ISSUE FORUM

Attitudes are contagious-- if you change yours, the world around you will change.  Choose to make it better!

In the coming months, NCCJ will be launching the Center for Inclusion Initiative, which will include lectures, panel discussions, community dialogues, and film screenings about social justice issues and human rights.  Here you will find links to information and other organizations doing work that aligns with NCCJ's mission to address and fight the multiple manifestations of bias, discrimination and prejudice through education, conflict management, and advocacy for positive social change.

 

"'A Colorblind Constitution': Ideal or Impossible?" The United States Supreme Court ruled on June 28, 2007 that race cannot be used to assign students to public schools as a way of achieving or maintaining integration.  In a 5-4 decision, the majority invalidated programs in Seattle and Louisville, Kentucky that used race as a factor in creating diverse learning environments.  Justice Stephen Breyer, writing the dissent, declared that “this is a decision that the court and the nation will come to regret.”                                                                                                                                            Little Rock Nine, 1957 Using the Brown vs. Board of Education decision of 1954, Chief Justice Roberts tried to use the argument made in that case to justify this decision stating that race should not play a role in assigning students to school at all, embracing the notion of a “colorblind constitution.”  The lawyer in the Brown case who made this argument in 1954 (now a judge in New York City), said “All that race was used for at that point was the deny equal opportunity to black people… It’s to stand that argument on its head to use race the way [the court] AP Photo/Ed Reinke; Louisvile, KY; 2007    uses it now.” The issue that must be considered is the intent of how race is being used in the process of placing students in schools.  The intent during the Brown decision was inclusion.  The current decision by the Court overlooks the systemic problems that advantage some and disadvantage others in our society that continues to make race a factor in achieving integration in our schools.  As Justice Stevens wrote in his dissent, the opinion “rewrites the history of one of this court’s most important decisions by ignoring the context in which it was issued...”    This Supreme Court decision places access and opportunity to pursue the “American dream” in jeopardy.  One can assume that individuals and groups that have historically been denied access will continue to fall short, increasing the social and economic divide.  New York TImes Article on Supreme Court Decision Atlanta Journal Constitution Article on Supreme Court and Race

 

TOLERANCE DOES NOT EQUAL JUSTICE! Don Imus, a radio and talk show host, has created a firestorm after making racist and sexist remarks about the Rutgers Women's Basketball team.  Imus has since been suspended from broadcasting his show for two weeks, which has sparked a controversy over whether this penalty is harsh enough for Imus.  Click here to watch a press conference with the Rutgers Women's Basketball team in response to this incident.   This type of outrage is not unfamiliar to Imus who has been in trouble in the past for making other controversial and often discriminatory remarks.  The idea that Imus has only been suspended for a couple of weeks speaks to the emphasis on "tolerance" that our society has embraced.  These types of remarks should not be tolerated in any situation!  We must move beyond this idea of tolerance and adopt a principle of no tolerance when it comes to racism, sexism, and all other forms of oppression.  Today the Rutgers Womens Basketball team, but in two weeks, who's next? CNN report on Don Imus New York Times Coverage of the scandal

The New York City Council approved a symbolic ban of the "N" word on February 28, 2007.  This "symbolic resolution" calls for all New Yorkers to voluntarily stop using the "N" word in an effort to call attention to its increasing use by entertainers and youth.  This resolution leaves individuals accountable for upholding this policy.  For more information on this news story and the debate it is sparking, click on the links below.

ABC News: "'N' Word on New York City Council's Agenda"

CBS News Reports on Young People's Response to this Ban

Listen to this story on National Public Radio (NPR)

New York University College Republican Club organized a "Find the Illegal Immigrant" game on February 22, 2007, which sparked mobilization and protest by people who called this "racist" and "disgusting."  Read more about this event and the issue of immigration here:

               New York Daily News Article on NYU Protest

New York Times Reports on Immigrant Controversy at NYU

For more information on the Center for Inclusion Initiative any any upcoming programs and events sponsored by NCCJ, please contact Bari Katz, Program Director at 212.870.2114 or bkatz@nccjgnyr.org.