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A Legal Conception Of Racism (Group Subordination) As Asymmetrical Market Imperfections, Andre L. Smith

Andre L. Smith

To the extent government justifiably interferes in the marketplace to address market failures, it is also justified in addressing imperfections in the market that are asymmetric with respect to race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. In Bob Jones University v. United States, 461 US 574 (1983), a little known federal income tax case, the Supreme Court declared that federal statutes could not be construed in ways that support racial discrimination. However, a judge, even one who might interpret the Court’s holding expansively, may still lack the confidence to discuss the positive and negative effects a statute might have on racial (in)equality. …