#RaceClass

Ep. 64 | David Oppenheimer Talks Diversity, Pauli Murray & the Fight Against American Apartheid

Justice Clarence Thomas doesn't know what "diversity" means. UC Berkeley Law Professor David Oppenheimer does. David joined the #RaceClass Podcast to discuss his new book "The Diversity Principle." The book traces the diversity principle's long and circuitous (and often overlooked) history -- one that weaves through John and Harriet Mill, the legendary Pauli Murray, and fights for academic freedom in the United States and against Apartheid in South Africa.

Ep. 63 | Carliss Chatman on White Economic Comfort & the Myth of Free Markets

SMU Law Professor Carliss Chatman joined the #RaceClass podcast to discuss DEI "rollbacks" and the rise of "reverse racism" lawsuits from private actors and the Trump administration. We do a deep dive into Section 1981 and the myth of "free markets" -- with a specific nod to "white economic comfort," a term Professor Chatman coined to capture a powerful dyanmic that continues to drive who can enter and benefit from capitalist systems free from racial discrimination and exclusion.

Ep. 62 | What Would David Duke Do?

Jon and Arnie discuss the Justice Department's decision to indict the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) on fraud charges related to its use of informants to infiltrate extremist hate groups. The indictment turns the DOJ upside down; rather than prosecute the Klan, the DOJ is targeting organizations that help combat the Klan. It might sound absurd, but it is a predictable consequence of a federal government allied with many of the extremist organizations — including PragerU, Moms for Liberty, and Turning Point USA — that the SPLC has dutifully monitored for years.

Ep. 61 | Jon Talks Affirmative Action with the Radio Cachimbona Podcast

In this special cross-posted episode, Jon joins Yvette Borja and the Radio Cachimbona podcast to discuss affirmative action. We spend much of the episode outlining the many many (did we say many?) ways that institutions may continue to intentionally build racially equitable, diverse and inclusion institutions -- all consistent with federal antidiscrimination law. Lots of the conversation draws on Jon's 2024 article "Affirmative Action After SFFA": https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4645538. Listen to Radio Cachimbona at: https://www.radiocachimbona.com/.

Ep. 60 | The Fight for Environmental Justice with Chandra Taylor-Sawyer

Chandra Taylor-Sawyer joined the #RaceClass Podcast to discuss the fight for environmental justice. Chandra is a Senior Attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and leads its Environmental Justice Initiative. For nearly two decades, she has worked to confront the disproportionate burden of pollution borne by communities of color and low-wealth neighborhoods across the South. We explored how SELC builds power to support local communities and dug into a recent SELC report that "connects slavery-era land exploitation to today's environmental racism, revealing how Black communities continue to bear the cost of pollution." Learn more about Chandra's work at https://www.selc.org/staff/chandra-taylor/.