Tag Archives: African-American

From Shield to Sword: Title VI Litigation and the Remaking of Civil Rights Law in the Post-Students for Fair Admissions Landscape

By: Laura Bea In recent months, the federal government has intensified its scrutiny of university diversity initiatives, launching a wave of civil rights investigations and lawsuits that have placed higher education at the center of a national debate over race, institutional autonomy, and federal funding. In its latest attempt to challenge diversity, equality, and inclusion […]

Justice without Sight? Evaluating California’s New Race-Blind Charging Law

       By: Bella Tambornino      California’s Race-Blind Charging Act promises a bold experiment in criminal justice reform: a prosecutorial process free from racial bias. Enacted in September 2022 through Assembly Bill 2778 (“AB 2778”), the law requires prosecutors to make charging decisions “based on information, from which all means of identifying the race of the suspect, […]

A Fatal Inconsistency: The Heavy Burden of Showing Purposeful Discrimination

by: Christina Robinson This blog post attempts to shed light on a fatal inconsistency in criminal law. Under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, Americans have the right to be free from purposeful discrimination based on race. Yet it is easier for defendants to succeed in making an Equal Protection claim in the context of […]

Kaepernick Rolling Out of the Constitutional Pocket: NFL’s Restriction of Players’ First Amendment Rights

by: Nicolas Chavez On August 26, 2016, NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick made headlines for sitting during the national anthem prior to his team’s third preseason game.[1] Kaepernick explained the purpose of his silent protest is to use his status as a professional athlete to bring light to the prevalence of institutionalized oppression of people of […]