Democracy and Human Rights
Economics and Trade
Environment and Communication
Foreign Policy and National Security
Society and Values
Outline Series

Democracy and Human Rights

About America: The Constitution of the United States of America With Explanatory Notes
This illustrated publication includes the complete text of the U.S. Constitution (preamble, seven articles, and 27 amendments), as well an updated introduction and explanatory notes by J.W. Peltason, author of Understanding the Constitution and Government by the People. The introduction includes sections explaining how the Constitution set up the U.S. federal system, the background to the Constitutional Convention and how the participants arrived at a final version of the document, its ratification, and sections on the call for a Bill of Rights and the need for additional amendments over the years. Dr. Peltason is currently professor of Political Science Emeritus, University of California, Irvine, as well as President Emeritus, University of California.  (July 2004)

Basic Readings in U.S. Democracy
Presents court decisions, legislative acts, and presidential decrees that form the bedrock of American democracy, as well as letters, essays, speeches, and poems that chart the country's search for itself as a democratic society.  (September 2001, originally published in 1994)

Democracy Papers
This series of 12 essays on democracy-building is the successor to the "Freedom Papers" series published by USIA in the early 1990s. It was edited by Melvin Urofsky, a professor of constitutional law at Virginia Commonwealth University and the editor of the USIA publication "Basic Readings in U.S. Democracy." Topics are: Introduction: Root Principles of Democracy; Constitutionalism: America and Beyond; Principles of Democratic Elections; Federalism and Democracy; Creation of Law in a Democratic Society; Role of an Independent Judiciary; Powers of the Presidency; Role of a Free Media; Protecting Minority Rights; Role of Interest Groups; Civilian Control of the Military; The Public's Right to Know: Transparency in Government.  (November 2001)

Introduction to Human Rights
Traces the development of human rights from their origins as political theory in 17th-century Europe to their present-day acceptance as an international standard; examines the historic contributions of heroic individuals to the course of human rights history.  (April 2001)

Iraq: A Population Silenced
Focuses on human rights abuses that have occurred in Iraq since Saddam Hussein assumed power in 1979. Discussion includes physical and psychological torture, use of chemical weapons, execution and imprisonment of political opponents, and persecution of women and children. The pamphlet includes first-person and eyewitness accounts of the atrocities.  (February 2003)

Iraq's Voices for Freedom
This new electronic pamphlet features the words of Iraq-born professionals speaking about the brutality of Saddam Hussein's regime and their hopes for Iraq's future. The seven featured speakers offer a very compelling and personal glimpse of Iraqis in opposition. They are speaking for themselves, independent of any political affiliation. All are proponents of seeing a representative, accountable government develop in Iraq. The pamphlet is featured on the IIP home page and the Iraq Update Web site. The Web site has links to the Arabic, Chinese, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian and Vietnamese versions of the pamphlet.  (February 2003)

Outline of U.S. Government
What makes U.S. government uniquely American...its Constitution, the separation of powers, the concept of “checks and balances,” the decentralized roles of state and local governments, and a citizenry with wide opportunity to be part of it all.  (September 2000)

Principles of Democracy
Explains fundamental principles that contribute to making a democratic government work effectively. This series of one-page primers provides the reader with a concise definition of democracy and expands on supporting elements such as good governance and the rights and responsibilities of people living in democracies.  (February 2004)

Rights of the People: Individual Freedom and the Bill of Rights
"Rights of the People" is a history of American law and justice, written by Constitutional historian Melvin Urofsky. By focusing on the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution, and the legal interpretations, many of them written by America's finest jurists, that refined and expanded the Bill of Rights, Urofsky presents a history of the United States from the standpoint of individual liberty.  (December 2003)

Trafficking in Children: West and Central Africa
This pamphlet is intended to raise public awareness and encourage the prevention of child trafficking in Africa. It emphasizes the need for community action to combat trafficking at the local level and advises on ways in which communities, non-governmental organizations, and governments can work together to abolish this practice. Although this pamphlet is focused on West and Central Africa, the problem is one that is found worldwide. The pamphlet includes some real-life stories of victims from West and Central Africa, an examination of why child trafficking occurs, and discussion of actions being taken to focus attention on the problem and on the importance of keeping children in school to broaden their opportunities in life.  (December 2002)

Transparency in Government
Discusses the importance of opening government deliberations and rule-making processes to the public and of making government documents available to concerned citizens. While using, for the most part, American examples, the pamphlet suggests the universal advantages of an open society with a vibrant civic infrastructure.  (December 1999)

An Unfettered Press
The media in America...constitutional protections, right-to-know laws, editing and managing newspapers, radio and television broadcasting, electronic newspapers, and libel law.  (April 2001, originally published in 1994)

U.S. Elections 2004
This publication is a non-partisan guide intended to help international audiences understand the upcoming U.S. presidential and congressional elections of 2004. Primaries, political party conventions, polling techniques, media issues, campaign finance, and other aspects of the American elections process are discussed and elucidated by experts. This publication also includes an interview with noted U.S. elections analyst Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution, a glossary of common terms, and a calendar of events.  (September 2003)

What Is Democracy?
Highlights such aspects of democratic society as rights of the individual, the rule of law, elections, the democratic culture and government, and politics, economics, and pluralism. Emphasizes how the citizens of a democracy must take responsibility for the fate of the society in which they live.  (September 1998, originally published in 1992)

Economics and Trade

Food Safety: Regulating Plant Agricultural Biotechnology in the United States
Outlines the regulatory procedures that occur from the time a scientist has an idea for a potentially marketable bioengineered plant product to when the product appears in the local food market.  (October 2000)

Introduction to Intellectual Property Rights
Explores the mysteries of patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets through several essays that introduce the reader to IPR, explain why countries should establish effective intellectual property systems, and provide developing country and industry views on intellectual property protection.  (November 1999)

Language of Trade
An annotated glossary, updated in 1999, of some 1,000 terms commonly used in international trade, along with a chronology of major developments impacting U.S. trade policy during the past 80 years.  (July 2000)

Outline of the U.S. Economy
Examines how the U.S. economy works and how it has evolved over the past 225 years. Considers forms of business enterprise, the role of financial markets, how government shapes the economy and seeks to manage the pace of economic activity, the agricultural sector and U.S. farm policy, the changing role of labor, and current U.S. policies on trade and international economic affairs.  (February 2001)

What Is a Market Economy?
Why modern private enterprise and entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with political democracy, offer the best prospect for preserving freedom and providing the widest avenues for economic growth and prosperity for all.  (September 1998, originally published in 1992)

Environment and Communication

The Andes Under Siege: Environmental Consequences of the Drug Trade
This publication summarizes the significant environmental degradation to one of the world's richest and most pristine ecosystems caused by cultivation and production of illicit drug crops in the region. The damage includes not only the tropical deforestation and soil erosion resulting from clearing new areas to grow coca, but also the extensive pollution that results from indiscriminate dumping of the chemicals used in refining cocaine. This assault by the drug trade on a fragile environment jeopardizes the extraordinarily rich biodiversity that the Andean region harbors.  (July 2001)

Biodiversity Series
These five publications discuss the systemic crisis facing living things on earth at the beginning of the 21st century. The numbers of both plant and animal species in diverse ecosystems are declining due to the impact of increased human population and the transport of pollutants to all regions of the globe. The essays in the series argue that these developments constitute a global crisis, a cataclysmic loss of diverse living genomes that cannot be re-created. Biodiversity on a Changing Planet: The Health of Earth's Ecosystems contains two essays by experts, "Why Biodiversity Matters" by Niles Eldredge of the American Museum of Natural History, and "Appreciating the Benefits of Plant Biodiversity" by John Tuxill of the Worldwatch Institute. Four short essays focus on specific ecosystems. They are Wetlands: Cradle of Species Diversity; Forests: Our Planet's Endangered Edens; Northlands: The World's Fragile Ecosystem; and Coral Reefs: Fertile Gardens of the Sea.  (April 2001)

Issue in Focus: Desertification
Discusses a major ecological issue that has worldwide consequences: the creeping impoverishment and marginalization of once-fertile land due to natural weather cycles, population increases, overcultivation, or even poorly planned irrigation. This publication defines the international scope of desertification, discusses its appearance in the American Midwest of the 1930s and the remedies applied, pinpoints early warning signs, and details how it is profoundly affected by land management and water distribution. Finally, the book describes how constructive practices can lead to reversal of this grave ecological problem.  (September 2004)

Food Safety: Regulating Plant Agricultural Biotechnology in the United States
Outlines the regulatory procedures that occur from the time a scientist has an idea for a potentially marketable bioengineered plant product to when the product appears in the local food market.  (October 2000)

A Responsible Press Office: An Insiders Guide
A how-to publication for government leaders and public information officials who want to create an effective mechanism of communication between the media and the government. This handbook offers practical advice based on the significant professional experience of author Marguerite Hoxie Sullivan and other top-level U.S. government spokespersons. The book's 12 chapters cover, among other things, the roles and characteristics of a press spokesperson, the day-to-day activities of a press office, how to mount a media campaign, the tools available to a press office, how to ensure that the government's message is communicated effectively to the people, how to handle unexpected events that require a quick response, and how to conduct media events.  (September 2001)

An Unfettered Press
The media in America...constitutional protections, right-to-know laws, editing and managing newspapers, radio and television broadcasting, electronic newspapers, and libel law.  (April 2001, originally published in 1994)

Foreign Policy and National Security

Afghanistan: Seeds of Hope
combines photo essays of international reconstruction projects in Afghanistan with scenes of daily life and profiles of individual Afghans discussing the remarkable changes in their lives in the two years since the defeat of the Taliban. The publication is the work of a Bureau of International Information Programs writer/phographer team.  (May 2003)

Arms Control and Disarmament: The U.S. Commitment
A chronology of U.S. arms control and security initiatives during the past 50 years in such areas as strategic nuclear weapons, missile nonproliferation, nuclear testing, national and theater missile defense, chemical and biological weapons, and conventional armed forces.  (December 1997)

Duty to the Future: Free Iraqis Plan for a New Iraq
The new publication contains an opening statement by Secretary Powell praising the Iraqi professionals who participated in the "Future of Iraq Project" and the importance of this unique diplomatic initiative. The introduction is followed by interviews with Iraqi professionals who participated in working groups to examine a number of critical issues, including democratic institutions in Iraq, a modern economy, key infrastructure needs, and humanitarian aid. As noted in the introduction, "Their voices are real, diverse, and by no means unanimous. They express skepticism, concern, and contradictions — even as they share values of the need for freedom and democracy for Iraq."  (April 2003)

The Human Toll of Terrorism
Presents stories of individuals and groups of people murdered by terrorists around the world in recent years, and of those who survived to tell us of their lives. The settings vary — from Kenya to Turkey, Colombia to Pakistan, Japan to the United States — but the common thread of humanity ties together these accounts of terrorist activities. The publication also includes reports on individuals and organizations who are helping families recover from the trauma of terrorism, build a world free from violence, and preserve the memory of its victims.  (August 2002)

Iraq: A Population Silenced
Focuses on human rights abuses that have occurred in Iraq since Saddam Hussein assumed power in 1979. Discussion includes physical and psychological torture, use of chemical weapons, execution and imprisonment of political opponents, and persecution of women and children. The pamphlet includes first-person and eyewitness accounts of the atrocities.  (February 2003)

IRAQ: From Fear to Freedom
Illuminates the threats posed to the peace and security of the world by Saddam Hussein's Iraq. This publication examines — in a direct, factual, and comprehensive way — Saddam Hussein's relentless efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction; the sustained campaign of harassment, intimidation, arbitrary arrest, torture, and murder wrought by Saddam against his own people; Saddam's support of global terror and the corruption of the regime he directs; and Iraq's decades-long campaign of deception and defiance of the will of the international community. A final section addresses the United States' desire to see a future Iraq that is democratic, unified, and at peace with its neighbors.  (December 2002)

The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI)
This publication explains the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), a response to the growing challenge posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), their delivery systems, and related materials worldwide. The goal of the PSI is to create a more dynamic, creative, and proactive approach to preventing WMD proliferation to or from nation states and non-state actors. The initiative was announced by President Bush, May 31, 2003, and adopted by 11 countries in Paris, September 4, 2003. PSI does not create formal "obligations" for participating states, but does represent a political commitment to establish "best practices" to stop proliferation-related shipments.  (June 2004)

The United States of America and UNESCO: Building Knowledge, Bridging Cultures
This pamphlet, commemorating the return on October 1, 2003, of the United States to a reformed UNESCO, lays out the U.S. priorities for working with this international institution to expand and improve education, promote scientific progress and press freedom, enhance understanding, and protect cultural heritage around the world. Color photographs highlight U.S. and UNESCO projects that promote education, press freedom, science and cultural preservation. The pamphlet includes a brief history of the U.S. participation in the creation of UNESCO, the reasons behind the decision to withdraw in 1984, and the reforms undertaken by UNESCO since then that prompted the U.S. decision to rejoin.  (August 2003)

U.S. Society and Values

About America: The Constitution of the United States of America With Explanatory Notes
This illustrated publication includes the complete text of the U.S. Constitution (preamble, seven articles, and 27 amendments), as well an updated introduction and explanatory notes by J.W. Peltason, author of Understanding the Constitution and Government by the People. The introduction includes sections explaining how the Constitution set up the U.S. federal system, the background to the Constitutional Convention and how the participants arrived at a final version of the document, its ratification, and sections on the call for a Bill of Rights and the need for additional amendments over the years. Dr. Peltason is currently professor of Political Science Emeritus, University of California, Irvine, as well as President Emeritus, University of California.  (July 2004)

The Civil Rights Movement and the Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.
A history of the contemporary civil rights movement in the United States, including a chronology of key events, brief biographical information on two centuries of African-American leaders, and excerpts from King's speeches and writings.  (November 1998 )

If You Want to Study in the United States
An update and revision of the popular series of booklets for students considering higher education in the United States. Click on the title above to view those booklets. Check back in the coming months for the fourth booklet in the series: Getting Ready to Go: Practical Information for Living and Studying in the United States.
Undergraduate Study
Discusses bachelor's and associate degree programs, as well as technical and vocational education opportunities in the United States. It takes the prospective student step-by-step through the process of choosing colleges, completing applications, and obtaining a student visa.  (2003)
Graduate and Professional Study and Research
Covers master's and doctoral degrees and postdoctoral programs, plus certification and licensing procedures for professionals and programs for scholars. It also includes information on the application and visa processes.  (2003)
Short-Term Study, English Language Programs, Distance Education, and Accreditation
Provides information on opportunities to study in the United States for up to one year; descriptions of programs available for acquiring or improving English language skills; an overview of studying towards a degree, diploma, or certificate from outside the United States through distance education programs; and an explanation of accreditation, the system used to ensure quality of U.S. institutions of higher education.  (2002)

Muslim Life in America
This pamphlet is a collection of stories, profiles, graphics, and more than 80 photographs that show Muslims living as part of mainstream American life. Features range from an account of how a Muslim community in Massachusetts built its own mosque, to a history of Muslim settlement in the United States, to the story of a popular young rap group that performs songs incorporating Muslim values.  (October 2002)

Outline of American Geography
Considers the physical environment of the United States — landforms, climate, soils, and vegetation — in terms of its impact on the country's cultural, regional, and political development.  (November 1998)

Outline of American History
How the United States has been transformed from its origins as an obscure set of colonies on the Atlantic coast a little more than 200 years ago into what one political analyst terms “the first universal nation.”  (March 1999)

Outline of American Literature
Follows the path taken by American literature as it has moved from the pre-colonial days of orally transmitted tales of Native American cultures, through the periods of realism, romanticism, and experimentation, to the prose and poetry of the past 50 years.  (November 1998)

Outline of the U.S. Economy
Examines how the U.S. economy works and how it has evolved over the past 225 years. Considers forms of business enterprise, the role of financial markets, how government shapes the economy and seeks to manage the pace of economic activity, the agricultural sector and U.S. farm policy, the changing role of labor, and current U.S. policies on trade and international economic affairs.  (February 2001)

Outline of the U.S. Government
What makes U.S. government uniquely American...its Constitution, the separation of powers, the concept of “checks and balances,” the decentralized roles of state and local governments, and a citizenry with wide opportunity to be part of it all.  (September 2000)

Portrait of the USA
An introduction, in words and pictures, to the United States — people, geography, history, government, business, education, science and medicine, religion, social services, the arts, sports and entertainment, and the media.  (March 1999)

President George W. Bush
Biographies and photographs of President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard B. Cheney, along with quotations from the president on foreign affairs.  (January 2001)

Writers on America
Presents 15 essays by a diverse group of contemporary American writers, poets, essayists, and intellectuals, on how being an American has affected their decision to write and what they have written during successful careers. Their meditations illuminate in an interesting way certain American values — freedom, diversity, democracy, in the context of individual development. Frequently, for this group of writers, the sense of home means an immigrant culture, with a parent or grandparent from another land; however, the central concept for many of these authors, no matter what their backgrounds, is "possibility," both in personal and creative terms.  (December 2002)

Outline Series

Outline of American Geography
Considers the physical environment of the United States — landforms, climate, soils, and vegetation — in terms of its impact on the country's cultural, regional, and political development.  (November 1998)

Outline of American History How the United States has been transformed from its origins as an obscure set of colonies on the Atlantic coast a little more than 200 years ago into what one political analyst terms “the first universal nation.”  (March 1999)

Outline of American Literature
Follows the path taken by American literature as it has moved from the pre-colonial days of orally transmitted tales of Native American cultures, through the periods of realism, romanticism, and experimentation, to the prose and poetry of the past 50 years.  (November 1998)

Outline of the U.S. Economy
Examines how the U.S. economy works and how it has evolved over the past 225 years. Considers forms of business enterprise, the role of financial markets, how government shapes the economy and seeks to manage the pace of economic activity, the agricultural sector and U.S. farm policy, the changing role of labor, and current U.S. policies on trade and international economic affairs.  (February 2001)

Outline of the U.S. Government
What makes U.S. government uniquely American...its Constitution, the separation of powers, the concept of “checks and balances,” the decentralized roles of state and local governments, and a citizenry with wide opportunity to be part of it all.  (September 2000)