Discussing Controversial Issues:
What is a controversial public issue?


In creating a definition, each word of the term is important. Let’s consider them in reverse order. A controversial public issue:

• Is at issue—that is, it is an unresolved question.
• Is public—that is, resolving the issue requires action by a public body, not a private individual or entity.
• Is controversial—that is, it generates significant disagreement.

Thus, a controversial public issue can be defined as an unresolved question requiring action by a public body and generating significant disagreement.

To test this definition, consider the following list. Which items, in your opinion, are controversial public issues? Which are not? Why?


• Should women have the right to vote in the United States?

• Should women have the right to vote in Afghanistan?

• Should the local professional baseball team raise ticket prices?

• Is the ban on golf carts in major golf tournaments a violation of the American with Disabilities Act?

• Should I buy products made in Mexico if I know U.S. jobs creating those products have been lost?

• Should the United States sanction the use of torture in dealing with terrorists?

• Does the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance violate the First Amendment?

• Should I cross a grocery workers’ picket line?

• Should the United States amend the Constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman?

• Should the United States pay reparations for slavery to African Americans?

• Should the ban on sale of assault weapons be reauthorized?

• Should the electoral college be abolished?

• Was the decision to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima warranted?

• Does execution of juveniles constitute cruel and unusual punishment?

• Should smoking be banned in bars and restaurants in our city?

• Do rape shield laws violate a defendant’s right to a fair trial?

• To what extent, if any, should U.S. citizens’ rights be abridged to further the War on Terrorism?

• Does a government internship meet a state law requiring all students to take a civics class?

• Should nations with poor human rights records be allowed to host the Olympics?


Are There Different Kinds of Controversial Public Issues?

Yes, controversial public issues can be categorized in several different ways, and dealing with issues of various types has benefits to students.

To illustrate, consider the items from the list above that you identified as controversial public issues. Sort these items into at least two categories of your own choosing.

What categories did you create? You may have organized the issues by the level at which the decision must be made—local, state, national, or international. Such distinctions demonstrate to students that citizens are affected by and can affect decisions by bodies at many different levels of government.

You may also have categorized the issues as legal, constitutional, or policy issues. Again, dealing with issues of these differing types can be beneficial to students. Citizens can influence the outcome of different kinds of controversial issues through different kinds of action.

In addition, students can learn different things from each type of issue. For example, by studying constitutional issues, they learn about the meaning of the Constitution, the use of precedents, the process used in the courts, how to form an opinion, and the like. By studying policy issues, they learn about the causes and nature of a problem, how to develop policy options, how to evaluate alternative policies, and the like.

For different courses or units, different kinds of issues may be better correlated with your instructional objectives. Thus, we recommend keeping the different kinds of issues in mind as you select issues for students to grapple with in your classroom.
What About Historical Issues?

While historical issues do not technically meet the definition of a controversial public issue because they have been resolved, discussing historic issues can be beneficial. One reason for discussing historical issues is to help students understand that historical actors made important decisions, just as people today do. Those decisions affected the course of history; history is not just a stream of unchangeable events.

Another reason for discussing historical issues is to help students recognize that particular issues are enduring—they recur across time and from place to place. For example, questions about the government’s role in solving social problems have persisted from the Progressive Era to the New Deal and beyond; such questions continue to generate controversy today. Helping students recognize and grapple with the forms that persisting issues have taken over time is a valuable activity.