“What, like it’s hard?”: The Systemic Barriers to Law School Applications
Upon fictional character Elle Woods’s acceptance to Harvard law, she asks “What, like it’s hard?” Although the girl-boss icon from the 2001 film Legally Blonde is an inspiration for many, the law school application process is far from easy and laden with financial barriers. The admissions process makes it incredibly difficult for low-income students—who are […]
The Case for Abolishing the Death Penalty
This article describes executions, including botched ones.
Go Away, NRA!
On January 15, the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) filed for Chapter Eleven bankruptcy, which usually signifies an intention to reorganize. The NRA wishes to reincorporate in Texas to evade litigation from local authorities, a move New York Attorney General Letitia James claims indicates the NRA’s failing financial strength. It is as if it […]
Move on From Implicit Bias
In the bestseller White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, Robin DiAngelo writes, “Prejudice always manifests itself in action because the way I see the world drives my actions in the world. Everyone has prejudice, and everyone discriminates.” She later clarifies that White supremacist messages “circulate 24-7 and have […]
Invisible Man and the Twenty-First Century Black Bildungsroman
Last summer, as I processed the news of the murder of George Floyd, I felt like I could keep it together. I was eighteen; the past decade saw numerous police killings that drew national attention. I had no illusions about any of this. Yet something felt different. It might have been the sheer barbarity, the […]
Medical Violence, Racism, and a Different Kind of Vaccine Skepticism
This article discusses medical abuse in detail.
Machine Learning Misses the Mark on Equality
Robert Williams had just pulled into his Farmington Hills driveway after another long day’s work, relieved to finally spend time with his wife and two daughters. Nothing seemed obviously amiss. But something was very wrong. A police car waiting down the street inched forward, trapping Williams against his own house. Two officers approached, cuffing him […]
Sears and Streetcars: Color-Blind Capitalism at Work
History shows that capitalism is color-blind. Though not even three hundred years old, free-market capitalism has revolutionized the world. Its positive influence on general economic prosperity is undeniable; most successful countries have adopted some form of free market. However, a growing body of scholars criticize capitalism for its supposed corruption by historical inequities, most notably […]
The Blackface Spectrum
What race should I be today? This is what YouTuber, model, and makeup mogul Nikita Dragun “jokingly” asked her Twitter followers in response to her history of racial insensitivity. She has repeatedly tried to appear Black—one day her skin is pale, the next it’s dark. She has also worn box braids, twists, cornrows, and durags […]
The Ugly Side of Fashion: How the Industry Harms People of Color
Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour and former editor-at-large André Leon Talley. In December 2018, luxury fashion brand Prada released a collection of “fantasy charms” that critics say were inspired by blackface. The products, which Prada claimed were “imaginary creatures,” resemble black monkeys with bright red lips—seemingly a callback to nineteenth-century minstrel shows. Following immediate social media […]