Wednesday, August 30, 2017

The Color of Law - Richard Rothstein Talk September 13


The New York chapter of The American Constitution Society and the New York Legal Assistance Group welcome Richard Rothstein to discuss and sign, The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America,  
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
5:30 p.m. 


New York Legal Assistance Group
7 Hanover Square 18th Floor,
New York, NY 10004

In this groundbreaking history of the modern American metropolis, Richard Rothstein explodes the myth that America's cities came to be racially divided as the result of individual prejudices, personal choices to live in same-race neighborhoods, income differences, or the actions of private institutions like banks and real estate agencies. Rather, The Color of Law uncovers a forgotten history of how racially explicit policies of federal, state, and local governments created the patterns of residential segregation that persist to this day. The Color of Law concludes that because residential segregation was created by government action in violation of the constitution, we are obligated to remedy i


Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Fordham University Statement on Charlottesville

University Statement on Charlottesville

Dear Members of the Fordham Family,
You have likely heard of the ugly events that took place in Charlottesville on Saturday. Fascism, Nazism, and Racism were literally on the march, and at this point we know of one person killed and at least 19 injured, believed to be the victims of the action of a deluded and hateful member of the racist mob that gathered in Charlottesville for a white supremacy rally. I know you join me in mourning both the woman who was killed, and the two police officers who died when their helicopter crashed that afternoon. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families, and with the people who were injured and their loved ones.
I am a historian, and I can assure you that the marchers, and almost certainly the person who drove into the crowd of peaceful demonstrators, are on the wrong side of history (I say “almost” because it is still possible, if unlikely, that the act was unintentional). I believe that rights for people of color, LGBT people, Jewish people, immigrants—and all of the would-be targets of Saturday’s marchers—will continue to expand and be protected in our country. If this incident has a silver lining, it is the swift, bipartisan rejection of the marchers’ rhetoric, beliefs, goals and actions.
As a priest, as a university president, and as a human being, my heart goes out to the intended targets and victims of the march, victims who number in the millions, and who include marginalized people everywhere, and anyone who cares about decency, compassion, and justice. Fordham University stands against everything the marchers represent—the hate, the bigotry, the profound ignorance, the casual cruelty, and the violent and vicious expression of those views. Such ideas and sentiments have no place in a civilized society, and of course are completely antithetical to both the Gospel values and Jesuit beliefs that have always guided the University.
I know many of you will not be back on campus for another ten days or so: the University will certainly support events for members of the University community who wish to come together for reflection and prayer in the wake of the events in Charlottesville.
Finally, to those who feel targeted by the Charlottesville marchers, know that the Fordham community supports you and is here for you. Though it may not seem so in moments like this, decency and compassion do prevail. We will get though this trying time together.
Sincerely,
Joseph M. McShane, S.J

Sunday, August 6, 2017

The Policies of White Resentment - The New York Times

The Policies of White Resentment - The New York Times

by Carol Anderson - Emory University  (Author of White Rage: the Unspoken Truth of our Racial Divide)

White resentment put Donald Trump in the White House. And there is every indication that it will keep him there, especially as he continues to transform that seething, irrational fear about an increasingly diverse America into policies that feed his supporters’ worst racial anxieties.
If there is one consistent thread through Mr. Trump’s political career, it is his overt connection to white resentment and white nationalism. Mr. Trump’s fixation on Barack Obama’s birth certificate gave him the white nationalist street cred that no other Republican candidate could match, and that credibility has sustained him in office — no amount of scandal or evidence of incompetence will undermine his followers’ belief that he, and he alone, could Make America White Again.
The guiding principle in Mr. Trump’s government is to turn the politics of white resentment into the policies of white rage — that calculated mechanism of executive orders, laws and agency directives that undermines and punishes minority achievement and aspiration. No wonder that, even while his White House sinks deeper into chaos, scandal and legislative mismanagement, Mr. Trump’s approval rating among whites (and only whites) has remained unnaturally high. Washington may obsess over Obamacare repeal, Russian sanctions and the debt ceiling, but Mr. Trump’s base sees something different — and, to them, inspiring.