Highbrow Magazine - ACLU https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/aclu en Who Is Legally Eligible to Defend the Voting Rights Act? https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24197-who-legally-eligible-defend-voting-rights-act <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Mon, 11/27/2023 - 13:50</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1vote_depositphotos.jpg?itok=OEdKf2cD"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1vote_depositphotos.jpg?itok=OEdKf2cD" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>A federal appeals court in Arkansas ruled on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023, that only the federal government – not private citizens or civil rights groups – could sue to enforce the 1965 </em><a href="https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/voting-rights-act" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Voting Rights Act</em></a><em>.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>This decision will likely be appealed to the Supreme Court – but if it stands, it could gut individual people’s and civil rights groups’ legal right to fight racial discrimination in voting.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>The Conversation spoke with Anthony Michael Kreis, a scholar of constitutional law, democracy and civil rights, to better understand the significance of this court ruling.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>What is most important for people to understand about this court decision?</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There are currently two ways to safeguard the Voting Rights Act and try to enforce it in court. One is through the federal government and the Department of Justice. The other is private groups, often civil rights organizations, that try to enforce the Voting Rights Act when there is a violation and people are not being given equal opportunity and the ability to vote.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I believe it is important that groups like the American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, can go to court and litigate voting rights questions. Part of the reason is that the Department of Justice is a government office with limited resources and a finite capacity to assess all of the different jurisdictions where voting takes place. It also requires the enthusiastic support of Justice Department leaders – and this cannot be guaranteed from administration to administration.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">These private groups have a broader reach in terms of being able to document what is happening locally and at the state level – and whether people’s voting rights are possibly being violated.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">A ruling that private groups can no longer file lawsuits related to the Voting Rights Act removes key voting rights protectors from their roles – primarily of stopping discriminatory rules or legislation that either deprive people of their right to vote or dilute the full force of their vote.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2statueofliberty_pixabay.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>How often do private groups file lawsuits to enforce the Voting Rights Act?</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The NAACP or the ACLU regularly file these lawsuits. Sometimes there have been multiple private groups <a href="https://www.naacpldf.org/naacp-publications/ldf-blog/important-facts-about-ldfs-lawsuit-challenging-georgias-voter-suppression-bill/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">filing lawsuits</a> at the same time. This happened in 2021, when a new election law in Georgia made it harder for some people to vote by limiting access to drop boxes and making it also more challenging to get an absentee ballot mailed. This law is still under litigation.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The NAACP has also brought lawsuits against voting rights questions in Alabama, like whether people should have to present a photo ID in order to vote. Generally, these lawsuits have had a great deal of success at <a href="https://naacp.org/articles/naacp-commends-supreme-court-allowing-new-alabama-congressional-map" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">protecting people’s right to vote</a>, especially the rights of Black people and other minorities.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It is because they have been so successful that some conservative people who would prefer to limit voting rights in a democracy, rather than expand them, have gone after organizations’ ability to file these lawsuits.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2vote_lbj_and_mlk.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>How has the Voting Rights Act been interpreted so far?</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Over the years, numerous courts, including the 5th, 6th and 11th circuits, have taken up this issue. These courts have determined that you cannot plausibly read the Voting Rights Act in its totality and not see there is a clear, private right of action for groups like the ACLU to go to court.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There is a reason why this issue of private groups filing voting rights lawsuits has kind of become a new fad. In a <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2020/19-1257" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">Supreme Court case in 2021</a>, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas both raised this question of whether this should be allowed.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Now, <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/eighth-circuit-ruling-limits-enforcement-of-voting-rights-act/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline">the 8th Circuit Court has taken that cue</a> and ruled that nongovernmental groups do not have the right, under the Voting Rights Act, to sue states for voting rights violations. The reasoning is that Congress never explicitly provided this right in the act’s text.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But the Supreme Court has informally recognized for decades that Congress recognizes the right of private groups to take action. And while Congress has amended the Voting Rights Act through the years, it has never tried to curtail private lawsuits. This confirms the long-understood premise that Congress empowers people and groups other than the federal government to bring voting rights litigation under the 1965 law.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/1supremecourt_depositphotos.jpg" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>How does this ruling shift the legal landscape on this issue?</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Most of the appellate courts that have addressed this issue head-on have easily batted away arguments about private groups not being able to file lawsuits, because they have found them to be so implausible that they are not worth their time to analyze in a deep and serious way.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I think this ruling is part of a systemic attack against voting rights in the U.S. at an especially precarious time for American democracy’s health. This court ruling will likely go to the Supreme Court, but if the Supreme Court affirms the decision, only the Department of Justice could enforce voting laws in a meaningful way. That is exceptionally dangerous and challenges the principle that all eligible voters get to have their voices heard in a democracy.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>This article was originally published in </strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/who-can-defend-voting-rights-an-appeals-court-ruling-sharply-limiting-lawsuits-looks-likely-to-head-to-the-supreme-court-218296" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><strong>the Conversation</strong></a><strong>. It’s republished here with permission under a Creative Commons license.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong><em>Anthony Michael Kreis is an Assistant Professor of Law at Georgia State University.</em></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Photo Credits:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--</em><a href="https://depositphotos.com/stock-photography.html" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Depositphotos.com</em></a></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--</em><a href="https://pixabay.com/illustrations/statue-of-liberty-new-york-1826336/" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Pixabay</em></a><em> (Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--</em><a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lyndon_Johnson_and_Martin_Luther_King,_Jr._-_Voting_Rights_Act.jpg" style="color:#0563c1; text-decoration:underline"><em>Wikipedia.org</em></a><em> (Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voting-rights-act" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Voting Rights Act</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voting-rights" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">voting rights</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/elections" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">elections</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/naacp" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">NAACP</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/aclu" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ACLU</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voters-rights-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">voters&#039; rights</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/voting-0" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">voting</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Anthony Michael Kreis</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Mon, 27 Nov 2023 18:50:29 +0000 tara 12809 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/24197-who-legally-eligible-defend-voting-rights-act#comments Speaking With an Accent Can Make You Feel Truly Foreign https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/23920-speaking-accent-can-make-you-feel-truly-foreign <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Sun, 04/23/2023 - 15:49</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1accents.jpg?itok=DhIifbLX"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1accents.jpg?itok=DhIifbLX" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Opinion:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I didn’t want anyone to hear my foreign accent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But being embarrassed to speak boomeranged when I was riding a bus in Costa Rica where I had come from the U.S. to learn Spanish. The usual bus-riding custom in this country was to shout out “parada,” and maybe add “por favor,” meaning to please ask the bus driver to stop.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">The bus was standing-room only. It approached where I was supposed to get off. I kept quiet, feeling self-conscious. I didn’t want the crowd to listen to how I butchered the country’s native language for fear of sounding like a foreigner.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/2accents.jpg" style="height:407px; width:650px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I rode on for another minute. Finally, I made my way up front and hand-signaled to the driver to let me off. It was way past my stop, and it seemed I was in the middle of nowhere. He opened the door. I tumbled down the steep steps into a drainage ditch and became saturated in all sorts of unmentionable goo that fills such a garden spot.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">It took a while to hitchhike back to where I was staying with a native Costa Rican family during my two weeks in the country. I’m still trying to forget the family’s unsuccessful attempt to refrain from laughing at the unholy soggy mess that stood before them at the front door. In contrast, I’ll always remember how this down-to-earth lesson I should have learned about not speaking up was manifested in how I ended up in a ditch, in more ways than one.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">This incident makes me well understand the reluctance and fear of non-natives in this country to even try to speak English.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/3accents.jpg" style="height:435px; width:652px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Some time ago, I was teaching an English as a Second Language class, and some of my students shied away from speaking at all. They most likely believed their heavy foreign accents would unjustly subject them to ridicule and make them seem unintelligent. They might have feared their classmates would have the audacity to laugh at them even as some of those students also kept silent when it was their turn to speak.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">There was another reason I must consider this reticence to speak heavily accented English in public. It might mark them as a foreigner, and that in the current nativist, anti-immigrant wave sweeping parts of this country, somebody with a racially-motivated animus against non-natives might go so far as to report them to immigration authorities. It’s better to stay silent.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Writing in the <em>New York Times</em>, Ilan Stavans, a professor of European Studies, Spanish, Latinx and Latin American Studies at Amherst College, made this same point about immigrants keeping silent. Speaking English, he said in his article, <em><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/21/opinion/english-immigrants-language.html" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Don’t Lose Your Accent!</a></em> “hasn’t always been a choice for some” and “that immigrants are sometimes made to feel that they have to suppress their language in order to belong. Throughout history, children have been physically disciplined or discriminated against for speaking their native language.” </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/4accents.jpg" style="height:284px; width:650px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Yet as a Mexican immigrant himself, Stavans wrote that “I find joy in hearing accents, particularly those by people who have mastered American English yet retain a beautiful trace of their native tongue.”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">I see on a daily basis the hesitation for foreign-born people to talk in English in my own apartment building. The house cleaners who work here usually don’t attempt to speak with the residents, except possibly to utter a shy simple hello or thank you. I attribute that partly to either not knowing enough English to hold even a short conversation, and more likely embarrassment about their accents.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">But the tables can be turned because, not to sound patronizing, I offer the crude Spanish I know to exchange a few words with the cleaning people in their language -- such as mentioning the weather or “how you doing?”</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Now that the cleaning people hear me speaking a smidgen of pidgin Spanish, they sometimes try to communicate with me, and then I’m the one reluctant to start a conversation in Spanish because they might realize how bad my accent is. Or worse, because of my deficient grasp of their language, I really don’t understand what they’re saying to me at all.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Speaking of accents, I offer praise to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky for his address to the U.S. Congress last December about the war in his country. The native Russian speaker Zelensky (Ukrainian is his second language) had the courage to deliver his speech in English with his heavy accent. He apparently didn’t feel self-conscious that maybe his pronunciation wouldn’t be understood or misunderstood.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/5accents.jpg" style="height:440px; width:656px" typeof="foaf:Image" /></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Which leads me to the conclusion about the ongoing effort by some legislators in Congress to make English the official U.S. language. The latest attempt is a <a href="https://good.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-good-introduces-english-language-unity-act" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">bill</a> introduced on February 14 by Congressman Bob Good of Virginia to declare English the official language of the United States. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"> All I can say about the bill by Good is that it’s bad. Legislators like him should </span></span><span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif"><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">consider</span></span> </span></span><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">that</span></span><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"> such a law would be an exclusionary measure, marginalizing those who don’t speak the language well and not what the U.S. is supposed to be about in welcoming newcomers to our shores. Of course, perhaps exclusion and marginalizing are what these proponents actually want.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">Sure, everyone who lives here should learn to speak English as a means to assimilate into the social fabric of this country. But as the <a href="https://www.aclu.org/news/free-speech/english-first-language" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">American Civil Liberties Union</a> argues, a national language law would be unconstitutional and a violation of an individual’s right to due process. </span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">On a personal level, I wonder how people I encounter with limited English-speaking skills would react if English was made the official language. If nothing else, such an act might make them feel “unofficial” and discourage them from even trying to fit in here -- that it’s better to follow the old adage that discretion is the better part of valor.</span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif">If that is the America of the future, I might get so upset to the point that it would leave me utterly speechless.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Author Bio:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em><strong>Eric Green, a </strong></em><strong>Highbrow Magazine</strong><em><strong> contributor, is a former newspaper reporter, U.S. congressional press aide, English-as-a-second-language teacher, and now a freelance writer in the Washington D.C. area. His articles have appeared in various newspapers and websites, including the </strong></em><strong>Washington Post</strong><em><strong> and </strong></em><strong>Baltimore Sun.</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><strong>Image Sources:</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Geralt (<a href="https://pixabay.com/illustrations/feedback-report-back-business-people-2990424/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Pixabay</a>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Geralt (<a href="https://pixabay.com/illustrations/man-woman-question-mark-problems-2814937/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Pixabay</a>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Prohispano (<a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/happy-dance-costa-rica-honduras-2723487/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Pixabay</a>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Fauxels (<a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing-gray-dress-shirt-and-blue-jeans-3184317/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Pexels</a>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:18px"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><em>--Isaac Taylor (<a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/grayscale-photo-of-man-sweeping-driveway-2305091/" style="color:blue; text-decoration:underline">Pexels</a>, Creative Commons)</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/accents" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">accents</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/foreign-accents" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">foreign accents</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/speaking-accent" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">speaking with an accent</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/english-language" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">English language</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/foreigners" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">foreigners</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/immigrants" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">immigrants</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/speaking-english" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">speaking english</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/spanish-language" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">spanish language</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/aclu" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ACLU</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Eric Green</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">In Slider</div></div></div> Sun, 23 Apr 2023 19:49:08 +0000 tara 11828 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/23920-speaking-accent-can-make-you-feel-truly-foreign#comments The Enduring Legacy of Clarence Darrow https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/7701-enduring-legacy-clarence-darrow <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Sun, 06/11/2017 - 14:51</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1darrow.jpg?itok=lGpC_165"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/1darrow.jpg?itok=lGpC_165" width="480" height="320" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p> </p> <p>With only a meager political career, a jury bribing scandal that almost destroyed his legal career (and life), and a “trial of the century” every few years in recent memory, it is by no means obvious that Clarence Darrow should occupy a place in the pantheon of American historical figures. Few lawyers have achieved Darrow's fame, especially not while in the second act of their career, as most of Darrow's most well-known cases were fought when he was in his 60s.</p> <p> </p> <p>The arc of Clarence Darrow's life could easily be made into a movie, although, of his greatest trials, each on its own is replete with the drama and moral arc we might expect from Hollywood at its best. In fact, there have even been attempts to adapt Darrow's greatest trials for the stage, efforts which, doubtless, would have made this often fame-seeking lawyer happy. Be it Kevin Spacey's one-man show, <em>Darrow</em>, or <em>Inherit the Wind</em>, or even <em>Malice Aforethought</em>, Arthur Beer's theatrical adaptation of the Sweet trials, Darrow's most notable trials have provided fodder for high drama. Perhaps the thought would've made the lawyer, who had a taste in literature and poetry, quite happy.</p> <p> </p> <p>It's possible to say that the action in <em>The State of Tennessee vs. John Thomas Scopes </em>(1925) didn't start with the passage of the Butler Act but, instead, with the first meeting between Darrow and William Jennings Bryan at the 1896 Democratic presidential campaign. Darrow had blamed Bryan for the party's loss, telling him to “quit this village religious stuff” and “You're the leader of a party before you are ready and a leader should lead with thought.” Strong words from a man who, according to some reports, had once been impressed with Bryan's “Cross of Gold” speech.</p> <p> </p> <p>A less personal view would see the key acts in the conflict begin much later. First, when John Washington Butler sponsored a bill forbidding “any teacher in any of the Universities, Normals and all other public schools of the state which are supported in whole or in part by the public school funds of the State, to teach any theory that denies the Story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals.” Rather than sit idly by and let the nation be swallowed in a then rising tide of religious fundamentalism, the nascent American Civil Liberties Union decided to challenge the case, offering to pay the fine and any legal fees for anyone bold enough to challenge the law.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/2darrow.jpg" style="height:352px; width:625px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>When some Dayton, Tennessee hucksters saw the marketing value for their town, they leapt on the offer, inviting the local science teacher John T. Scopes to immortality. While Darrow initially saw the case as a potential circus and thought to avoid it, as did the ACLU, which originally planned to hire former Supreme Court Justice and presidential candidate Charles Evans Hughes, he jumped in after the entry of Bryan and the stage was set for what would be a titanic showdown.</p> <p> </p> <p>In the opening arguments, Darrow keenly attacked the indictment of Scopes for being too vague. While he also raised issues about freedom of religion (or from religion) and the place of science in the schools, focus on the indictment shows Darrow was approaching the legal issues as well as the sociopolitical ones: “A man is held to answer for a specific thing and he must be told what that specific thing is before he gets into court.” Although the trial was set to be a circus, with “You Can't Make a Monkey out of Me” merchandise, an army of tent preachers, and a big sign stating “Read Your Bible,” Darrow didn't plan on being the clown.</p> <p> </p> <p>Much in the trial would seem unusual. A large portion of the trial took place with the jury out of the courtroom, while the prosecution and the defense argued over the admissibility of expert witnesses for the defense. After the experts' testimony was ruled against, Clarence Darrow almost earned himself a ruling of contempt of court. The court recessed for a weekend, the press went home, and the trial's finish seemed hopeless; when court was back in session, Darrow quickly found his way back into Judge Raulston's good graces and the defense called one of the prosecuting attorneys, William Jennings Bryan, to the stand. The examination is an item of trial law legend. It destroyed the political career of Bryan, and, due to his death shortly after, the newspapers also said it destroyed his life. It's well worth reading in its own right, and as you do, imagine a courtroom audience cheering as Bryan knows he's floundering with a broader audience. While the examination was purged from the court record, the record survives.</p> <p> </p> <p>Few trials have so captured the American imagination as Scopes did. But a trial as important to Darrow, that he actually won, is the murder trial of a black doctor, Ossian Sweet. In 1925, Ossian Sweet and his wife moved into a white neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. Through a range of unofficial and semi-official means, like conditions of purchase to only sell a house to a white family to maintain the racial makeup of a neighborhood, 1920s Detroit was a segregated city — even to a man who'd studied under the most advanced physicians in his field like Dr. Sweet.</p> <p> </p> <p>When Dr. Sweet moved into his new home on Garland Avenue, he had already understood that the task in front of him would be quite difficult. Having grown up in Florida and having seen a man burnt to death by a lynch mob, he'd seen real prejudice; he knew intimately the mindset he was to be confronting by choosing to move into a white neighborhood. More pertinently, in the summer of 1925, another black physician, Dr. Alexander Turner, was forcibly removed from a recently purchased home in a white neighborhood: a mob of his potential neighbors swarmed his house, crashed through the door, and under threat of violence compelled Dr. Turner to sign over his house to a local “improvement” association. Regardless, pressed on by his wife and with hopes of providing a better home for their newborn child, the Ossian Sweet and his wife signed a nearly usurious contract to buy 2905 Garland Avenue.</p> <p> </p> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/3darrow.jpg" style="height:435px; width:580px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>In order to help with moving in and to keep his newly purchased house from being invaded, Dr. Sweet asked for the insurance company to send an employee and invited a few friends and relatives, including his two brothers, Otis, a dentist, and Henry, a college student. On their first night in the house, the Sweets experienced a pretty normal moving in, except at dusk when their neighbors gathered on their lawn. Rocks were thrown alongside vague promises to “get” the inhabitants. On the second night, the group was back. This time, they harassed Henry and his college friend as they made their way to the house. And, as rocks were being thrown at the house, a panicked Henry Sweet fired shots into the crowd, leaving one dead and another wounded.</p> <p> </p> <p>Immediately, police closed in on the house, cordoning off the newly minted crime scene and arresting eleven of the house's inhabitants. As they left the house, the police van was almost tipped by the now enraged mob. As if to make matters worse, at the police station Henry Sweet confessed to the shooting.</p> <p> </p> <p>Although Clarence Darrow preparing for the appeal of the Scopes Trial, he took the case along with one of his co counsels from Scopes, Arthur Garfield Hays. On the other side was Wayne County Prosecutor Robert Toms, and the judge was a young Frank Murphy.</p> <p> </p> <p>Toms took a different strategy to other prosecutors in Darrow's past. Rather than giving Clarence Darrow motivation through mutual dislike, Toms was almost obsequiously polite to a man who, at this point, was just about a legend — albeit not for his legal reasoning but his command of jurors emotions.</p> <p> </p> <p>Across the courtroom, Hays and Darrow had a different plan. They decided to focus on the definition of a mob, as that would enable them to recast the shooting as a defensive action. Once the jury was selected, the trial was on. Despite numerous efforts to say that only a handful of neighbors had gathered, the defense was able to cross-examine the truth out of Detroit's finest. Combined with efforts to highlight the ignorance and bigotry of the neighbors, in which a particular testimony over the proper pronunciation of Goethe stands out, one sees a mastery of witness handling.</p> <p> </p> <p>Though the trial ended in a hung jury, Ossian Sweet was let off. He was put on trial a second time as the sole defendant. This time, Arthur Garfield Hays was called away on other business. Rather than try the case alone, Clarence Darrow called upon another attorney, one with a winning streak against Robert Toms. Thomas Chawke's name may not be listed high in the historical record, mainly because he had acquired a reputation as being a mob lawyer, but as far as courtroom skill went he had it in abundance. Hiring top flight attorneys wasn't alien to Darrow: in his own jury bribing trials in 1912, Clarence Darrow hired Earl Rogers, a fiery attorney who'd later serve as the basis for Erle Stanley Gardner's Perry Mason.</p> <p> </p> <p><br /> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/4darrow.jpg" style="height:625px; width:434px" /></p> <p> </p> <p>Chawke may have billed for more than Darrow, but he soon made up for it. Through his firm's investigation of potential jurors, three Klansmen were rooted out of the talesmen. While Chawke's reputation hung over the defense, it was no albatross. The second trial, for all its fireworks, ended in a verdict of not guilty.</p> <p> </p> <p>The Sweet trials are perhaps a bit less known because of their result. Darrow did keep the Sweets from additional prison time; he also saved them from the gallows. Robert Toms would continue his career as a prosecutor, eventually fighting cases at the Nuremburg Trials; Frank Murphy would continue in politics, eventually making his way to the Supreme Court to pen a strong dissent in <em>Korematsu vs. The United States </em>(1942); and Thomas Chawke fought perhaps his most idealistic case. As far as the rest goes, though, Darrow's next cases are seen as disappointments. Which leaves us to the defendants themselves.</p> <p> </p> <p>Gladys Sweet and Ossian's daughter both die of tuberculosis, likely contracted by Gladys while she was held in anticipation of the trial. Henry Sweet also dies of tuberculosis. Ossian Sweet kills himself in 1960 in the Garland Street house. Despite the best efforts of the best defense team money could assemble, Ossian Sweet was lynched over the course of years in a process which could have been described as a punishment.</p> <p> </p> <p>Inside and outside of the courtroom, Clarence Darrow did the best he could to turn the America of his age into a more compassionate society. His victories — and some, like Scopes after it was quashed in the Tennessee Supreme Court, are moral victories — for science, racial equity, and civil liberties, still capture the imagination of our time and are freighted with cultural significance. While he always sought to be a novelist, his devotion to his practice made him something more than a literary talent: a larger-than-life character, as Lincoln Steffens would put it, the “attorney for the damned;” in other words, a folk hero who didn't just take cases for money and fame but their ability to show a way forward.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong><em>Adam Gravano is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine.</strong></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>For Highbrow Magazine</strong></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/clarence-darrow" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">clarence darrow</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/john-evans-hughes" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">john evans hughes</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/scopes-trial" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">scopes trial</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sweet-trial" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">sweet trial</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/aclu" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ACLU</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/ossian-sweet" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ossian sweet</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Adam Gravano</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Google Images; Wikipedia Commons</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Sun, 11 Jun 2017 18:51:51 +0000 tara 7570 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/7701-enduring-legacy-clarence-darrow#comments ‘Show Me Your Papers’ Enforcement Looms Over Immigrants in Arizona https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1596-show-me-your-papers-enforcement-looms-over-immigrants-arizona <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Tue, 09/25/2012 - 14:50</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumpolicerearviewmirror%20%28NAM%29.jpg?itok=TGDRRH1I"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumpolicerearviewmirror%20%28NAM%29.jpg?itok=TGDRRH1I" width="480" height="268" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> From <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/09/immigrants-prepare-for-increased-threats-under-show-me-your-papers-enforcement.php">New America Media</a>:</p> <p>  </p> <p>  </p> <p> PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Emma Cervantes spends most of her time driving all over town to clean houses when she is not ensuring that everything is going well at the flower shop she owns with her six children.</p> <p>  </p> <p> She used to worry about them being pulled over by police and asked for their papers. But now, while they are protected from deportation under President Obama’s deferred action plan, she is the one at risk with the “show me your papers” provision in the state’s harsh anti-illegal immigration law, SB 1070, going into effect.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “Before, I didn’t worry too much about going everywhere, but now that they want us to show our papers, I’ll go out less,” said the 59-year-old woman from Puebla, Mexico. “I won’t be locked inside (sic), but I’ll take more precaution.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> On September 18, over the pleas of civil rights groups, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton lifted an injunction on the “papers please” provision, siding with a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.</p> <p>  </p> <p> This means, police in Arizona now are required to inquire about a person’s immigration status if they have reasonable suspicion they are in the country illegally. Police could face lawsuits if they fail to enforce the law to the fullest extent.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Concerned that the federal district court might refuse to block the provision that they feel could lead to racial profiling, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) filed an appeal last week with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to enjoin enforcement of that harsh provision.</p> <p>  </p> <p> NILC General Counsel Linton Joaquin said that civil rights groups will continue their efforts to block this provision.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Those efforts include calling the hotline, 1-855-737-7386, if someone believes he or she was the target of racial profiling during a traffic stop.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The biggest question mark on how this portion of the law will impact immigrants like Cervantes depends on the Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).</p> <p>  </p> <p> “As we’ve previously emphasized, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials in Arizona have been directed not to respond to requests from state and local police officers for assistance in enforcing immigration laws unless the individual or individuals in question meet DHS’ enforcement priorities,” said Amber Cargile, a spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in a statement. “Those priorities include convicted criminals, individuals who have previously been removed from the United States and recent border crossers.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> ICE still will respond to phone calls from local police inquiring about a person’s immigration status.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “We hope that immigration fulfills what it has promised, and that if we don’t have a criminal record, it would let us stay here,” Cervantes said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumsb1070.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 335px; " /></p> <p>  </p> <p> For immigrants like her, these concerns are not new. Police have been increasingly cooperating with immigration authorities in Arizona since 2007 through agreements under 287(g) signed with Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office that allowed law enforcement agencies to check the immigration status of those suspected to be undocumented. Those agreements were rescinded this past June.</p> <p>  </p> <p> For the last four years. advocates for civil rights have been documenting the impact of these “SB1070-like” enforcement policies in Arizona, leading to both a Department of Justice (DOJ) and civil rights lawsuit against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s office.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “There already is racial profiling in Arizona. There’s already been abuses to some extent with Sheriff Arpaio and the kind of enforcement he has engaged in which might have been a model for the way SB 1070 was enforced,” noted Joaquin.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Arpaio hasn’t been the only one contributing to the deportation of a number of people from Arizona. Undocumented immigrants who are turned over to immigration officials after they are arrested for a serious crime or for something as minor as driving without a license could be deported under the federal Secure Communities program.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Carlos Garcia, director of PUENTE, a pro-immigrant group, said this provision of SB 1070 doesn’t change much for agencies like Phoenix Police who have already worked closely in cooperation with immigration.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “We’ll continue to ask Obama to put an end to programs like Secure Communities,” said García who anticipates there will be more acts of civil disobedience to protest against SB 1070, “There’s no other choice but for us to push to be the ones to make a change.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Phoenix Police Chief Daniel García had said in the past that his officers will not engage in racial profiling and would enforce the law while respecting civil rights. But in a statement issued late yesterday, his department said officers were ready to enforce the law.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “An officer shall make a reasonable attempt to contact the United States Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to determine the detained person’s immigration status,” said the statement, “unless the detainee has presumptive identification, it would hinder an investigation, or it would not be practicable to do so. “</p> <p>  </p> <p> Attorney’s like Linton feel there’s no way around it because of provisions in the law that have been in effect for the last two years that allow citizens to sue a police department if they don’t believe the law is being enforced to its fullest extent.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It’s going to promote racial profiling; it’s going to lead inevitably for people being detained for extra time because of immigration verification status,” he said.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Republican Governor Jan Brewer signed SB 1070 into law on April 23, 2010 and issued an executive order requiring police agencies to get training that would prevent racial profiling.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “It is not enough that SB 1070 be enforced. It must be enforced efficiently, effectively and in harmony with the Constitution and civil rights. I have full faith and confidence that Arizona’s State and local law enforcement officers are prepared for this task,” said Brewer in a statement. She called the “show me your papers” provision the “heart of the law.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Back in July 2010, Judge Bolton blocked that portion of SB 1070, along with four other provisions, following a request from the DOJ that contented that these parts of the law were pre-empted by federal law. Last June, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed with Bolton, partially, and ordered her to lift the injunction on the “show me your papers” provision.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The justices, however, did leave the door open for a different challenge to the law that was picked up by civil rights groups.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Cervantes worries about these detentions and wonders how police will find enough time to do other things to ensure the community is safe as they wait for ICE to verify a person’s status.</p> <p>  </p> <p> “There’s too many of us,” she said. “God willing, we’ll turn invisible for the police.”</p> <p>  </p> <p>  </p> <p> <a href="http://newamericamedia.org/2012/09/immigrants-prepare-for-increased-threats-under-show-me-your-papers-enforcement.php">New America Media</a></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/arizona" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Arizona</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sb1070" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">SB1070</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/immigration-law" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">immigration law</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/show-me-your-papers" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">show me your papers</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/aclu" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ACLU</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/illegal-immigrants" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">illegal immigrants</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/deportation" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">deportation</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/sheriff-arpaio" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Sheriff Arpaio</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Valeria Fernandez</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">New America Media</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Tue, 25 Sep 2012 18:50:04 +0000 tara 1617 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1596-show-me-your-papers-enforcement-looms-over-immigrants-arizona#comments An NYPD Officer Analyzes the Controversial ‘Stop and Frisk’ Debate https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1402-nypd-officer-analyzes-controversial-stop-and-frisk-debate <div class="field field-name-field-cat field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/news-features" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">News &amp; Features</a></div></div></div><span class="submitted-by">Submitted by tara on Tue, 07/24/2012 - 22:39</span><div class="field field-name-field-image field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="og:image rdfs:seeAlso" resource="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumpolicestopandfrisk.jpg?itok=rHtWDOHt"><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/mediumpolicestopandfrisk.jpg?itok=rHtWDOHt" width="480" height="299" alt="" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"><p>  </p> <p> The summer of 2012 has not been kind to U.S. law enforcement officials. As Occupy Wall Street protests subsided, the momentum shifted away from America’s financial sector and toward the long simmering issue of police-community relations.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Spurred on by the Trayvon Martin shooting, many citizens around the nation redirected their protests and rallied against ‘illegal and unwarranted’ stops by the police. The Federal Court in New York City added more public pressure by granting approval of a class-action suit brought against the NYPD for “suspicionless stops and frisks.” The court’s approval of the suit was bolstered by an American Civil Liberties Union study related to stop-and-frisk data collected by the NYPD. The culmination of these incidents has kept the stop-and-frisk on the public’s mind. While protests increase nationwide, academics and media commentators from across the nation have joined the debate.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Officials in New York City have only given a lukewarm response to the mounting criticism against them. As crime numbers perennially peak during summer in the Big Apple, the mayor and the police commissioner are caught in the crossfire from a city outraged by increased violence, yet unnerved by a police force eager to confront criminals in the street. Politicians from both the city and state have joined the chorus demanding action against the rise in felony shootings taking place as the mercury rises.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Instead of addressing concerns based on existing police data, Bloomberg has decided to soft-step the issue while the barbs keep coming. To date, Mayor Bloomberg has only repeated his stance on the stop-and-frisk issue by suggesting the NYPD’s tactics have removed weapons off the streets and saved lives.</p> <p>  </p> <p> On June 10, the mayor visited the First Baptist Full Gospel Church of Brownsville and defended his stop-and-frisk policy. According to the <em>New York Times</em>, Bloomberg stated, “We are not going to walk away from a strategy that we know saves lives. At the same time, we owe it to New Yorkers to ensure that stops are properly conducted and carried out in a respectful way.”  The mayor went on to add, “[B]y making it hot to carry, the NYPD is preventing guns from being carried on our streets. That is our real goal--preventing violence before it occurs, not responding to the victims after the fact.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Defending New York City’s crime-fighting strategies with great success for many years, Commissioner Raymond Kelly has finally begun to show fatigue. During a city council hearing on public safety, the commissioner finally broke his silence on the issue. “What have you said about how to stop this violence?” Snapped Kelly, “What have the leaders of these communities of color said? What is their tactic and strategy to get guns off the street? I asked you for a solution to the problem of violence in these communities of color. I haven’t heard it…People are upset about being stopped, yet what is the answer?”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Many criminal justice professionals, however, are not convinced. Law Professors Jeffrey Fagan and David Rudovsky point to a minor drop in shootings from 2002 to 2011, (1892 and 1821 respectively) but cite a substantial rise in the number of people stopped in NYC. The professors suggest with fewer than one hundred thousand people stopped in 2002 that “the police are looking for guns in all the wrong places.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> Perhaps the greatest critic of the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk policy is the A.C.L.U. Their May 9 press release includes encouraging and easily digestible statistics culled from the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk database. The A.C.L.U. report emerged as the most sound-byte ready statistics for public consumption. Highlights of the stop-and-frisk data include:</p> <p>  </p> <p> *More than 685,000 people were stopped by the NYPD in 2011, up from 97,000 stops in 2002 when Bloomberg took office…more than a 600 percent increase.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *87 percent of those stopped were Black or Hispanic, while 9 percent were White.</p> <p>  </p> <p> * More young Black men were stopped by the NYPD in 2011 than there are young Black men in NYC.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *Only 1.9 percent of those frisked in 2011 were in possession of a weapon.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Following the mayor’s church speech, the <em>New York Times</em> ran an editorial on June 11, 2012 from Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, an attorney representing the class–action petitioners in the civil suit against the city. The counselor’s criticism echoed the A.C.L.U. stating, “If the NYPD stops –and-frisks people to deter crime, rather than based on reasonable suspicion that the person stopped engaged in crime, the stop-and-frisk policy is unconstitutional.”</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>What The Law Says About Stop-And-Frisks</strong></p> <p> Looking briefly at both sides of the argument, opinions come easily on the stop-and-frisk issue --  particularly if one resides in an area of higher crime. But does being stopped by the police constitute a claim for a class-action lawsuit? A quick overview of the law may help.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Stop-and-frisk encounters have their legal rooting in the Bill of Rights. The 4th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution has been the guiding principle behind government searches and seizures. Namely the 4th Amendment limits police power and protects personal liberties.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In 1968 two court cases outlined standards the government must meet and mandated police officers to have “constitutionally adequate reasonable grounds for conducting searches.” The <em>Terry v. Ohio</em> case discussed in most legal forums is quite popular, but the lesser cited case of <em>Sibron v. New York</em> also has a great bearing on how the police conduct themselves during stop-and-frisk encounters.  </p> <p>  </p> <p> Today the Supreme Court still stresses the importance of search warrants when conducting a search; however the court has repeatedly recognized and supported “exceptions” to the 4th amendment. Based on “carefully drawn” circumstances, good faith exceptions (such as an emergency or a police officer’s fear of injury) permit a police officer to frisk a person for a weapon without a warrant. These frisks only apply when an officer has ‘reasonable suspicion’ that the person has engaged in criminal activity.</p> <p>  </p> <p> What causes concern for many is the number of searches and frisks conducted by police across the country. Clearly an alarming number of frisks and arrests take place without warrants leading to the A.C.L.U.’s analysis in New York City, but are the circumstances leading to stop-and-frisks reasonable? For that part of the discussion, ultimately, one has to analyze each situation individually, without bias, and in full view of the larger picture of violent crime. Here is where conjecture dominates the discussion.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumnypdpolicecar.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 450px; " /></p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Are We Denying Reality?</strong></p> <p> While the bulk of articles discussing stop-and-frisk scenarios in the U.S. are overwhelming, most reporting relies on anecdotal scenarios, with limited statistical data to support any argument. Most stop-and-frisk tales involve subtle hints of racial profiling and rarely give a well-balanced perspective as to “why” random people are being inconvenienced. But instead of curtailing the volley of criticism, New York’s Mayor Bloomberg continues to dance around the issue. Bloomberg has cautiously avoided a meaningful dialogue on the issue during his final term in office.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In an effort to deflect criticism of rampant profiling in the NYPD, Bloomberg stated, “If we stopped people based on census numbers, we would stop many fewer criminals, recover many fewer weapons, and allow many more violent crimes to take place. We will not do that. We will not bury our heads in the sand.” To illustrate his point, the mayor stated the city would not “deny reality” relating to who we stop-and-frisk.  Bloomberg used examples of stopping men versus women or younger people versus the elderly in the pursuit of most violent criminals.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Much of the stop-and-frisk data also denies the reality of the culture within the NYPD. While nobody denies the precipitous rise in stop-and-frisk reports (referred to as UF-250 reports, or 250s within the department), one cannot draw meaningful conclusions from their numbers. Simply put, every employee within the NYPD knows that FAR more people were ‘tossed’ during the highest recorded crime period in New York’s history. On paper, almost 43,000 people were stopped and frisked in 1989 compared to more than 685,000 last year.</p> <p>  </p> <p> The simple fact is, nobody cared to track the data in the old days, so the reports were not completed. Years ago, an investigation by the Civilian Complaint Review Board discovered similar findings. The C.C.R.B. reported only one in 30 encounters resulted in a UF-250 form being prepared. Blaming the police for a rise in unlawful stops based on 250 numbers is as illogical as blaming the increase due to a higher caffeine intake in cops today. After all, coffee franchises in New York City have increased more than 600 percent in recent years too.  </p> <p>  </p> <p> During less politically correct times, former police commissioner Howard Safir had a significantly different perspective on the stop-and-frisk issue. According to a December 1, 1999 New York <em>Newsday</em> article, Safir was quoted as saying, “We stop individuals on the street in numbers consistent with the descriptions provided by crime victims.” Commissioner Safir repeated this sentiment on many occasions. It pays to note, though, police-community relations were more strained during the Giuliani administration, and Kelly was hired to ease tensions after the Amadou Diallo/Abner Louima incidents.</p> <p>  </p> <p> But Ray Kelly could deflect far more criticism had he pitched the angle differently. There is an enormous body of data, albeit not fit for politically correct ears, suggesting the police go where the crime goes. After all, policing is a ‘reactive’ industry by nature; despite attempts to be ‘proactive community builders.’ As long as understaffed police departments choose to dispatch cops to 911 calls for service, instead of having officers walk a regular beat and learning about the communities they serve, the job can never be truly proactive.  Also, the fact remains that most of America’s 40,000 police departments are <em>not </em>serving densely populated urban areas where ‘the cop on the block’ could even succeed.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Where The Crime Is</strong></p> <p> One need not be a police chief, an exalted judge, or even possess a Ph.D. in criminal justice to know there is a worldwide connection between crime and poverty. Researchers have spent decades studying the relationship between the two. Most lay persons are aware also, but criminal justice professionals know the connection is not causal. Of course, not all poor people commit violent crime, so research continues.</p> <p>  </p> <p> However, existing data would go a great way toward deflecting criticism against political leaders across the country. A cursory analysis of 911 calls for service would deflect much criticism about the racial breakdown of perpetrators sought by police. Not only does the body of data exist, but the data is recorded and easily available. On the back end, one can analyze existing police reports to see exactly who is wanted for committing violent crimes on America’s streets.  To date, most data is not released to the public due to privacy concerns of crime victims and resistance of police agencies.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Understanding the privacy concerns of crime victims, the Department of Justice has collected crime data in an anonymous and empirically respected instrument called the National Crime Victimization Survey. Conducted since 1973, the NCVS is one of the largest continuous surveys conducted by the federal government.  The survey obtains information about offenders who commit violent victimizations from the victim who experienced the crime.</p> <p>  </p> <p> <img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/mediumstopandfrisk.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 339px; " /></p> <p>  </p> <p> The victim is asked to provide information on age, race, and gender of the offender, and other important variables. Variables worth noting are the relationship status of the victim and offender, and if both the victim and/or offender was drunk or on drugs. Much of the same data is collected by police agencies nationally, but is not easily shared, even abstractly.  Fortunately, the NCVS data is highly recognized by criminal justice professionals worldwide. The obvious limitation pertaining to the NCVS is that the information is given voluntarily.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Utilizing figures from the NCVS reports, one can learn much about the typical violent offender. For purposes of this article, data on incidents committed by unknown perpetrators have been cited. Robbery statistics are most useful since most violent robberies involve persons unknown to each other.   (One cannot thank the Bureau of Justice Statistics enough for their timely assistance and professionalism with regard to the latest data on stranger crimes.) </p> <p>  </p> <p> The Justice Department’s data comes from the 2008 and 2010 surveys. Interesting to note is a 1998 study that specifically looked at 12 cities including New York City. Of the myriad stats and figures, some highlights of the studies include the following:</p> <p>  </p> <p> *In the 12 city study, 84 percent of single offender incidents committed against a Black victim was committed by a Black offender. In NYC, 90 percent of Black victims had black offenders.  Four percent of Black victims had White offenders. Nationally, a majority of White victims (55 percent) classified their offenders as non-White or of an undetermined race.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *The percentage of victimizations reported to police remained nearly stable between 2001 and 2010.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *With regard to robberies, 83 percent of male victims listed the offender as a stranger or an unknown person. Fifty-seven percent of women listed the offender as a stranger or an unknown person.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *Households below the poverty line were victims of burglary at a rate more than two times higher than households earning over 75k per year or higher.</p> <p>  </p> <p> *In multiple offender robbery incidents, crime victims reported white offenders 9.9 percent of the time and a Black offender 53 percent. Mixed-raced offenders were reported 15 percent of the time, and 20 percent were of an unknown race.</p> <p>  </p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Is A Solution Possible? </strong></p> <p>  </p> <p> Like most social problems, one needs to accurately pinpoint the cause before fixing it. In the case of stop-and-frisks, many simultaneous initiatives must be implemented in a long-term model. The solutions must involve dedicated input from all the stakeholders in the matter and they need not collaborate for success. Lawmakers, law enforcers, community leaders, and the public must all modify their actions to encourage positive change.</p> <p>  </p> <p> To the credit of New York's mayor, he is already supportive of a new way of moving forward. Borrowing a phrase used by President Clinton, Bloomberg said at the church service, "...I believe the practice needs to be mended, not ended." If any change is to happen, the mayor needs to be more vocal on the issue, instead of taking a hands-off approach and letting public outrage dictate policy.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Today's 'new media' permits anyone with a computer to shape the dialogue and change others’ minds with half-baked facts and misinformation. Editorials, blogs, and other instant media platforms have the power to mobilize the masses in ways politicians are discovering since the Arab Spring demonstrations of 2011. Our leaders must learn to be more responsive.</p> <p>  </p> <p> One can argue that gun buyback programs have been widely successful but not widely implemented on a national scale. Ray Kelly says the program has collected 7,600 guns since 2006. By comparison, the NYPD seized 780 guns last year, but the bulk of the seizures were through more lengthy and costly drug investigations.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Community leaders can continue to address the more serious issues of violence in the inner cities. In NYC, local ministers and community activists have become outraged about guns and violence on the street. A recent daytime shooting of a 3-year-old on a Brooklyn playground has redirected recent rhetoric away from police stops and toward illegal guns.</p> <p>  </p> <p> By showing focused leadership and building positive connections, community leaders can assist greatly with the disconnect between cops and residents. By speaking out about violence and the disproportionate levels of crime in poorer communities, residents can learn to trust and depend on the police instead of viewing cops as an occupying army. Too many community organizations scrutinize the police instead of criticizing the criminals undermining their quality of life. After all, criminals are a far greater threat to the well-intentioned then cops are.</p> <p>  </p> <p>  The most effective way to reduce crime is by removing the criminals. Social programs also work, but they require long-term dedication and resources to be most effective. When a community has armed felons engaged in violent criminal enterprises, social programs have missed their mark. By having a justice system fail to remove criminals, all of society is jeopardized. Judges across the nation, and specifically in New York City, deserve to treat their communities better and enforce existing penalties. Stronger sentences for violent offenders and higher bail would selectively remove criminals and decrease future criminal incidents. More importantly, fewer incidents would lead to fewer stop-and-frisks.</p> <p>  </p> <p> Finally, the police need to radically change how street encounters are conducted. If a police officer routinely pats down every person he stops, then he probably is doing his job poorly -- even if he discovers illegal weapons. The courts have recognized this fact since 1968, but, clearly, bad searches are still conducted.</p> <p>  </p> <p> In many stop-and-frisk encounters, the cops on patrol take time to explain why someone was stopped and even have police dispatchers repeat offender descriptions over their radio. Of course this remedy only works in specific situations. Often, the jarring nature of the stop eliminates  all degrees of reason. Existing tensions play a big part too. If a career criminal has been ‘tossed’ and arrested by police hundreds of times, how likely will a courteous conversation take place? Likewise, is it reasonable to expect the tone of the police officer to be of the same reverence toward the career criminal as it is with a community elder? Working in a vacuum, things would be different, but as humans, emotions must be factored into the situation. </p> <p>  </p> <p> While both the police and the community strive to co-exist in a civil and stress-free environment, violent situations certainly affect the outcome. Taken as a whole, this does not permit the police to circumvent the rights of the individual.  Likewise, if a police officer is following the mandated rules, then he should be supported. It’s important to remember the courage and sacrifice America’s law enforcement officers endure to protect life and liberty. Also worth noting is the fact that as violent crime has seen historic lows, rising numbers of police officers are being killed and injured while stopping violent criminals on the street.  </p> <p>  </p> <p> <strong>Author Bio:</strong></p> <p> <em>Eugene Durante is a contributing writer at</em> Highbrow Magazine. <em>He</em> <em>is a Police Officer and former Welfare Fraud Investigator. Born in Brooklyn, Durante is a fourth-generation resident of Coney Island. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from John Jay College of Criminal Justice.</em></p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-tags field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/nypd" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">NYPD</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/police" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">police</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/new-york-police" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">New York Police</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/mayor-bloomberg" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Mayor Bloomberg</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/stop-and-frisk" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">stop and frisk</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/crime" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">crime</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/violence" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">violence</a></div><div class="field-item odd" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/aclu" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">ACLU</a></div><div class="field-item even" rel="dc:subject"><a href="/department-justice" typeof="skos:Concept" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" datatype="">Department of Justice</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Eugene Durante</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-pop field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Popular:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">not popular</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-photographer field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Photographer:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-bot field-type-list-boolean field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Bottom Slider:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Out Slider</div></div></div> Wed, 25 Jul 2012 02:39:26 +0000 tara 1281 at https://www.highbrowmagazine.com https://www.highbrowmagazine.com/1402-nypd-officer-analyzes-controversial-stop-and-frisk-debate#comments