This book is an account of the struggle for civil liberties against the State in which groups such as the anti-war protestors, the Irish nationalists, the Communist party, trade unionists, and the unemployed workers' movement found themselves involved in the first half of the twentieth century. All had to fight for their civil liberties in the face of strong opposition from the State, including the judges whose attitude to civil liberties was often deeply hostile, and at odds with their supposed role as defenders of freedom.

This work by the authors of "Freedom under Thatcher: Civil Liberties in the UK" is designed to be used by students of law as a main text in courses on civil liberties or as a companion to other texts in courses on constitutional law. Adopting a critical stance, this casebook includes a selection of cases, statutes and other materials, set within the framework of the author's own commentary and questions.