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American Blood: Who Is Counting And For What?, Gerald Torres

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

When thinking about "who counts," I initially titled this Essay: "Who is Counting and for What?" I wanted to highlight the role that power necessarily plays in the very asking of the question. It presumes a perspective, and interrogating that perspective can only occur if the second part of the question is answered. Because race has always played a critical role in our culture from the very beginning, I wanted to explore one of the many ways it has been deployed to justify a particular expression of power. The story virtually every American learns is the story of the inevitable …