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The Anticanonical Lesson Of Huckleberry Finn, Sharon E. Rush Dec 2015

The Anticanonical Lesson Of Huckleberry Finn, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Some books included in the canon of American literature no longer belong there, because they presently lack normative approval. Adapting concepts found in constitutional law, an anticanon of American literature functions the way the anticanon of constitutional law would operate and explicitly removes books from the canon. In law, the anticanon identifies outdated interpretations of the constitution. In education, it is time to consider removing from the canon and placing in an anticanon books that are inconsistent with multicultural education. One such book is Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, which is part of the canon of American literature and viewed as …


The Anticanonical Lesson Of Huckleberry Finn, Sharon E. Rush Dec 2015

The Anticanonical Lesson Of Huckleberry Finn, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Some books included in the canon of American literature no longer belong there, because they presently lack normative approval. Adapting concepts found in constitutional law, an anticanon of American literature functions the way the anticanon of constitutional law would operate and explicitly removes books from the canon. In law, the anticanon identifies outdated interpretations of the constitution. In education, it is time to consider removing from the canon and placing in an anticanon books that are inconsistent with multicultural education. One such book is Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, which is part of the canon of American literature and viewed as …


Identity Matters, Sharon E. Rush Aug 2015

Identity Matters, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

From the Sixth Annual LatCrit Conference in Gainesville, Florida on April 26-29, 2001. Cluster VII: Race, Gender, and Sexuality


Beyond Admissions: Racial Equality In Law Schools, Sharon E. Rush Oct 2014

Beyond Admissions: Racial Equality In Law Schools, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Beginning with a discussion of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, this article discusses the meaning of “integration.” In McLaurin, the University of Oklahoma was forced to abandon its segregation policy and not separate black students from their white classmates in all settings (not just the classroom). The McLaurin decision raised the fundamental questions: "What is integration?" and "How is integration related to racial equality?" Significantly, the McLaurin Court clarifies that equality is premised on integration and that integration means more than just having a presence in an institution. The case …


Diversity: The Red Herring Of Equal Protection, Sharon E. Rush Oct 2014

Diversity: The Red Herring Of Equal Protection, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Couching the constitutional inquiry in cases like Bakke and VMI in the context of integration also puts in perspective the diversity justification. Affirmative action policies are constitutional because they integrate state programs. Integration on the basis of race and sex also diversifies state programs. In contrast, attempts to justify sex-segregation in state programs by arguing the policy promotes diversity is irrelevant to an equal protection analysis. Voluntarily created all-female schools should be constitutional because they promote the equal citizenship of women without damaging the equal citizenship stature of men. This is true for voluntarily race-segregated programs for minorities; as well. …


Sharing Space: Why Racial Goodwill Isn't Enough, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Sharing Space: Why Racial Goodwill Isn't Enough, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Racism is understood by most White people to be an attitude of prejudice toward Blacks. In contrast, Blacks define racism more inclusively; it is a system of institutional preferences for Whites, resulting from historically ingrained prejudices Whites have against Blacks. People of goodwill are disinclined to attribute racial connotations to ordinary, everyday negative interactions involving Whites and people of color as long as the Whites are people of goodwill (people who do not think they have prejudiced attitudes). Second, goodwill comfort is important to maintain, causing many Whites to shy away from any discussions about race. People of goodwill have …


Lessons From And For "Disabled" Students, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Lessons From And For "Disabled" Students, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

The traditional understanding of "disabled" means to have a physical, mental, or emotional limitation. It is unfortunate that the word has negative connotations because we all have the ability to do some things and not others. An individual's disabilities, traditional or otherwise, do not diminish the person or detract from the universal tenet that all people are inherently equal and entitled to be treated with dignity. Generally, it is unproductive to compare the circumstances of one group with another for the purpose of discerning which group has it better or worse. Struggles by different groups to achieve equality have different …


Protecting The Dignity And Equality Of Children: The Importance Of Integrated Schools, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Protecting The Dignity And Equality Of Children: The Importance Of Integrated Schools, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

The primary goal of this Article is to motivate equality-minded people to renew their commitment to the goal of invalidating the race myth – a belief in white superiority and black inferiority – that has plagued this country far too long. When the Supreme Court ruled in Brown that “separate is inherently unequal,” it understood that integrated schools were necessary to achieve racial equality because only by teaching children to respect each other’s dignity, is it possible to debunk the race myth. This Article suggests that “integration” is about more than ensuring that children have the opportunity to physically share …


Emotional Segregation: Huckleberry Finn In The Modern Classroom, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Emotional Segregation: Huckleberry Finn In The Modern Classroom, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

This paper explores the harm of teaching The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in public school classrooms. Such harm can be broadly described as emotional segregation, which occurs when society sanctions disrespect. To illustrate the effects of emotional segregation, this article explores the reaction Black students and parents have to the novel to that of White students and parents. White students eagerly imagine being Huck and going on his adventures. Black students, however, cannot and should not even be asked to try to imagine being Huck and betraying their racial identity. But then who are the Black students supposed to identify …


Talking About Race And Equality, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Talking About Race And Equality, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Lots of people of different races are increasingly uncomfortable talking about race. They prefer to function in a colorblind society where they insist that race is irrelevant. Not surprisingly, the concept of racial silencing is consistent with the concept of colorblindness. Logically, it seems impossible to talk about race if we are not even supposed to see it. The idea seems to be that if people who believe in racial equality magically stopped seeing and talking about race they could avoid the negativity surrounding racial issues and just hope that the inequality would fix itself. But we know that if …


If Black Is So Special, Then Why Isn't It In The Rainbow?, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

If Black Is So Special, Then Why Isn't It In The Rainbow?, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

In the modern day, defining "family" becomes less of a theoretical debate when one's own family unit is different from the traditional married, middle-class mother and father with their biological children. For non-traditional families, redefining family takes on enormous practical significance and may actually enable people to create families. Laws permitting transracial adoptions and surrogacy are illustrative. Moreover, a broader definition of family provides greater legal security to non-traditional families. Without such legal protection, non-traditional families live in fear of traditional laws tearing them apart. Rather than using a standard that promotes hegemony in custody disputes, decisionmakers should become aware …


Sexual Orientation: A Plea For Inclusion, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

Sexual Orientation: A Plea For Inclusion, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

White women and people of color have made significant scholarly contribution toward a better understanding of patriarchy and racial hegemony. Other outsider scholars, such as lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals, also have spoken out about how hegemony subordinates them to the dominant culture. That subordination creates a common pain of exclusion. All subordinated people should explore the sources of common pain that come from exclusion from the power and privilege generally enjoyed by members of the dominant culture.


The Heart Of Equal Protection: Education And Race, Sharon E. Rush May 2014

The Heart Of Equal Protection: Education And Race, Sharon E. Rush

Sharon E. Rush

Brown vs. Board of Education established more than the unconstitutionality of the separate but equal doctrine in public education. Brown also gave the importance of education a constitutional dimension. Involuntary racial segregation creates a stigma wherever it exists which indisputably affects all children's self-esteem by possibly undermining that of children of color and by artificially inflating that of White children. Unfortunately, more recent cases that raise questions about the right to a public education seem less willing to acknowledge the importance of education and the importance of integration in public education. Since Brown, the Court has held repeatedly that education …