Criminal Justice System
What is strategic racism?
purposeful efforts to use racial animus as leverage to gain material wealth, political power, or heightened social standing; “The purposeful manipulation of racial ideas forms the poisonous core of racism” (Haney López 2014).
What are cultural capital and social capital?
Cultural capital – the sum total of one’s knowledge of established and revered cultural material and practices (what you know)
Social capital – the sum of all resources one accrues by virtue of being connected to a network of people (who you know)
What is the affirmative action?
Intentional steps taken by a government or organization to increase representation of groups that have been historically excluded ormarginalized.
What is nativism?
The presumed superiority of native-born citizens, favoring allocation of resources to them over immigrants and promoting a fear of foreign cultures
According to Michelle Alexander (2010), what is the “New Jim Crow”?
Based on colorblindness, rather than rely on race, the racial oppression is conducted through the use of criminal justice system to disproportionally label people of color “criminals/felons” and then engage in all the same oppressive practices
Which court case established the "separate but equal" doctrine and legalized racial segregation?
Plessy v Ferguson (1896)
“Separate but equal” accommodations in railroad cars met 14th Amendment’s right to equal protection under the law.
Which court case rule that using racial quotas in college admission is unconstitutional?
Regents of UC Davis v. Bakke (1978)
Racial quotas in admissions are unconstitutional but using race as a factor in admissions is not.
What did Noem v. Vazquez Perdomo (2025) rule?
The Supreme Court allowed federal immigration enforcement to resume racial profiling that had been restricted by lower courts, which appearing Latino constitutes “reasonable suspicion” that one is undocumented when it co-occurs with other factors.
Terry v. Ohio (1968) paved the way for what kind of policing method? What are justifications for this policing method?
Stop-and-Frisk
Officers “must be able to point out specific and articulable facts” that justify suspicion like “inappropriate offseason attire” and “furtive movements”
Which court case officially ended legal segregation in public schools?
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
Supreme Court came to unanimous decision dismantled the legal basis of racial segregation but was vague on benchmarks and timelines.
What are the two common misconceptions about affirmative actions?
Affirmative action consists of racial quotas and reverse discrimination
Race-blind admissions policies are fair
How does Arab immigrations to the US reflect the racialization process?
1909 Costa George Najour ruling: Syrian immigrants are White and thus eligible for naturalization
1914 George Dow ruling: Syrians are racially distinct from Europeans
1940s: Census Bureau explicitly takes position that Arab Americans are a White ethnic group
Late 20th and 21st century: racialization of Arab/Muslim Americans through association with terrorism
How was the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 related to racial discrimination, and what historical and political circumstances led to its passage?
Created a 100 to 1 sentencing disparity for crack vs. powder cocaine possession which target people of color in poor community disproportionally.
The war on drugs
What is the myth of model minority?
The mistaken belief that all Asian Americans are more academically, economically, and socially successful than other racial minority groups, and that this success is the result of their supposedly unique Asian cultural values (i.e. placing higher value on education than other cultures of minority groups)
Which court case rule affirmative action in college admissions decisions unconstituional?
Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and UNC (2023)
These rulings reverse a series of decisions since 1978 that race-conscious admissions can be used to meet the goal of campus diversity. Race can still potentially factor into admissions decisions, but only in a narrow way.
What is DACA? Why do immigrant advocates concern about it?
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (2012)
Information about Dreamers being recorded in a database(could be used as a weapon by future anti-immigrant administrations) And this reversal could be easy since it is created by executive action.
What are peremptory challenges? How this legal right is related to our discourse regarding race?
It's a legal right allowing attorneys to dismiss a limited number of potential jurors without stating a reason or showing cause.
Before James Batson's trial of burglary, prosecutor dismissed all 4 Black jurors using peremptory challenges to create an all-White jury. The Case was appealed, and the Supreme Court vacated Batson’s sentence and created the Batson Rule.
What is the “Acting White Theory” and what evidence does Toldson (2013) use to critique it?
The “Acting White Theory” claims that Black students face peer pressure against academic achievement because behaviors linked to school success are seen as “acting White.” Toldson (2013) critiques this view using national data showing that high-achieving Black students are not socially penalized and often receive peer support for education. He argues the theory relies on limited early studies and obscures structural inequalities affecting Black students’ educational outcomes.
What is the judicial standard of “strict scrutiny”?
Strict scrutiny is the highest, most stringent standard of judicial review (i.e., it was “narrowly tailored” to a achieve a “compelling state interest”). In Grutter v. Bollinger, U-M law school successfully argued that its affirmative action policy met the standards of “strict scrutiny.” The school demonstrated that its use of race was careful and individualized, not a quota. Race was one factor among many in a holistic admissions review.
Why did undocumented immigrants surged since the 1990s?
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act of 1996
This legislation expanded deportation and detention powers, increased border enforcement, created 3- and 10-year bans for those unlawfully present who leave the US, and restricted asylum and immigration relief. These stricter penalties often discouraged migrants from leaving the U.S., which backfired with growing long-term undocumented population.