, and make sure to cite from the case you are analyzing. Finally, make an argument on whether judges should use judicial activism or judicial restraint in their opinions and use this to determine whether or not the majority opinion of the Supreme Court ruled appropriately in the case you examined. Feel free to use any outside legal scholarship or research to substantiate your claims. 

First Place:

“Originalism and Activism: The Supreme Court’s Ideological Divisions and the Battle to Mend Them”
Mariana Colicchio, Pembroke Pines Charter High School

Runner-Up:

“Activism v. Restraint: The Supreme Court’s Ambivalence Over Educational Equality”
Santiago Calderon, Lake Highland Preparatory School

Honorable Mentions:

“Judicial Activism: A Guardian Against Injustice”
Huda Haque, Panther Creek High School

“The New Immigration Barr”
Hannah Guan, Hamilton High School

“Defining Gender and Sexuality in an Age of Judicial Review”
Maxine Kirsten Magtoto, Brent International School Manila

 

2019 High School Essay Contest

Prompt: Global warming, the current climate ‘apocalypse,’ and the feasibility of policies like the Green New Deal have dominated the contemporary media focus. Notably, lawyers and advocates in the current administration have taken to either defending or fighting against “alternative facts.” How can this legal battle be reconciled with the ostensibly scientific character of climate change? To answer this question, please incorporate a Supreme Court case that was decided since 2000 which you believe impacts the modern decade’s fight for, or against, environmental justice. Explain why you agree or disagree with the Court’s decision. Using court precedents, opinions, and legal analysis, explain in what direction this legal fight will continue, and why.   

First Place:

“A Post-Alternative Fact World: The Supreme Court and the Fight for Climate Change”
Siddarth Pinnamaneni

Runners-Up:

“The Injustice of Inaction: Examining Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its Effect on Environmental Law and the Direction of the Court”
Ritvik Mahendra

“The Climate Change Battle”
Sukham Sidhu