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Democracy, Majoritarianism, And Racial Equality: A Response To Professor Karlan, Christopher L. Eisgruber

Vanderbilt Law Review

Only with great trepidation do I undertake to comment upon Professor Karlan's fine Article.1 Much of what I know about voting rights law I have learned from her work, and her contribution to this Symposium is characteristically erudite, detailed, and cogent. I will therefore limit myself to offering four modest observations about her argument. My central point is simple: While Professor Karlan successfully identifies several empirical questions that critics of majority- black voting districts must answer, those same questions also raise problems for defenders of majority-black districts (including Professor Karlan herself).

Professor Karlan's argument is directed against what I shall …