An Essay on the New Public Defender for the 21st Century

Funding for public defender services is woefully inadequate. Ogletree offers some anecdotal advice for public defenders and those designing public defender services

The Burdens and Benefits of Race in America

Beginning with the ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence, America has promised its citizens equality. The underlying assumption implicit in such ideals is that equal treatment is to be applied regardless of the race of individual citizens. Such an ambitious goal of color-blindness, however, ignores the reality of dual- Americas-one for the majority, and one for the rest-and consequently fails in its attempt at fulfilling the promise. This Article, based on the author\u27s lecture at the 1996 Matthew 0. Tobriner Memorial Lecture, examines ways in which the problems of race have been and should be addressed in legal discourse. The benefit of race is that minorities are often in a position to see more clearly where America fails in its promise to protect the weak and the powerless. The burden of race is that the responsibility often falls on minorities to hold America to that promise, often at considerable cost to themselves. This Article provides a critical look at the benefits and burdens of race from historical, philosophical and legal perspectives and demonstrates the current problems of race by focusing on the treatment of African- Americans in the criminal justice system. In its analysis, the Article rejects the traditional liberal and conservative articulations with respect to remedying the problems of race disparity. It proposes a modified perspective that encompasses both liberal and conservative veins of thought in developing a new approach to remedying the problems of race in the civil and criminal justice systems. Problems of race implicates every member of the society regardless of his or her race. This Article concludes that the complexity of race invites the solution which involves observing the problems of race through the prism of race instead of ignoring race

The Legacy and Implications of San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez

The Supreme Court\u27s school desegregation case law has been a confusing maze of fits and starts. In 1954, a unanimous Court declared in Brown v. Board of Education that education must be made available to all on equal terms. Yet, less than 20 years later, the Court found a Texas education financing plan that allowed for significant differences in funding between school districts to be constitutional. This Article examines that decision, San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, in more detail. It also discusses the case\u27s legacy and numerous unresolved issues that still impact the Latino community today. Part II of the Article deals with the case itself, including the dissent penned by Justice Thurgood Marshall. This Part also discusses the evolving recognition of a unique Latino identity demonstrated by a comparison between Rodriguez and the earlier Ninth Circuit case of Westminster School District of Orange County v. Mendez. It further discusses the implications on the case\u27s holding of the shift from the Warren Court to the Burger Court. Part III discusses the case\u27s legacy. This includes the possibilities for future school desegregation and funding litigation suggested by the Court\u27s language and how advocates for equalization of school funding have proceeded in the forty years since Rodriguez. It also briefly deals with the current status of education in Edgewood, Texas, what has become of the Rodriguez plaintiffs, and how the Latino community has developed since the litigation concluded. This part concludes by considering the continuing problem of the disparity between public safety spending and education spending and the implications of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act for the Latino community, with a special emphasis on the Act\u27s possible impacts regarding education

The Challenge of Providing “Legal Representation” in the United States, South Africa, and China

This Article evaluates which of the models and methods employed in the United States could be effectively implemented in China and South Africa

The Legacy and Implications of San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez

The Supreme Court\u27s school desegregation case law has been a confusing maze of fits and starts. In 1954, a unanimous Court declared in Brown v. Board of Education that education must be made available to all on equal terms. Yet, less than 20 years later, the Court found a Texas education financing plan that allowed for significant differences in funding between school districts to be constitutional. This Article examines that decision, San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, in more detail. It also discusses the case\u27s legacy and numerous unresolved issues that still impact the Latino community today. Part II of the Article deals with the case itself, including the dissent penned by Justice Thurgood Marshall. This Part also discusses the evolving recognition of a unique Latino identity demonstrated by a comparison between Rodriguez and the earlier Ninth Circuit case of Westminster School District of Orange County v. Mendez. It further discusses the implications on the case\u27s holding of the shift from the Warren Court to the Burger Court. Part III discusses the case\u27s legacy. This includes the possibilities for future school desegregation and funding litigation suggested by the Court\u27s language and how advocates for equalization of school funding have proceeded in the forty years since Rodriguez. It also briefly deals with the current status of education in Edgewood, Texas, what has become of the Rodriguez plaintiffs, and how the Latino community has developed since the litigation concluded. This part concludes by considering the continuing problem of the disparity between public safety spending and education spending and the implications of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act for the Latino community, with a special emphasis on the Act\u27s possible impacts regarding education

All Deliberate Speed: Reflections on the First Half-Century of Brown vs. Board of Education

Reflections on the First Half-Century of Brown vs. Board of Educatio

America\u27s Schizophrenic Immigration Policy: Race, Class, and Reason

The historical purpose of American immigration policy was to provide a haven for those fleeing persecution and those seeking prosperity, as well as to satisfy workforce and frontier-expansion needs. However, a survey of U.S. immigration policy reveals that this historical purpose has been distorted and abandoned, if in fact it ever represented our nation\u27s goal. This essay evaluates and critiques the effect that race and politics have had on immigration policy and enforcement, and on the public opinion that shapes our immigration priorities. This essay specifically questions whether immigration laws are equitably applied, without regard to the race or ethnicity of the immigrant