Law and Race Commons^™

What's In A Name? Policing, Juliet., Shanée Brown

Scholarly Works

Child welfare" and "child protection" are misnomers. These terms do not accurately depict the investigatory nature of the system purported to help families, or at the very least, save endangered children. Contrary to public opinion, the "child welfare system" comprises of state actors who police parents and children. It is the naming of this system that convinces the public that these agencies are excised from the category of law enforcement, persuading many that the agencies engage in social work and not police work. Calling the system what it really is-family policing-is a step toward achieving justice for families adversely impacted …

Gender, Race, And Interruptions At Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings, Lori A. Ringhand, Christina L. Boyd, Paul M. Collins, Jr.

Scholarly Works

In this research letter, we examine whether gender and racial bias affect interruption rates at one of the most visible events in American politics: US Supreme Court confirmation hearings. Using original data from 1939 to 2022, we find that male and white participants are more likely to interrupt women and person of color speakers, respectively, relative to male and white speakers. This finding holds for both senators and nominees as interrupters. Our results provide evidence that biased interruptive behavior occurs in even the most public and salient of political settings and that it can be mitigated (or intensified) by shared …

Redefining The Scope Of Anti-Discrimination Law: Illuminating Colorism As A Basis For Discrimination Claims By Black Entertainers, Tolulope Odunsi-Nelson

Faculty Scholarship

This Article critically examines the pervasive issue of colorism within the entertainment industry and its profound impact on dark-skinned Black entertainers. Anti-Black colorism is discrimination against Black people with darker skin tones and Afrocentric features (i.e. darker eye color, kinkier hair, broader nose, fuller lips). Tracing the historical roots of colorism from the colonial era to contemporary times, the Article emphasizes how societal preferences for Eurocentric features and anti-Black racism have created and perpetuated a hierarchy that disadvantages darker-skinned individuals. It analyzes the underrepresentation and pay disparities faced by dark-skinned Black actors and actresses. It details the industry’s preference for …

Ten Years And Ten Miles: Reflecting On "Ferguson", Benjamin Levin

Scholarship@WashULaw

This Essay serves as the introduction to a symposium on the ten-year anniversary of Michael Brown's death in Ferguson, Missouri and the subsequent protests and uprisings across the country. The authors look back on the past decade—their own experiences and our experiences as a nation—to consider the impacts of the Ferguson uprisings and the landscape of criminal justice and racial justice advocacy, scholarship, and teaching today. In this Essay, I provide a brief introduction to the Volume and essays that follow. In Part I, I situate the Ferguson uprisings in the broader context of activism responsive to racial injustice in …

Racial Disparities In Crime-Based Removal Proceedings, Emily Ryo, Ian Peacock, Weston Ley, Christopher Levesque

Faculty Scholarship

Whether and to what extent racial minorities experience harsher treatment or face worse outcomes in court are questions of fundamental importance for any justice system. Questions of racial inequality are especially salient in the context of removal proceedings that are triggered by immigrants’ criminal history. Many individuals in crime-based removal proceedings are immigrants of color who face a host of legal disadvantages that are tantamount to double penalties for the same crime for which they have already been punished through the criminal justice system. This Article offers, for the first time, systematic empirical analyses of crime-based removal proceedings decided between …

Reevaluating Felon-In-Possession Laws After Bruen And The War On Drugs, Laura Ginsberg Abelson

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

The legal landscape surrounding firearm possession is evolving rapidly. In 2022, the Supreme Court accelerated its expansion of the individual right to bear arms under the Second Amendment in New York Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen. Since Bruen, courts around the country have struck down nearly all types of firearm regulations, with a notable exception: felon-in-possession laws. This Article examines the implications of a legal landscape where those who have prior felony convictions, and especially prior drug convictions, are punished harshly for the same behavior—possession of a firearm—that is constitutionally protected for nearly everyone else. I argue …

Yellowstone National Park's Record Of Decision On Bison Management, Lila Bennett

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Bison herds once roamed the American Plains by the millions and were a staple in the lives of Native Americans. By the late 1800’s, bison were nearly extinct due to the westward expansion of European settlers and over hunting. Now, there is a population of merely 30,000 wild bison in North America. Although bison no longer face threats of immediate extinction, wild herds face stark realities of disease, habitat loss, and genetic degradation.

Schutter V. State Board Of Land Commissioners, Gillian P. Ellison

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In Schutter v. State Board of Land Commissioners, the Montana Supreme Court addressed the State’s fiduciary obligation in the context of water rights appurtenant to school trust lands. Central to the Court’s holding was the State’s fiduciary duty in managing lands held in trust for the benefit of the State. By upholding the State’s claim to partial ownership of a water right originating on private land, the Schutter Court underscored the tension between private property rights and the State's trust fiduciary duties.

Flathead-Lolo-Bitterroot Citizen Task Force V. Montana, Sarah J. Leopard

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Flathead-Lolo-Bitterroot Citizen Task Force v. Montana evaluates the efficacy of the proposed 2024 gray wolf floating season in preventing harm to grizzly bears, a protected species in Montana. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the implementation of a “serious questions” test for preliminary injunctions that is specific to Endangered Species Act cases. The Court agreed with the district court’s grant of a preliminary injunction that limited the 2024 floating season temporally, but modified the injunction in two respects, thereby narrowing its application. The Court’s holding signifies the continuation of a preliminary injunction standard that values protections for …

Colliding Doctrines: How Sffa V. Harvard Impacts Public University Officials' Legal Protections, Christo Fosse

University of Cincinnati Law Review

No abstract provided.

Corner Post V. Board Of Governors Of Federal Reserve System, Alexis Karbowicz

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Corner Post v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System resolved a circuit split on when claims against the federal government “accrue” under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2401(a). The Supreme Court clarified whether plaintiffs must file challenges within six years of a regulation’s enactment or may wait until they are directly affected by an agency action, even if that occurs years later. Examining the case’s factual and procedural background provides insight into the relevant regulatory context. The Court’s analysis offers a detailed interpretation of statutory language and establishes principles of claim accrual, alongside the policy considerations of regulatory finality and …

The Biopiracy Of Traditional Knowledge In United States Patent Law, Hannah Green

Public Land & Resources Law Review

The United States intellectual property (“IP”) system is deeply intertwined with our country’s history and constitution. t is foundational in favoring young American inventors. George Washington signed the first patent act in 1790 in hopes of promoting the innovation and progress of science and useful arts. Yet, our patent system was also built around the Western tradition of individualism and competition, which failed to recognize the communal nature and traditional knowledge of tribal communities. This disparity allows the biopiracy of traditional knowledge to be lawful. This comment will explore the harmful toll that United States patent law has taken on …

Batson Challenges In Federal, Kansas, And Missouri Courts, Matt Champagne

Law Student Works

In Batson v. Kentucky, 474 U.S. 79 (1986), the Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) ruled generally that the use of peremptory strikes to disqualify potential jurors based solely on their race violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Specifically, the Court held that the use of peremptory strikes by the prosecution to exclude all four Black potential jurors from a jury pool, thus seating an all-white petit jury, on no other grounds besides the perspective jurors’ race violated a Black man’s right to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court reasoned that the exclusion of …

How White Supremacy Travels Through Time: Anti-Literacy Laws, Dei Bans, And The Issue Of Black Self-Determination In Public Health., Nicole V. Ford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation used a qualitative policy content analysis (PCA) of historical anti-literacy laws and modern DEI bans to answer two research questions: What is the connection between anti-literacy laws and DEI bans? How do anti-literacy laws and DEI bans create an environment that maintains white supremacy? A PCA exercise informed the analysis of historical anti-literacy laws in South Carolina (1834), Georgia (1829), North Carolina (1830), Louisiana (1830), Virginia (1831), and Alabama (1833) and modern DEI bans in Texas (2023), Alabama (2024), and Florida (2023) to find the connection between the laws. Findings from this dissertation illustrate how white supremacy operates …

Developing A Professional Identity: Lessons For Women, Bipoc, And First-Generation Law Students From The Canaries In The Coalmines, Christine M. Venter

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

This Article explores the concept of professional identity formation in the law, particularly as it pertains to women and lawyers of color. The topic of professional identity formation is an understudied area in legal education, despite the ABA’s new Standard 303(b)(3), which requires law schools to provide substantial opportunities for the development of professional identity. In the legal field, professional identity is often conflated with professionalism, which leads to confusion about how law schools should best prepare their students for their professional lives, and fails to fully equip students to join the profession.

Studies from other professions have shown that …

Discrimination In Contractual Performance: Theory, Evidence, And Preliminary Policy Prescriptions, Meirav Furth-Matzkin

Washington Law Review

This Article examines the often-overlooked practice of “selective performance” of standard form consumer contracts—where sellers permit employees to exercise discretion by waiving or modifying contractual terms to maintain customer satisfaction. While such flexibility can benefit consumers, it raises serious concerns about discrimination. Through both theoretical analysis and empirical evidence, this Article demonstrates that discretionary performance can disproportionately favor certain consumer groups, particularly along racial and gender lines, leading to biased and inequitable outcomes. Drawing on examples from diverse sectors, including retail, insurance, and mortgage services, the Article highlights how marginalized communities, especially Black consumers, frequently face harsher treatment and greater …

Rwu Law Alumni Newsletter December 2024, Roger Williams University School Of Law, Pbn Connect, Edward Fitzpatrick, Danna Lorch

RWU Law

No abstract provided.

Roger Williams University 2024 President's Report: A Message From President Miaoulis, Roger Williams University

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Colonizing By Contract, Emmanuel H. Arnaud

Articles

Since 1898, Puerto Rico has been a territory of the United States, meaning that Congress wields plenary power over the Island. Although scholars have highlighted the history and some modern manifestations of this power, conversations about how plenary power affects the territories have largely ignored constitutional criminal procedure.

This Article is the first to center the territory’s criminal legal system within the broader debate over the exercise of plenary power. In doing so, it fills significant gaps in the constitutional and criminal law literature on the territories by uncovering how the federal government’s plenary power affects local criminal adjudication. This …

Carceral Apartheid: Centering State Responsibility For The Racial Order, Ion Meyn

Cardozo Law Review

Racial harms are often attributed to private ordering. But the power of White communities to subordinate communities of color is not a constellation of private acts independent of state violence. When scrutinized, acts of racial exclusion, segregation, and violence persist to the extent they are aligned with the political order and backed by the state’s violent guarantee. The knowledge that any resistance to these acts will be met with state retribution bristles in the background.

There are different ways in which state violence produces and reproduces the racial order: (1) direct violence; (2) a violent guarantee backing communal acts of …