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Full-Text Articles in Law and Race
“Essentially Black”: Legal Theory And The Morality Of Conscious Racial Identity, Kenneth B. Nunn
“Essentially Black”: Legal Theory And The Morality Of Conscious Racial Identity, Kenneth B. Nunn
UF Law Faculty Publications
In philosophy, essentialism involves the claim that everything that exists has a fundamental character or core set of features that makes it what it is. Although this idea developed out of Platonic notions of ideal forms, it has spread beyond philosophy into the social sciences and hard scientific disciplines like mathematics and biology. Since the advent of postmodernism, discussions around essentialism have become controversial. Adherents of postmodern theory argue that social categories, such as gender, race, and sexuality are socially constructed and that essentialist notions of identity, which suggest that identity is static, natural, and unchanging, are theoretically wrong. This …
Neofeminism, Aya Gruber
Neofeminism, Aya Gruber
Publications
Today it is prosaic to say that "feminism is dead." Far from being moribund, feminist legal theory is breaking from its somewhat dogmatic past and forging ahead with new vigor. Many modern feminist legal scholars seek innovative ways to better the legal, social, and economic status of women while simultaneously questioning some of the more troubling moves of second-wave feminism, such as the tendency to essentialize the woman's experience, the turn to authoritarian state policies, and the characterization of women as pure objects or agents. These "neofeminists" prioritize women's issues but maintain a strong commitment to distributive justice and recognize …
Identity Crisis: "Intersectionality," "Multidimensionality," And The Development Of An Adequate Theory Of Subordination, Darren L. Hutchinson
Identity Crisis: "Intersectionality," "Multidimensionality," And The Development Of An Adequate Theory Of Subordination, Darren L. Hutchinson
Faculty Articles
This Article arises out of the intersectionality and post-intersectionality literature and makes a case against the essentialist considerations that informed HRC's endorsement of D'Amato. Part I discusses the pitfalls that occur when scholars and activists engage in essentialist politics and treat identities and forms of subordination as conflicting forces. Part II examines how essentialism negatively affects legal theory in the equality context. Part III considers the historical motivation for and the efficacy of the "intersectionality" response to the problem of essentialism. Part III also extensively analyzes the "multidimensional" critiques of essentialism offered by the most recent school of thought in …