Beyond The 'Resiliency' And 'Grit' Narrative In Legal Education: Race, Class And Gender Considerations, Christian Sundquist

Articles

Law schools have been struggling to adapt to the “new normal” of decreased enrollments and a significantly altered legal employment market. Despite the decrease in traditional attorney jobs, as well as the possibility that artificial intelligence systems such as “ROSS” will displace additional jobs in the future, there still remains a significant gap in legal services available to the poor, middle class, and immigrants. The integration of social justice methodologies in the classroom thus has become critically important to the future of legal education and of the very practice of law.

Many commentators on the future of legal education have …

Not For Free: Exploring The Collateral Costs Of Diversity In Legal Education, Spearit

Articles

This essay examines some of the institutional costs of achieving a more diverse law student body. In recent decades, there has been growing support for diversity initiatives in education, and the legal academy is no exception. Yet for most law schools, diversity remains an elusive goal, some of which is the result of problems with anticipating the needs of diverse students and being able to deliver. These are some of the unseen or hidden costs associated with achieving greater diversity. Both law schools and the legal profession remain relatively stratified by race, which is an ongoing legacy of legal education’s …

Positive Education Federalism: The Promise Of Equality After The Every Student Succeeds Act, Christian Sundquist

Articles

This Article examines the nature of the federal role in public education following the recent passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act in December 2015 (“ESSA”). Public education was largely unregulated for much of our Nation’s history, with the federal government deferring to states’ traditional “police powers” despite the de jure entrenchment of racial and class-based inequalities. A nascent policy of education federalism finally took root following the Brown v. Board decision and the enactment of the Elementary and Secondary School Act (“ESEA”) with the explicit purpose of eradicating such educational inequality.

This timely Article argues that current federal education …

Social Sustainability: The Role Of Ecotourism In Regenerating Cultural And Environmental Histories In Rio De Janeiro, Nia Mcallister

Pomona Senior Theses

Ecotourism is a rapidly growing global export industry that aims to uphold the ethics of responsible tourism by engaging with local communities and encouraging environmentally conscious travel. With existing critiques of the greenwashing of ecotourism and the tendency for tourism agencies to exploit host communities, I advocate for participatory community-based models of ecotourism. This thesis explores both the material and conceptual benefits of community-based ecotourism through the critical examination of community-based ecotourism projects in Rio de Janeiro Brazil. Focusing on the implementation of ecotourism in of some of Rio de Janeiro’s peripheral communities, areas that are impacted by social and …

“Man, Don’T Feel Like A Woman”: Christian Scriptural Interpretations, The Binary Gender System, And How They Can Lead To Misogyny And Homophobia, Alyssa Froehling

Audre Lorde Writing Prize

This paper utilizes different analyses of scripture to argue that a binary gender system is not inherent in Christianity. Contemporary societal norms placed onto Christianity contribute to the oppression of women and those in LGBTQ+ communities.

Salvation Through Community And Protest, Hannah K. Griggs

Audre Lorde Writing Prize

This essay examines the theodicies of Nancy Pineda-Madrid, Kelly Brown Douglas, and Dorothee Soelle to strategize ways for Christians to combat rising threats to marginalized communities. Synthesizing the arguments of these three feminist Christians, I argue that only a theodicy of protest succeeds in accounting for structural injustice caused by kyriarchal relationships. As Christians come to terms with America’s current political situation, I call for a reimagining of Anselm’s salvation narrative. My protest theodicy theorizes a new Christian narrative that strives to alleviate this-worldly suffering in order to produce salvation through radical community, by “signifyin’” to disrupt power, and using …

Where Do Women Stand? Attitudes Towards Female Political Participation In India And The Us, Grace Anne Carlson

Audre Lorde Writing Prize

This paper aimed to study attitudes towards gender inequalities in politics, both in the United States and India. Using original survey research and World Values Survey data, American and Indian attitudes towards women in politics were analyzed and compared. Ultimately, the project found that respondents in both countries still hold distinctly unequal views on women in the political sphere.

The Socio-Political And Economic Causes Of Natural Disasters, Nicole Southard

CMC Senior Theses

To effectively prevent and mitigate the outbreak of natural disasters is a more pressing issue in the twenty-first century than ever before. The frequency and cost of natural disasters is rising globally, most especially in developing countries where the most severe effects of climate change are felt. However, while climate change is indeed a strong force impacting the severity of contemporary catastrophes, it is not directly responsible for the exorbitant cost of the damage and suffering incurred from natural disasters -- both financially and in terms of human life. Rather, the true root causes of natural disasters lie within the …

Crossing Two Color Lines: Interracial Marriage And Residential Segregation In Chicago, Dorothy E. Roberts

All Faculty Scholarship

Residential segregation and antimiscegenation were interwined means of maintaining an unequal racial order, challenging both sociological theories about immigrant assimilation and upward mobility and legal theories about the significance of interracial marriage for racial equality.

The Shifting Sands Of Employment Discrimination: From Unjustified Impact To Disparate Treatment In Pregnancy And Pay, Deborah L. Brake

Articles

In 2015, the Supreme Court decided its first major pregnancy discrimination case in nearly a quarter century. The Court’s decision in Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., made a startling move: despite over four decades of Supreme Court case law roping off disparate treatment and disparate impact into discrete and separate categories, the Court crafted a pregnancy discrimination claim that permits an unjustified impact on pregnant workers to support the inference of discriminatory intent necessary to prevail on a disparate treatment claim. The decision cuts against the grain of established employment discrimination law by blurring the impact/treatment boundary and …

Community Integration Of People With Disabilities: Can Olmstead Protect Against Retrenchment?, Mary Crossley

Articles

Since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, states have made significant progress in enabling Americans with disabilities to live in their communities, rather than institutions. That progress reflects the combined effect of the Supreme Court’s holding in Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel. Zimring, that states’ failure to provide services to disabled persons in the community may violate the ADA, and amendments to Medicaid that permit states to devote funding to home and community-based services (HCBS). This article considers whether Olmstead and its progeny could act as a check on a potential retrenchment of states’ …

Aligning Stakeholder Frames For Transition Management In Solid Waste: The Case Study Of Bangalore, India, Nivedita Biyani, Manisha Anantharaman

School of Liberal Arts Faculty Works

Increasingly, sanitation issues are becoming a central part of global environmental governance and the discourse on sustainability. The city of Bangalore, India, is one of many cities worldwide that is trying to come to terms with its solid waste management (SWM) problems. In 2000, the Government of India issued SWM handling rules, which is a non-binding handbook (MSW Rules 2000) that seeks to guide state and city municipalities and stakeholders in their efforts to deliver better services. A serious SWM crisis prompted Bangalore to be the first city in India to mandate segregation of waste at source. However, implementing these …

Elite And Ethical: The Defensive Distinctions Of Middle-Class Bicycling In Bangalore, India, Manisha Anantharaman

School of Liberal Arts Faculty Works

This article applies social practice theory to study the emergence of sustainable consumption practices like bicycling among the new middle classes of Bangalore, India. I argue that expansions of bicycling practices are dependent on the construction of defensive distinctions,which I define as distinctions that draw equally on lifestyle-based and ethics-based discourses to normalize bicycling among Bangalore’s middle classes. With their environmental discourses and signage, middle-class cyclists make claims to being ethical actors and ecological citizens concerned about global environments. Their high-end bicycles and special gear enable them to maintain their social status in personal and professional circles, despite adopting …

Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors, Please: Transit Equity, Social Exclusion, And The New York City Subway, Taylor Novick-Finder

Pitzer Senior Theses

The history of transportation planning in New York City has created disparities between those who have sufficient access to the public transportation network, and those who face structural barriers to traveling from their home to education, employment, and healthcare opportunities. This thesis analyzes the legacy of discriminatory policy surrounding the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and city and state governments that have failed to support vital infrastructure improvement projects and service changes to provide multi-modal welfare to New York’s working poor. By exploring issues of transit equity as they pertain to the New York City subway system, this thesis raises the …

A Foe More Than A Friend: Law And The Health Of The American Urban Poor, David Ray Papke, Mary Elise Papke

Fordham Urban Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Dialogue Not Diatribe: Methods For A Practice Of Socio-Humanitarian Playwriting, Siobhan Dow-Hall

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This dissertation is the result of a practice-led research exploration of how creative writing practice may be expanded and developed with particular application to the writing of what I refer to as socio-humanitarian drama. I have developed this notion to promote discussion and consideration of specific issues of social justice and human rights within playwriting. While this practice-led research enlisted reflective practice in the task of developing and extending my own writing practice, this dissertation does also outline specific, practical modes of creative process, or exercises, that could be applied more broadly for others who may seek to develop their …

Why Baby Markets Aren’T Free, Dorothy E. Roberts

All Faculty Scholarship

Creating families in the twenty-first century increasingly happens in markets where the buying and selling of reproductive goods and services are facilitated by advanced technologies, the internet, contracts, and state laws and policies. Thus, the title of this international congress—“Baby Markets”—aptly captures a key aspect of modern reproduction. The ability of potential parents to engage in market transactions involving children enhances parents’ autonomy over their family lives. The free market seems to liberate us from the constraints of biology and state control.

This Essay argues, however, that baby markets aren’t free. Three aspects of the way reproductive goods and services …

Disparities In Infant Mortality: Are Sociocultural Risk Factors Shaped By Institutionalized Racism?, Madison Grimm

Honors Program Theses

The infant mortality rate (IMR) is an incredibly important indicator of the overall health of a nation. Because the IMR is so closely related with factors such as quality and accessibility of healthcare and socioeconomic conditions, it is helpful in evaluating a nation’s success. The United States (US) has one of the highest infant mortality rates among countries with a similar degree of economic development (those belonging to the OECD). In 2013, the IMR was 5.96 deaths per 1,000 live births, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC (Mathews, MacDorman, & Thoma, 2015). Furthermore, this rate …

What Is The Relationship Between Gender And Employment Status For Individuals With Idd? Findings From The National Core Indicators Adult Consumer Survey (Bringing Employment First To Scale, Issue No. 9), Kelly Nye-Lengerman, Caro Narby, Sandra Pettingell, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Gender-based discrimination is a persistent problem in the workforce. Like their peers without disabilities, women with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often have less opportunity to achieve employment outcomes as compared to their male counterparts.

Analysis of data from the 2012–2013 National Core Indicators (NCI) Adult Consumer Survey shows a disparity in access to community jobs between men and women. These data show that women are significantly less likely than men to have a paid job in the community. Among the sample of respondents who worked in a community setting, only about one third were women.

How Is Guardianship Status Related To Employment Status For People With Idd? Findings From The National Core Indicators Adult Consumer Survey (Bringing Employment First To Scale, Issue No. 10), Kelly Nye-Lengerman, Caro Narby, Sandra Pettingell, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Many individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDD, have a legal guardian who assists them in making life decisions about housing, health, and employment. A recent analysis of data from the National Core Indicators (NCI) Adult Consumer Survey has found that people with IDD who were represented by a legal guardian were less likely to have paid employment than people who were their own legal guardians.

This finding may help us understand the role that legal guardians play in access to employment. If guardianship is a potential barrier to community-based work, then guardians need to be directly engaged in …

From Sheltered Work To Competitive Integrated Employment: Lessons From The Field (Bringing Employment First To Scale, Issue No. 11), Amie Lulinski, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons, Stephane Leblois, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

Community providers across the nation are embracing the transformation from facility-based employment supports to competitive integrated employment. While many providers believe in inclusion and Employment First for the individuals they support, some struggle to make their vision a reality. The process of organizational transformation can seem daunting without an understanding of the full range of tactics and approaches available.

The Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI), in conjunction with The Arc of the United States, is conducting research to better understand the transformation process and to guide the development of tools and resources for providers seeking to transform their services. As …

Exploring The Lives Of Women Who Lead, Susan Cloninger

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Scholars have identified various reasons for the underrepresentation of women in the upper echelons of organizations.This study used grounded theory methodology enhanced by situational analysis to explore how American women at senior levels in large organizational contexts engage and negotiate the totality of their situation.Utilizing a predominately White, married, middle to upper class, heterosexual sample, this study sought to understand how women create and consign meaning around their experiences; how they experience the fluidity and boundaries of multiple identities; and how they experience the entanglement of macro, meso, and micro societal forces.It explores relationships among factors participants named as influential …

“There Is Nothing Inherently Mysterious About Assistive Technology”: A Qualitative Study About Blind User Experiences In Us Academic Libraries, Adina Mulliken

Publications and Research

Eighteen academic library users who are blind were interviewed about their experiences with academic libraries and the libraries’ websites using an open-ended questionnaire and recorded telephone interviews. The study approaches these topics from a user-centered perspective, with the idea that blind users themselves can provide particularly reliable insights into the issues and potential solutions that are most critical to them. Most participants used reference librarians’ assistance, and most had positive experiences. High-level screen reader users requested help with specific needs. A larger number of participants reported contacting a librarian because of feeling overwhelmed by the library website. In some cases, …

Just World Beliefs, Identity Development, And Social Justice Advocacy Of Counselor Trainees, Sara Rundlett

All Master's Theses

This was the first study exploring the relationship between the belief in a just world, identity development, and social justice advocacy (SJA). A mixed methods design was conducted using a nationwide sample of ninety-seven counselor-in-training participants. Hypotheses included positive correlation between identity development and SJA, negative correlation between belief in a just world and SJA, and negative correlation between belief in a just world and identity development. Results were not significant but provided implications for future research and counselor training programs.

The Identity Formation Of South Asians: A Phenomenological Study, Shabana Shaheen

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the lived experiences of South Asians college students. This research, through a qualitative study that is rooted in the philosophy of phenomenology, explores the essence South Asians’ identity formation. Qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews with South Asian college students. The data analysis was under a phenomenological lens that centered the lived experiences and the essence of these experiences in the results. Seven themes emerged from this phenomenological study: negotiating bicultural identity, model minority expectations, meaningful impact of religious spaces, understandings of intra-community tensions, racialization of Islamophobia, understandings of South Asian identity and efficacy of Asian …

Uncovering The Processes And Consequences Of Egyptian Immigrant Parental Involvement In Their Children’S Education: Bridging Cultural Differences, Hend Shalan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Abstract

For more than a decade, researchers have concluded that immigrant parents face several barriers to becoming involved in their children’s education. All studies agree that language and cultural differences are the most significant barriers to immigrants’ involvement in their children’s education, yet we know little about what these cultural differences are and how these cultural differences influence the school involvement of immigrant parents. This study integrates theories of cultural differences, acculturation, and culture shock and the corresponding literature to investigate the lesser involvement of immigrant parents in school-related activities.

A focused ethnographic design was employed and a thematic analysis …

From Dislocation To Disengagement: The Experiences Of Low-Income And First Generation College Students, Azure S. Mcginty

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In this thesis, I examine the experiences of low-income and first generation college students who are enrolled members of the TRiO Student Support Program at the University of Montana. This program is designed to cater to the specific academic struggles of low-income and first generation college students. There is a wealth of scholarly literature concerning this population of students and their risk of dropping out of college. Researchers have found these students are susceptible to habitus dislocation, which causes many of these students to feel torn between acclimating to college and forfeiting their membership in the working-class. One of the …

Decriminalized Prostitution: Impunity For Violence And Exploitation, Melanie Shapiro Esq, Donna M. Hughes Dr.

Donna M. Hughes

On Normative Effects Of Immigration Law.Pdf, Emily Ryo

Emily Ryo