By: Liza DavisExecutive Editor, Vol. 27 In March of 2014, now-retired congressional leader Paul Ryan appeared on a radio talk show to discuss the causes of “the economic conditions…plagu[ing] much of the country.”[1] At one point, Ryan said, “We’ve got this tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and […]
racism
Implicit Bias Exposed: the Michigan Juvenile Justice System
By Lexi WungAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 I joined the Juvenile Justice Clinic as a student attorney during my fourth semester of law school. Immediately I dove into the intricacies of the juvenile justice system in Michigan, my client’s individual cases, and the realities of converting law school doctrinal classes into usable skills. Many aspects of […]
Exposing Another Ignored Rift Within the System: Anti-Asian Hate
By: Meghan PateroAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 On March 11, 2021, President Biden recognized the struggles the entire nation has grappled with because of COVID-19 by delivering his first prime time address of his presidency.[1] Appropriately, much focus was dedicated to the new COVID-19 relief package as one of the largest economic rescue packages in US […]
Exploring Mapping Inequality: Redlining Close to Home
By: Eve HastingsAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 Background Mapping Inequality is a website created through the collaboration of three teams at four universities including the University of Richmond, Virginia Tech, University of Maryland, and Johns Hopkins University.[1] I was introduced to the website through my Property professor during the Fall 2020 semester as we learned about […]
Uneven Distribution Leads to Increased Disparate Impact
By: Emma RosenAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines created a visible light at the end of the long, dark tunnel that has been the past ten months. This tunnel was even darker for those communities on which COVID-19 has had a disparate impact. COVID-19 has had a disproportionate impact – including […]
Race and Blackness in Brazil
By: Thomas DesoutterAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 Brazil is a nation of 210 million people, sixty percent of whom are Black or multiracial. Many of the country’s most celebrated cultural traditions are rooted in the practices of Brazil’s enslaved people and their descendants. The most famous Brazilian of all time, the soccer legend Pelé, is Black, […]
Executive Order Banning Anti-Discrimination Training Makes a Case for Continuing CRT Training
By Jasmine BenjaminAssociate Editor, Vol. 26 On September 22, 2020, President Trump issued an executive order entitled, “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping.”[i] The order prohibits government contractors from conducting workplace anti-bias training that is based on Critical Race Theory (CRT).[ii][iii] The executive order takes aim at the use of CRT-based anti-discrimination training […]
The Color of Blight: Michigan’s Troubled History of Urban Renewal Complicates Detroit’s Comeback
By David Bergh Associate Editor, Volume 23 Online Publications Editor, Volume 24 The governmental power of eminent domain has deep roots in the Anglo-American legal tradition. Early English law held that the power to expropriate land was inherent in the Crown’s sovereign authority.[1] As an element of the Crown’s sovereignty, this power was essentially limitless […]
Can They Do That? (Part 3): Reversing Modern-Day Redlining
By John Spangler Associate Editor, Volume 23 Production Editor, Volume 24 Detroit remains the most segregated metropolitan areas in the United States.[1] This is in part thanks to historical practices such as “redlining” where majority African-American neighborhoods were deemed “too risky” for mortgage lending.[2] Though overt discrimination in housing has been outlawed[3], the systems created […]
Resist, Revolt, Rinse, Repeat
By Cleo Hernandez Associate Editor, Volume 23 A public square, angry words, angry people, police in riot gear, torches bright against a night sky, flags, homemade signs and banners, summer heat. Some would say that this is what democracy looks like, [1] but perhaps it is the failure of democracy that brings people to the […]
