Four guided investigations designed to teach students how to read primary sources and construct historical narratives lie at the heart of this website. Topics are: the Spanish-American War, the Scopes Trial, Social Security, and Rosa Parks. Each topic includes a short introductory video, a timeline of events, a central question, and extension activities. For example, the Rosa Parks investigation poses the question: "Why did the boycott of Montgomery's buses succeed?"

After completing a simple login, students read annotated documents—including letters written by the boycott organizers, a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. and an interview with a woman working in Montgomery—and answer guiding questions, and draw on their responses to answer the question. The website also includes a useful introduction to the idea of historical thinking.

Especially since the 1950s, civil rights litigation has done much to influence government institutions. This website presents at least partial information on 2,243 injunctive civil rights cases (those seeking policy change and not money). These cases are divided by category. "Jail Conditions" and "Prison Conditions" contain the most cases, with roughly 550 each. "Immigration" and "Juvenile Institutions" also include more than 150 each. Other categories include: "Mental Health Institutions," "Mental Retardation Institutions," "Child Welfare," "Nursing Home Cases," "Policing Cases," "Public Housing," "Equal Employment," and "School Desegregation," among others.

A good place to begin is the "Featured Cases" section on the website's homepage, which highlights cases from the collection that are being litigated currently and/or that are particularly relevant to current events. Cases are fully searchable by name, type, issue, district, circuit, state, causes of action, attorney organization, and people involved in the case. In addition, links to 141 case studies written by law students, professors, journalists, and policy advocates provide in-depth information on a specific case or issue, such as the Urban Institute's "Baseline Assessment of Public Housing Desegregation Cases." New material is added regularly.