Digital Commons Network^™

Democracy, History, And Washington And Lee, Christopher B. Seaman

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

At Washington and Lee, it is customary for the new holder of an endowed professorship to deliver a public lecture called a chair talk to mark their installation. This is a lightly edited and footnoted version of Professor Seaman's chair talk on October 8, 2024, given as the new Robert E.R. Huntley Professor of Law.

Discretionary (In)Justice Continued: Discretion As A Tool To Deny Asylum, Kate Aschenbrenner Rodriguez

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

In 2012, I published an article entitled Discretionary (In)justice: The Exercise of Discretion in Claims for Asylum. At that time, I was concerned because of a pattern I had seen of adjudicators in individual cases denying applications for asylum not on the basis of statutory eligibility but instead in an exercise of the adjudicator’s discretion. Since that time, the administrations of both the former President Trump and the now-current President Biden have used every legal tool available to them, including the exercise of discretion in asylum claims, to make it more difficult to obtain asylum and therefore to discourage …

Cannabis At Work: Navigating The Intersection Of Employment Law And Legalized Marijuana, Eva Lane

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

As states increasingly legalize forms of cannabis use, federal regulation remains stagnant. These outdated laws still hold power, undermining state-granted rights. This impact is especially felt in the employment sector. While states pass laws legalizing cannabis use, employers still have a right to a drug free workplace. Many employment agreements prohibit drug use, even if legal under state law. This Note examines recent caselaw to analyze how courts are handling the battle between state and federal government as it relates to cannabis legalization. Ultimately, the argument highlights the risk employees face – engaging in what they believe is legal behavior …

Life In Limbo: Cryptocurrency And Fosta As The Pillars Of Cyber-Trafficking, Rebecca Liu

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

As the internet continually advances into Web 3.0, human traffickers thrive in using online platforms to prey on their victims, creating a new form of human trafficking: cyber-trafficking. In 2018, Congress passed the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (“FOSTA”) to dampen the stringent protection that 47 U.S.C. § 230 (“Section 230”) offered to internet intermediaries in cyber-trafficking litigation. However, Congress’s intended effect in passing FOSTA failed, as courts continue to interpret FOSTA narrowly, upholding the stringent protection that Section 230 offers internet intermediaries. Beyond FOSTA’s indifferent impact, governmental bodies struggle adapting to Web 3.0’s landscape, neglecting to intervene with traffickers’ …

“Freedom Lives Hence, And Banishment Is Here”: The Weaponization Of Immigration Law To Punish Political Dissidents, Ryan Scott

Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice

This Note explores the long and bipartisan history of the United States government’s weaponization of the immigration system to control, exclude, and expel percieved political enemies. The near-unlimited power that the federal government has acrrued in immigration matters has been used since the Founders’ generation to purge the country of those whose ideas and speech are seen by the powers that be as threatening or subversive. This Note traces the arc of such efforts from the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 to the explusion of activists under President Trump. The Note also examines attempts to force the courts to …

James Baldwin And What U.S. Governments Owe Every American, Randall K. Johnson

Faculty Works

This book review looks at the life, work and impact of James Baldwin, a famous writer and civil rights activist that was born one hundred (100) years ago. It does so, for one of the first times in the field of law, by examining Baldwin’s influence on the legal system. The book review carries out its work by identifying Baldwin’s impacts upon U.S. law: before, during and after his public service career. In the process, this book review describes how governments can build on Baldwin's writings and advocacy work.

Local Environmental Impacts Of Data Center Proliferation, Reid Lifset, Pranava Raparla, Amy L. Stein, Lauren Bridges, Jim Mcelfish, Tim Cywinski

UF Law Faculty Publications

Demand for data centers is increasing worldwide, raising questions about the electric grid, the transition to renewable energy, and distribution infrastructure. Northern Virginia is home to data centers that process nearly 70% of global digital traffic, leading officials to call for construction, at ratepayers’ expense, of new power plants and new transmission lines across four states, as well as the continued operation of coal-powered plants that had been scheduled to go offline. On December 6, 2024, the Environmental Law Institute and the Network for Digital Economy and the Environment co-hosted a panel of experts who examined the environmental impacts and …

Assisted Outpatient Treatment: A State-By-State Comparative Review, E. Lea Johnston, Autumn Klein

UF Law Faculty Publications

Assisted outpatient treatment, otherwise known as preventive outpatient commitment, is rapidly expanding across the United States, aiming to address mental health needs and reduce homelessness, hospital costs, and community violence. Since 2019, fifteen preventive outpatient commitment statutes have been passed or expanded. These statutes, which authorize courts to mandate community treatment for nondangerous individuals with mental illnesses, have evaded close scrutiny, rest on misconceptions, and raise significant constitutional concerns. An analysis of legislative debates, court opinions, and scholarship reveals a fundamental misunderstanding about the prevalence of these laws, which contributes to their speedy passage. Additionally, no analysis exists of these …

Hate Groups And The Charitable Tax Exemption, Miriam Galston

UC Law Constitutional Quarterly

No abstract provided.

Caroliniana Columns - Spring 2025, University Libraries--University Of South Carolina

University South Caroliniana Society Newsletter - Columns

Have Digital Exhibit, Will Travel: “Forest to Furniture” featured at Sumter Museum in early 2025 … p.3

Officers at War: Rethinking Southern Masculinity, Honor, and Violence in the Civil War Era / Dr. Patrick F. Doyle … p.10

Researching Politics, Finance, and Agricultural Subsidies in the Jim Crow Era / Robert Ferguson … p.14

The Unsung Heroes of History / Beth Bilderback … p.16

Primary Sources: Authors Rely on SCL Holdings for Their Research … p.20

The Cost of the Vote: George Elmore and the Battle for the Ballot … p.20

Empowering Communities: How Electric Cooperatives Transformed Rural South Carolina …

Note From The Chief Legislation Editor, Griff Ryan-Roberts

University of the Pacific Law Review

No abstract provided.

California’S Climate Superfund: How Sb 1497 Seeks To Hold Large Fossil Fuel Polluters Accountable, Dominick Mendoza

University of the Pacific Law Review

No abstract provided.

Chapter 584: Navigating Hate Literature And The Freedom Of Speech Through Strategic Legislation, Christine J. Miller

University of the Pacific Law Review

No abstract provided.

Absolute Immunity Corrupts Absolutely: A Call To Allow For Prosecutorial Liability In Cases Of Gross Negligence And Malice, Kristen M. Mack, Cary J. Hansel

University of Baltimore Law Forum

No abstract provided.

Innocence Is Different: Why Victim Impact Statements Should Be Inadmissible At Wrongful Conviction Hearings, Colin Miller

University of Baltimore Law Forum

No abstract provided.

Contrition Conflict: Remorse And Innocence Under The Juvenile Restoration Act, Jayna Peterson

University of Baltimore Law Forum

No abstract provided.

Teachers, Raise Your Hands: Why Maryland Must Allow Class Size As A Permissive Subject For Public School Teachers' Collective Bargaining, Grace Andrews-Becker

University of Baltimore Law Forum

No abstract provided.

Recent Developments: Rovin V. State, Odi Odian

University of Baltimore Law Forum

No abstract provided.

Interprofessional Education And Collaboration In The Philippines: Current Landscape, Gaps, And Propositions, Arvie Vitente, Michael Sy, Reeva Ann Sumulong, Anna Causapin, Jocel Regino

Rehabilitation Sciences Department Faculty Articles

Interprofessional education (IPE) is a forward-looking strategy in healthcare education that unites students and professionals from various disciplines to enhance interprofessional collaboration (IPC). IPE is designed to prepare future health and social care professionals to navigate and address the complexities of modern healthcare systems. In the Philippines, despite being a developing country with a fragmented healthcare system, there have been efforts over the last 15 to 20 years to introduce and institutionalize IPE and IPC in both higher education and healthcare settings. However, significant challenges persist, including the dominance of medical professionals, inadequate regulatory mechanisms, and a lack of strong …

Anti-Feminisms, Authoritarianism, And Digital Culture: A Pedagogy Project, Charlie Ambrose

Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies M.A. Final Projects

This project began, broadly, with my exposure to TikTok’s tradwives—a subset of content creators and influencers who advocate traditional gender roles as women, homemakers, wives, and mothers, with a particular focus on moral and religious beliefs and aesthetic practices of “womanhood.” To me, tradwives encapsulated the internet’s capacity to weaponize subtly: slow-paced, pastel videos, gentle music, and even gentler voices delivering increasingly extreme ideas about masculine and feminine roles, Christian nationalism, and white supremacy. But other threads began to appear as I delved deeper into the world of tradwives. I noticed the men’s rights groups who praised tradwives while openly …

El Leñador, April 2025, El Leñador Staff

El Leñador Newspaper

El Leñador is an English and Spanish newspaper produced by Humboldt State University students. Our staff cover and provide news to Latinx and other diverse communities on campus and in Humboldt County. We are committed to providing relevant news and expanding the representations and stories told about people of color and other marginalized groups. Our work helps create more social, political and cultural diversity in local media.

El Leñador es un periodico en español y inglés producido por estudiantes de la Universidad Estatal de Humboldt. Nuestro personal cubre y provee noticias a la comunidad Latinx y otras comunidades diversas en …

Fair + Equitable April/May 2025, International Association Of Assessing Officers

Fair + Equitable

The April/May issue of F+E looks at Orlando, the host city for the 2025 IAAO Annual Conference. In addition, the issue also includes the 2024 Year In Review for IAAO, and articles on:

• Current hot topics for library research are depreciation and big box stores
• 2025 Conference charity selected
• Erin Eades named Sr. Director of Professional Development
• Call for 2026 Board candidates
• Awards nominations information
• Assessors federal dataset resolution gets NACo support
• How accountability can bring out the best in an office
• Lincoln Institute of Land Policy releasing policy download on property values and taxes
• Property tax reform opinion piece …

Missourians’ Opinions And Behavioral Changes After The Overturning Of Roe V. Wade, Rana Jordan, Hisako Matsuo

Missouri Policy Journal

The recent overturning of Roe v. Wade and the rise in restrictive abortion laws across the United States has caused a division across all communities, including citizens, politicians, and healthcare providers. The aim of this study was to learn the opinions and behavioral changes of birthing people since the overturning of Roe. This study utilized a cross-sectional online survey to explore the opinions and behavioral changes of birthing people after the overturning of Roe. The survey instrument covered the opinions and behavioral changes of Americans regarding abortion access, birth control access, willingness to share information with healthcare provider(s), and use …

Restoring Trust: What The Missouri Supreme Court And Andragogy Can Teach The United States Supreme Court, Grant J. Shostak

Missouri Policy Journal

Confidence in the United States Supreme Court has reached an all-time low. Efforts by the Court to restore confidence, such as making a statement concerning ethics and adopting a non-binding code of conduct, seem ineffectual in restoring confidence. Andragogy, the art and science of teaching adults, may prove useful in helping to restore confidence in the Supreme Court. As the Supreme Court educates adults through its decisions, it may utilize and adapt andragogical concepts within the confines of the judicial setting to help restore confidence in its decisions and operations. The Missouri Supreme Court has implemented a number of andragogically-consistent …

Table Of Contents

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Preface, Gretchen Larsen Idsinga

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Misapplication Of Legal Standards In Fischer: Analyzing The True Intent Of 18 U.S.C. § 1512(C), Jeremiah Baltimore

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Fischer stems from the events of Jan 6, ultimately appealed to the Supreme Court. This comment critiques the decision as flawed on both textual and policy grounds.

Lobbying For Our Lives: A Comprehensive Analysis Of The Impact Of Restrictive Non-Profit Lobbying Rules On The Progression Of Climate Change Legislation, Natalia Akopian

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Lobbying is a powerful tool that allows interest groups to influence lawmakers and shape policy decisions. However, the ability to effectively lobby is not evenly distributed among stakeholders. Generally, private businesses face minimal restrictions on lobbying while tax-exempt organizations, particularly non-profits advocating for environmental policies, operate under strict federal limitations on lobbying activities and expenditures. This structural disparity has created an uneven playing field where corporate interests, such as the fossil fuel industry, wield disproportionate influence over climate policy. As a result, climate-friendly legislation often struggles to gain traction despite the public’s growing concern over environmental issues.

This note examines …

Mortgage Lending Discrimination: A Barrier In The Land Of Opportunity, Paul Campbell

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

This note discusses the problem of mortgage loan discrimination in America. In January 2021, mortgage rates in America were the lowest in history at 2.65%. Around this time, there was a high demand for housing throughout the country. Yet in 2022, 26% of Black applicants had mortgage applications denied. Mortgage loan discrimination continues to be a barrier for African American homeownership. However, this barrier can be overcome by supporting nonprofit organizations and community banks, creating a new federal agency which provides reparations and guaranteed mortgages, and passing the Fair Access to Financial Services Act.

How The United States Fails Immigrant Youth, Abigail "Abby" Reinhard Greene

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Immigrants are some of the most marginalized members of society. Immigrant youth, in particular, endure additional stresses due to their dual status as children and immigrants. Many fled their home country from persecution or entered the U.S. without a parent or legal guardian.

By May 2024, over 120 million individuals were “forcibly displaced worldwide as a result of persecution, conflict, violence or human rights violations.” In 2022, over 152,000 unaccompanied immigrant youths crossed the U.S.-Mexico border. The United States faces several challenges in supporting these immigrant youths, and it currently fails to meet those challenges. ...

This note details how …