Hispanic Heritage Month Resources Recap

Hispanic Heritage Theme Poster

Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15 to October 15 and we have been highlighting resources to learn more about the the contributions and importance of Hispanics and Latinos to the United States and those American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. This year’s theme was “Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope.” Below we recap those resources.

Artist: Ms. Eliana De León, Hispanic Employment Program Manager at the Environmental Protection Agency

Selected Databases & Statistical Resources

Chicano Database

Bibliographic materials on Mexican-American topics 1967 to the present. Scope expanded 1992 to include the broader Latino experience¸ including Puerto Ricans¸ Cuban Americans¸ and Central American immigrants. Includes the Spanish Speaking Mental Health Database.

Ethnic Newswatch

Full text articles from newspapers and periodicals published by the ethnic and minority press in America¸ some dating back to 1985.
Coverage: Full Text; 1985 – present

Hispanic / Latino Demographics

Statistics and demographic information from the Pew Research Center.

Statistica

Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on over 600 industries. Search for “Hispanics in the United States.”

Selected Books

Carl Gutiérrez-Jones, Rethinking the Borderlands: Between Chicano Culture and Legal Discourse (1995) (E-book)

Challenging the long-cherished notion of legal objectivity in the United States, Carl Gutiérrez-Jones argues that Chicano history has been consistently shaped by racially biased, combative legal interactions. Rethinking the Borderlands is an insightful and provocative exploration of the ways Chicano and Chicana artists, writers, musicians, and filmmakers engage this history in order to resist the disenfranchising effects of legal institutions, including the prison and the court.Gutiérrez-Jones examines the process by which Chicanos have become associated with criminality in both our legal institutions and our mainstream popular culture and thereby offers a new way of understanding minority social experience. Drawing on gender studies and psychoanalysis, as well as critical legal and race studies, Gutiérrez-Jones’s approach to the law and legal discourse reveals the high stakes involved when concepts of social justice are fought out in the home, in the workplace and in the streets.

Hispanics/Latinos in the United States: Ethnicity, Race, and Rights (Jorge J.E. Gracia & Pablo De Greiff eds. 2000)

The presence and impact of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States cannot be ignored. Already the largest minority group, by 2050 their numbers will exceed all the other minority groups in the United States combined. The diversity of this population is often understated, but the people differ in terms of their origin, race. language, custom, religion, political affiliation, education and economic status. The heterogeneity of the Hispanic/Latino population raises questions about their identity and their rights: do they really constitute a group? That is, do they have rights as a group, or just as individuals? This volume, addresses these concerns through a varied and interdisciplinary approach.

José Luis Morín, Latino/a Rights and Justice in the United States : Perspectives and Approaches (2005)

Law Morgan Hum Rts E184.S75 M675 2005

A much-needed and thought-provoking examination of a significant and growing population within the United States, Latino/a Rights and Justice in the United States explores the inequalities and injustices that Latino/a communities confront in the United States. Author José Luis Morín provides a deeper understanding of the historical and contemporary Latino/a experience of discrimination and economic and social injustice and presents insights into the elusiveness of equality and fairness for Latinos/as in the United States. Offering ideas on how to reduce bias and other inequities within the justice system and the greater society, Morín calls for alternative approaches to working with Latino/a youths and families and a broadening of existing concepts of rights and justice in the United States. Drawing the link between the international and domestic dimensions of the Latino/a presence in the United States, Morín incorporates international human rights norms and principles of economic, social, and cultural rights to address the persistent inequalities and injustices that Latino/a communities confront in the United States.

Latinx Farmworkers in the Eastern United States: Health, Safety, and Justice (Thomas A. Arcury & Sara A. Quandt eds., 2020) (E-book)

Migrant and seasonal farmworkers are largely Latinx men, women, and children. They work in crop, dairy, and livestock production, and are essential to the U.S. agricultural economy—one of the most hazardous and least regulated industries in the United States. Latinx migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the eastern United States experience high rates of illness, injury, and death, indicating widespread occupational injustice. This second edition takes a social justice stance and integrates the past ten years of research and intervention to address health, safety, and justice issues for farmworkers. Contributors cover all major areas of health and safety research for migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families, explore the factors that affect the health and safety of farmworkers and their families, and suggest approaches for further research and educational and policy intervention needed to improve the health and safety of Latinx farmworkers and their families.

Lupe S. Salinas, U.S. Latinos and Criminal Injustice (2015) (E-book)

Latinos in the United States encompass a broad range of racial, socioeconomic, and sociopolitical identities. Originating from the Caribbean, Spain, Central and South America, and Mexico, they have unique justice concerns. The ethnic group includes U.S. citizens, authorized resident aliens, and undocumented aliens, a group that has been a constant partner in the Latino legal landscape for over a century. This book addresses the development and rapid growth of the Latino population in the United States and how race-based discrimination, hate crimes, and other prejudicial attitudes, some of which have been codified via public policy, have grown in response. Salinas explores the degrading practice of racial profiling, an approach used by both federal and state law enforcement agents; the abuse in immigration enforcement; and the use of deadly force against immigrants. The author also discusses the barriers Latinos encounter as they wend their way through the court system. While all minorities face the barrier of racially based jury strikes, bilingual Latinos deal with additional concerns, since limited-English-proficient defendants depend on interpreters to understand the trial process. As a nation rich in ethnic and racial backgrounds, the United States, Salinas argues, should better strive to serve its principles of justice.

Selected Website Resources

ABA Diversity and Inclusion Center, Celebrate Hispanic/Latino/a/x Heritage Month Honoring Activists and Legal Trailblazers (2021)

This PDF by the ABA Diversity and Inclusion Center highlights LatinX legal trailblazers and activists.

ABA Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights & Responsibilities, The Hispanic LGBTQ+ Community – One Year After Bostock

While Hispanics comprise the largest minority segment of the LGBTQ+ population in the United States, they often face unique challenges coming out to their families, reconciling their faith, and experiencing discrimination in employment and other basic programs and services. Last year, the Supreme Court decided a trio of Title VII cases that banned employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In this program, panelists will share their personal stories, summarize this historic decision, and discuss its ramifications, especially regarding the intersectional issues facing Hispanic LGBTQ+ individuals. Panelists will also offer best practices to better ensure fairness and dignity across the country.

ABA Wide 21-Day Hispanic Heritage Equity Habit Building Challenge

The ABA Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council is proud to launch a 21-Day Hispanic Heritage Equity Habit Building Challenge syllabus in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. The goal of the Challenge is to assist each of us to become more aware, compassionate, constructive, engaged people in the quest for equity, and specifically to learn more about the Hispanic Heritage, and many communities included under the “Hispanic umbrella.” It transcends our roles as lawyers. Non-lawyers are also welcome to participate.

LatCrit

The LatCrit community operates as a not-for-profit corporation. LatCrit goals are: (1) to develop a critical, activist and inter-disciplinary discourse on law and policy towards Latinas/os, and (2) to foster both the development of coalitional theory and practice as well as the accessibility of this knowledge to agents of social and legal transformation. LatCrit theorists aim to center Latinas/os” multiple internal diversities and to situate Latinas/os in larger inter-group frameworks, both domestically and globally, to promote social justice awareness and activism.

A Latinx Resource Guide: Civil Rights Cases and Events in the United States

This Hispanic Reading Room research guide from the Library of Congress focuses on 20th and 21st century American court cases, legislation, and events that had important impacts on civil rights in Chicana/o/x, Hispanic, Latina/o/x, Mexican-American and Puerto Rican communities.

National Archives, Hispanic / Latino Heritage

Resources from the National Archives featuring collections on Arts, Entertainment & Culture, Diplomacy/Foreign Affairs, Education and Civil Rights, Family History Research, Government and Politics, Immigration / Hispanic Society in the US, Labor, Military and Veterans, Notable Hispanics in the US, and Women.

This Week in the Law Library …

This week in the Law Library it’s fall break! Although there may not be classes, the Law Library is still open! Need to access study aids? Remember that you can access our electronic study aids 24/7 from on-campus or off-campus. Links to access West Academic and the LexisNexis Digital Library, as well as study aids by subject, are available on our Exam Study Guide. Are you researching a paper for class over break? Check out our Seminar Paper Research Guide. Working on a cite checking assignment? Don’t forget our guide for UC Law Journals.

Celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day

On October 3, 2018, Cincinnati City Council passed a resolution officially recognizing the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples Day.

Presidential Proclamation

City of Cincinnati Resolution

Indigenous Ally Toolkit

Joe Armstrong, 67 Resources for Celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Cincinnati Public Library Blog (Oct. 11, 2021)

National Museum of the American Indian Online Exhibits

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Theme Poster
Artist: Ms. Eliana De León, Hispanic Employment Program Manager at the Environmental Protection Agency

Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15 to October 15 and celebrates the contributions and importance of Hispanics and Latinos to the United States and those American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. This year’s theme is “Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope.” Below are resources to help recognize the contributions and importance of LatinX people to the United States.

Campus Events

Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021

Hispanic Heritage Month: Brown Bag Lunch Video Screening of ‘Bibi’, 12:00pm Online

This 18-minute film explores intersectionality in a powerful way, illustrating the beauty and conflict that can arise as we move between languages, places and societal expectations. The story sparks critical conversations about identity, culture, family and belonging. Discussion to follow: How do we come to be who we are? How do we communicate that to others? How do we respond when others share themselves with us?

Friday, Oct. 15, 2021

Soul Palette Paint Night, 12:00pm AACRC

5 More LatinX Resources to Explore Hispanic Heritage

Chicano Database

Bibliographic materials on Mexican-American topics 1967 to the present. Scope expanded 1992 to include the broader Latino experience¸ including Puerto Ricans¸ Cuban Americans¸ and Central American immigrants. Includes the Spanish Speaking Mental Health Database.

Ethnic Newswatch

Full text articles from newspapers and periodicals published by the ethnic and minority press in America¸ some dating back to 1985.
Coverage: Full Text; 1985 – present

Hispanic / Latino Demographics

Statistics and demographic information from the Pew Research Center.

LatCrit

The LatCrit community operates as a not-for-profit corporation. LatCrit goals are: (1) to develop a critical, activist and inter-disciplinary discourse on law and policy towards Latinas/os, and (2) to foster both the development of coalitional theory and practice as well as the accessibility of this knowledge to agents of social and legal transformation. LatCrit theorists aim to center Latinas/os” multiple internal diversities and to situate Latinas/os in larger inter-group frameworks, both domestically and globally, to promote social justice awareness and activism.

Statistica

Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on over 600 industries. Search for “Hispanics in the United States.”

October Arguments at the United States Supreme Court

US Supreme Court - corrected

From SCOTUS Blog:

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Cameron v. EMW Women’s Surgical Center, P.S.C. — whether a state attorney general vested with the power to defend state law should be permitted to intervene after a federal court of appeals invalidates a state statute when no other state actor will defend the law.

Thompson v. Clark — whether the rule that a plaintiff must await favorable termination before bringing a Section 1983 action alleging unreasonable seizure pursuant to legal process requires the plaintiff to show that the criminal proceeding against him has “formally ended in a manner not inconsistent with his innocence,” as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit decided in Laskar v. Hurd, or that the proceeding “ended in a manner that affirmatively indicates his innocence,” as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit decided in Lanning v. City of Glens Falls.

Wednesday, October 13, 2021

U.S. v. Tsarnaev — whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit erred in concluding that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s capital sentences must be vacated on the ground that the district court, during its 21-day voir dire, did not ask each prospective juror for a specific accounting of the pretrial media coverage that he or she had read, heard or seen about Tsarnaev’s case; and (2) whether the district court committed reversible error at the penalty phase of Tsarnaev’s trial by excluding evidence that Tsarnaev’s older brother was allegedly involved in different crimes two years before the offenses for which Tsarnaev was convicted.

Babcock v. Kijakazi — whether a civil service pension received for federal civilian employment as a “military technician (dual status)” is “a payment based wholly on service as a member of a uniformed service” for the purposes of the Social Security Act’s windfall elimination provision.

Law Student Mental Health Awareness Week

2021 Mental Health Week Events

October 4 – 8 is Law Student Mental Health Awareness Week. You, the law student, are not alone in struggles with mental health. Studies show that lawyers have higher rates of alcoholism, divorce, and even suicide than the general population. Studies also suggest that prospective law students are similar to other Americans before their first day of school, but then the incidence of these problems skyrockets. Below are resources to help with law student mental health the stresses of law school. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness, but rather a sign of strength.

University of Cincinnati Campus Resources to Help

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) offers accessible, student centered, inclusive, and effective mental health services to UC students. They offer 24/7 access to students who are in need of immediate support through their crisis services. 24 Hour Crisis Helpline: 513-556-0648

University Health Services is your campus health and wellness resource. They are an outpatient facility offering comprehensive clinical services to the student population. All students enrolled at the university are eligible to use UHS.

The Student Wellness Center empowers students to make informed decisions regarding their health and wellness by providing evidence-based education, inclusive resources, and non-judgmental support. They offer an extensive collection of resources and information about various health and wellness topics.

The Bearcats Recovery Community is a program designed to support UC students in or seeking recovery from alcohol, drugs and other addictions. The BRC and its programs allow students to have an authentic college experience at UC while maintaining their recovery.

The Bearcats Support Network is a community of students that fundamentally work to destigmatize mental health while holistically working to create a network that is supportive, loving, and inclusive through peer-to-peer support groups and biweekly social events.

The CARE Team responds to reports about students experiencing difficulties or whose behavior is raising concerns within the University community. The team’s responsibilities include gathering and sharing information, discerning concerns about a student within a setting or across multiple settings, and managing situations that encompass a variety of issues. The committee is charged to devise a coordinated plan for assessment, intervention, and management of the concerns for the students well-being and that of the University community.

Sky@UC empowers tomorrow’s leaders with tools to build confidence, clarity of mind, social connection, and resilience. Their primary goal is to promote mental wellness by introducing yoga and meditation as a healthier way to manage stress. They aim to empower the students to develop and maintain a relaxed, stress-free mind along with an energetic, healthy body so that we all achieve more and better as an individual and as a community. SKY@UC offers free weekly yoga and meditation sessions. They also plan and execute community service projects, which hone leadership skills and make a difference in our society. Their flagship program is the ‘Campus Happiness Retreat’, wherein participants learn SKY Meditation (Sudarshan Kriya), an effective breath-based rejuvenating technique which is scientifically validated to increase mental focus and awareness, relieve anxiety and depression, and improve wellness.

Selected Apps and Online Tools to Help

Therapy Assistance Online (TOA)
TAO is an interactive, web-based self-help program that provides online and mobile tools to help you overcome the day to day challenges around stessors like anxiety, depression, or other concerns.

SAM App
SAM is a free app to help you understand and manage anxiety. The app has been developed in collaboration with a research team from UWE, Bristol.

MindShift App
MindShift™ CBT uses scientifically proven strategies based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help you learn to relax and be mindful, develop more effective ways of thinking, and use active steps to take charge of your anxiety. This app is free.

PTSD Coach
PTSD Coach was designed for those who have, or may have, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This free app provides you with education about PTSD, information about professional care, a self-assessment for PTSD, opportunities to find support, and tools that can help you manage the stresses of daily life with PTSD.

Insight Timer
This free app offers guided meditations for sleep, anxiety, and stress.

Liberate
Liberate is a free meditation app by and for the Black & African Diaspora. Meditation categories include ancestors, love, self worth, gratitude, microaggressions, mindfulness, and more.

Take a Break
Take a Break is a free app from Meditation Oasis that provides a choice of a 7-minute or a 15-minute guided meditation break to help keep you fresh and centered during your work day. You can choose to listen to the meditation in voice-only format, or with music or nature sounds in the background.

Selected UC Law Library Books

Check out some of the materials in our collection of wellness resources!

The Anxious Lawyer by Jeena Cho & Karen Gifford
Call Number: Law stacks KF298 .C47 2016
The Anxious Lawyer is a straightforward introduction to meditation and mindfulness for those engaged in the practice of law. Readers will be guided through an eight week program, the aim of which is to assist in establishing an ongoing meditation practice. The book will: -Provide an overview of the history of meditation and the scientific evidence of its benefits -Introduce the reader to simple meditation techniques -Offer concrete guidance for establishing meditation practice

Finding the Midline: How Yoga Helps a Trial Lawyer Make Friends and Connect to Spirit by Bill Dorigan & Judyth Hill
Call Number: Law stacks KF310.A43 D67 2013
What’s a midline? Why do I want to find one? And, by the way, I’ve been looking for spirit forever : where do I look? — Western behavioral science : meet yoga — What does spirit look like? — A road map of the outer world : the Tattvas — Connecting the outer world to the inner world — The inner body — It takes practice : Pantajali’s yoga sutras

How to Be Sort of Happy in Law School by Kathryne M. Young
Call Number: Law Stacks KF287 .Y68 2018
Each year, over 40,000 new students enter America’s law schools. Each new crop experiences startlingly high rates of depression, anxiety, fatigue, and dissatisfaction. Kathryne M. Young was one of those disgruntled law students. After finishing law school (and a PhD), she set out to learn more about the law school experience and how to improve it for future students. Young conducted one of the most ambitious studies of law students ever undertaken, charting the experiences of over 1000 law students from over 100 different law schools, along with hundreds of alumni, dropouts, law professors, and more. How to Be Sort of Happy in Law School is smart, compelling, and highly readable. Combining her own observations and experiences with the results of her study and the latest sociological research on law schools, Young offers a very different take from previous books about law school survival. Instead of assuming her readers should all aspire to law-review-and-big-firm notions of success, Young teaches students how to approach law school on their own terms: how to tune out the drumbeat of oppressive expectations and conventional wisdom to create a new breed of law school experience altogether. Young provides readers with practical tools for finding focus, happiness, and a sense of purpose while facing the seemingly endless onslaught of problems law school presents daily. This book is an indispensable companion for today’s law students, prospective law students, and anyone who cares about making law students’ lives better. Bursting with warmth, realism, and a touch of firebrand wit, How to Be Sort of Happy in Law School equips law students with much-needed wisdom for thriving during those three crucial years.

Lawyering from the Inside Out by Nathalie Martin
Call Number: Available as an E-book & Law Stacks KF300 .M37 2018
Law is a varied, powerful, and highly rewarding profession. Studies show, however, that lawyers have higher rates of alcoholism, divorce, and even suicide than the general population. Stress creates these poor outcomes, including the stress of dealing with other people’s problems all day, the stress of spending excessive amounts of time at work, and the stress of being disconnected to what is most meaningful in life. Through mindfulness and emotional intelligence training, lawyers can improve focus, get more work done in less time, improve their interpersonal skills, and seek and find work that will make their lives more meaningful. This book is designed to help law students and lawyers of all experience levels find a sustainable and meaningful life in the field of law. This book includes journaling and other interactive exercises that can help lawyers find peace, focus, meaning, and happiness over a lifetime of practicing law.

Lawyers Anger and Anxiety by Rebecca Nerison
Call Number: Law stacks KF300 .N46 2010
The book first examines how anger and anxiety are related and the symptoms and costs associated with them. You’ll also find advice on seeking happiness through all the stages of your career, and discover valuable tips for staying satisfactorily employed during the most stressful of times. There’s also help for those living with a stressed-out lawyer, both at home or at the office.

Mindfulness for Law Students by Scott Rogers
Call Number: Law Stacks KF287 .R64 2009
Mindfulness for Law Students is specifically designed to introduce law students to fundamental contemplative practices as well as the cutting-edge research that shows how incorporating mindfulness techniques can alter the physical structure and function of the brain to reflect decreased levels of stress, increased levels of productivity and improved mental health. This book is based on the Jurisight(R) program – which uses legal terms and concepts to teach lawyers what they need to know about mindfulness and neuroscience to lead more balanced and effective lives – and written with input from law students, law professors and recent law school graduates to ensure that the lessons are accessible to law students and can be easily integrated into their busy schedules.

Yoga for Lawyers by Nathalie Martin; Hallie Neuman Love; Hallie Neuman Love
Call Number: Law Stacks KF310.A43 L68 2014
Lawyers are twice as likely to be alcoholics than the general population, and three times more likely to suffer a heart attack. Yoga for Lawyers is here to help Written by lawyers, for lawyers, this is a short, user-friendly yoga book focused on effective ways to de-stress every day, throughout the day, in very little time. The featured meditative yoga techniques and safe therapeutic yoga stretches are medically proven to be healthy ways to relieve stress.

This Week in the Law Library …

This week in the Law Library, we’re teaching statutes, and legal technology. We’re also recognizing Law Student Mental Health Awareness Week, recognizing October as National Domestic Violence Month and National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, continuing our celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, and previewing oral arguments at the Ohio Supreme Court and United States Supreme Court.

This Week’s Research Sessions

Monday, October 4, 2021

Legal Research & Writing for LLM Students

Shannon Kemen, Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
Room 303
8:00am – 9:20am
Researching Statutes

Lawyering I, sec. 2

Ron Jones, Electronic Resources Instructional Services Librarian
10:40am – 12:05pm
Room 104
Researching Statutes

Lawyering I, sec. 1

Ron Jones, Electronic Resources Instructional Services Librarian
1:30pm – 2:55pm
Room 100A
Researching Statutes

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Technology in Law Practice

Shannon Kemen, Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
Room 208
11:10am – 12:05pm

Thursday, October 7, 2021

Technology in Law Practice

Shannon Kemen, Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
Room 208
11:10am – 12:05pm

Featured Study Aids

Featured Study Aids: A Short and Happy Guide to Being a Law Student, The Zen of Law School Success, and Best Friends at the Bar: The New Balance for Today's Woman Lawyer

Best Friends at the Bar: The New Balance for Today’s Woman Lawyer

Best Friends at the Bar: The New Balance for Today’s Woman Lawyer, available through the Wolters Kluwer study aid subscription, candidly addresses the problems unique to women in the practice of law and provides practical, helpful advice and solutions. This companion to Best Friends at the Bar: What Women Need to Know about a Career in the Law is based on research, the author’s experience, and interviews with women attorneys who have successfully made the transition from one practice setting to another. These women, many with national reputations, tell their stories in their own compelling words.

A Short & Happy Guide to Being a Law Student

A Short & Happy Guide to Being a Law Student, available through the West Academic study aid subscription is a must-read whenever worry or doubt creep in. In this volume you will find essential wisdom for the study of law and life. Learn from the unprecedented ten-time recipient of the Professor of the Year award how to be your best in and out of class, how to prepare for exams, how to succeed on exams, how to put your best foot forward in a job interview, how to find teachers to inspire you, what to do in classes that leave you uninspired, how to cope with stress and how to create value in everything you do.

The Zen of Law School Success

The Zen of Law School Success, available through the LexisNexis Digital Library study aid subscription, offers a comprehensive approach to succeeding in law school. Zen is about simplicity, balance, knowing your universe, knowing yourself, and staying focused on the path to enlightenment. Similarly, these principles should be the foundation for success in law school, and this book details how to put these principles into practice in order to maximize your ability to have a successful law school career.

Featured Guide

Resiliency & Wellness for Law Students & Lawyers

Focus, resilience, balance and overall wellness are essential to a successful and fulfilling experience as a law student and as an attorney. This guide will provide you with resources to help you throughout your time in law school and as you practice law.

Featured Book

How to Be Sort of Happy in Law School

Law Stacks KF287 .Y68 2018.  Each year, over 40,000 new students enter America’s law schools. Each new crop experiences startlingly high rates of depression, anxiety, fatigue, and dissatisfaction. Kathryne M. Young was one of those disgruntled law students. After finishing law school (and a PhD), she set out to learn more about the law school experience and how to improve it for future students. Young conducted one of the most ambitious studies of law students ever undertaken, charting the experiences of over 1000 law students from over 100 different law schools, along with hundreds of alumni, dropouts, law professors, and more. How to Be Sort of Happy in Law School is smart, compelling, and highly readable. Combining her own observations and experiences with the results of her study and the latest sociological research on law schools, Young offers a very different take from previous books about law school survival. Instead of assuming her readers should all aspire to law-review-and-big-firm notions of success, Young teaches students how to approach law school on their own terms: how to tune out the drumbeat of oppressive expectations and conventional wisdom to create a new breed of law school experience altogether. Young provides readers with practical tools for finding focus, happiness, and a sense of purpose while facing the seemingly endless onslaught of problems law school presents daily.

Featured Video

The Elephant in the Room: The Legal Profession, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse (YouTube)

As lawyers, we are taught to be problem identifiers and solvers, adherents to logical analysis to create resolution for complex emotional and business issues. And yet, as a profession, we face significant problems in our own population with mental health and substance abuse. The problems of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse reach across all tiers of our profession. The Center on the Legal Profession and the Office of Student Affairs of Stanford Law School sponsored this panel discussion led by Professor Joe Bankman and featuring Ms. Zimmerman, Professor Andy Benjamin of University of Washington, and Patrick Krill, former practicing attorney and now mental health consultant.

Law Student Mental Health Awareness Week

2021 Mental Health Week Events
October 4 – 8 is Law Student Mental Health Awareness Week. You, the law student, are not alone in struggles with mental health. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness, but rather a sign of strength.

College of Law Events

Monday, October 4, 2021

Just Ask: How We Must Stop Minding Our Own Business in the Legal World: Depression and Suicide Prevention Essentials

Students, faculty and staff are invited to join the ABA Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs (CoLAP) for a Depression and Suicide Prevention Essentials webinar at 1pm. Attorneys and Judges handle a litany of legal problems and stressors every day. These stressors begin in law school and continue throughout practice- brought about by long hours and the pressures of handling all the matters that come along with being part of the legal profession. The evidence is clear that attorneys need to focus more on their personal well-being. The ABA is hosting this essential program in the week leading up to World Mental Health Day to draw attention to the prevalence of depression and suicide in our profession and identify concrete steps that we can each take to help save lives.

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Pop-up Wellness Room in the Crow’s Nest 9am – 5pm

Take a moment to grab a snack, color, do a puzzle, relax, or even grab some motivation from Phi Alpha Delta and UC Law Women

Inside Out Film Screening 6:30pm in Room 104

Sponsored by Active Minds and Phi Alpha Delta. Inside Out is a 2015 Pixar film. The film is set in the mind of a young girl named Riley, where five personified emotions—Joy, Sadness, Fear , Anger , and Disgust try to lead her through life as she and her parents adjust to their new surroundings after moving from Minnesota to San Francisco.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Wellness Tabling 9am – 5pm outside 100B

Sponsored by Active Minds and SBA, stop by the wellness wall to learn more about wellness resources

Thursday, October 7, 2021

Myth Busters: Self-Care and Seeking Assistance 12:15 – 1:00 pm in room 114

Patrick Garry of the Ohio Lawyers Assistance Program and Shane Gibbons of UC Counseling & Psychological Services will present ways that law students can care for themselves during law school, the on- and off-campus resources available to support student well-being, and will talk about concerns with seeking assistance and the character and fitness application.

Protecting Well-Being in Law School and in the Transition to Law Practice Webinar 4pm

Each year the ABA Law Student Division and the ABA CoLAP Law School Committee partner to spotlight the critical importance of our own well-being, and specific strategies to protect our well-being in law school and in the transition to the real world of law practice. Join us for a conversation with national thought leaders on law student well-being, and the impact of the pandemic on law schools and the legal profession going forward. We expect law students and law schools coast to coast joining us for this timely discussion…more relevant and critical this year than ever! Register here for this free webinar.

Friday, October 8, 2021

College of Law’s Let’s Talk Time with Dr. Shane Gibbons of CAPS 3pm – 5pm.

This service is available for all UC students who may not need traditional counseling, but could still benefit from one-on-one support. Let’s Talk is a free, 100% confidential conversation where you can ask questions, learn about mental health resources, and get support from a UC CAPS therapist. UC Law students can attend any Let’s Talk time throughout the week, but this day and time is dedicated for the College of Law every week. Book your appointment 3:00 – 5:00 pm, via Teams or phone.

Saturday / Sunday, October 9-10

Share your well-being activities with #LawStudentWellness #ABAMentalHealth #BeWellUCLaw

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Theme Poster
Artist: Ms. Eliana De León, Hispanic Employment Program Manager at the Environmental Protection Agency

Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15 to October 15 and celebrates the contributions and importance of Hispanics and Latinos to the United States and those American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. This year’s theme is “Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope.” Below are resources to help recognize the contributions and importance of LatinX people to the United States.

5 More LatinX Resources to Explore Hispanic Heritage

Carl Gutiérrez-Jones, Rethinking the Borderlands: Between Chicano Culture and Legal Discourse (1995) (E-book)

Challenging the long-cherished notion of legal objectivity in the United States, Carl Gutiérrez-Jones argues that Chicano history has been consistently shaped by racially biased, combative legal interactions. Rethinking the Borderlands is an insightful and provocative exploration of the ways Chicano and Chicana artists, writers, musicians, and filmmakers engage this history in order to resist the disenfranchising effects of legal institutions, including the prison and the court.Gutiérrez-Jones examines the process by which Chicanos have become associated with criminality in both our legal institutions and our mainstream popular culture and thereby offers a new way of understanding minority social experience. Drawing on gender studies and psychoanalysis, as well as critical legal and race studies, Gutiérrez-Jones’s approach to the law and legal discourse reveals the high stakes involved when concepts of social justice are fought out in the home, in the workplace and in the streets.

Hispanics/Latinos in the United States: Ethnicity, Race, and Rights (Jorge J.E. Gracia & Pablo De Greiff eds. 2000)

The presence and impact of Hispanics/Latinos in the United States cannot be ignored. Already the largest minority group, by 2050 their numbers will exceed all the other minority groups in the United States combined. The diversity of this population is often understated, but the people differ in terms of their origin, race. language, custom, religion, political affiliation, education and economic status. The heterogeneity of the Hispanic/Latino population raises questions about their identity and their rights: do they really constitute a group? That is, do they have rights as a group, or just as individuals? This volume, addresses these concerns through a varied and interdisciplinary approach.

José Luis Morín, Latino/a Rights and Justice in the United States : Perspectives and Approaches (2005)

Law Morgan Hum Rts E184.S75 M675 2005

A much-needed and thought-provoking examination of a significant and growing population within the United States, Latino/a Rights and Justice in the United States explores the inequalities and injustices that Latino/a communities confront in the United States. Author José Luis Morín provides a deeper understanding of the historical and contemporary Latino/a experience of discrimination and economic and social injustice and presents insights into the elusiveness of equality and fairness for Latinos/as in the United States. Offering ideas on how to reduce bias and other inequities within the justice system and the greater society, Morín calls for alternative approaches to working with Latino/a youths and families and a broadening of existing concepts of rights and justice in the United States. Drawing the link between the international and domestic dimensions of the Latino/a presence in the United States, Morín incorporates international human rights norms and principles of economic, social, and cultural rights to address the persistent inequalities and injustices that Latino/a communities confront in the United States.

Latinx Farmworkers in the Eastern United States: Health, Safety, and Justice (Thomas A. Arcury & Sara A. Quandt eds., 2020) (E-book)

Migrant and seasonal farmworkers are largely Latinx men, women, and children. They work in crop, dairy, and livestock production, and are essential to the U.S. agricultural economy—one of the most hazardous and least regulated industries in the United States. Latinx migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the eastern United States experience high rates of illness, injury, and death, indicating widespread occupational injustice. This second edition takes a social justice stance and integrates the past ten years of research and intervention to address health, safety, and justice issues for farmworkers. Contributors cover all major areas of health and safety research for migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families, explore the factors that affect the health and safety of farmworkers and their families, and suggest approaches for further research and educational and policy intervention needed to improve the health and safety of Latinx farmworkers and their families.

Lupe S. Salinas, U.S. Latinos and Criminal Injustice (2015) (E-book)

Latinos in the United States encompass a broad range of racial, socioeconomic, and sociopolitical identities. Originating from the Caribbean, Spain, Central and South America, and Mexico, they have unique justice concerns. The ethnic group includes U.S. citizens, authorized resident aliens, and undocumented aliens, a group that has been a constant partner in the Latino legal landscape for over a century. This book addresses the development and rapid growth of the Latino population in the United States and how race-based discrimination, hate crimes, and other prejudicial attitudes, some of which have been codified via public policy, have grown in response. Salinas explores the degrading practice of racial profiling, an approach used by both federal and state law enforcement agents; the abuse in immigration enforcement; and the use of deadly force against immigrants. The author also discusses the barriers Latinos encounter as they wend their way through the court system. While all minorities face the barrier of racially based jury strikes, bilingual Latinos deal with additional concerns, since limited-English-proficient defendants depend on interpreters to understand the trial process. As a nation rich in ethnic and racial backgrounds, the United States, Salinas argues, should better strive to serve its principles of justice.

October Oral Arguments at the Ohio Supreme Court

You can view the live stream of oral arguments on the Court’s website or see them after the arguments take place in the Ohio Channel archives.

Ohio Supreme Court Chamber

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Ohio v. Whitaker, – A death penalty case with 21 issues on appeal. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Senterra Ltd. v. Winland – (1) whether the Dormant Mineral Act, Ohio Rev. Code § 5301.56, is the specific provision of the Marketable Title Act with respect to the transfer of severed, fee oil and gas ownership interests to a surface owner and its provisions prevail over the general provisions which are inapplicable; and (2) whether the Marketable Title Act allows other oil and gas rights to take effect when reservations of oil and gas rights are extinguished. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Ohio v. Leegrand, II – whether the void-sentence doctrine requires that a sentence precisely track the statutory language set forth by statute. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Peppertree Farms, LLC v. Thonen – whether (1) for a document created prior to 1925 the Dormant Mineral Act supersedes and controls over the Marketable Title Act; and (2) an oil and gas severance using the words “excepts and reserves” or “reserved and is not made part of this transfer” in an instrument conveying real property is the retention of an existing interest or the creation of a new property interest. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Peppertree Farms, LLC v. Thonen – whether (1) the Dormant Mineral Act is the specific provision of the Marketable Title Act with respect to the transfer of severed oil and gas interests to a surface owner and its provisions prevail over the general provisions which are inapplicable; (2) a grantor’s severance of an oil and gas interest in an instrument conveying real property retains the grantor’s pre-existing interest in the land; and (3) the filing of a severed mineral interest owner’s will in the probate court where the property is situated constitutes a title transaction under the Marketable Title Act even if the will does not specifically devise the interest or contain a residuary clause. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Beachwood City Sch. Dist. Bd. of Ed. v. Warrensville Heights City Sch. Dist. Bd. of Ed. – whether Ohio Rev. Code § 3311.06 and Ohio Admin. Code 3301-89 requires the Ohio Board of Education to receive and approve any negotiated agreement related to a school district’s request to transfer territory following a city’s annexation of property, regardless of whether the proposed agreement involves the physical transfer of territory or just tax revenues; (2) Ohio Rev. Code §§ 5705.41, 5704.412 apply to agreements to transfer tax revenues between school districts; and (3) Ohio Rev. Code Chapter 2744 provides immunity from tort claims arising from a school district’s negotiation of tax revenue-sharing agreements. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

Lorain Cnty. Bar Ass’n v. Nelson II – whether attorney engaged in professional misconduct related to participation in the Lorain County Bar Association’s Modest Means Program while on probation for previous misconduct and whether the recommended discipline is more than is necessary to protect the public. Court News Ohio Oral Argument Preview

October Arguments at the United States Supreme Court

US Supreme Court - corrected

From SCOTUS Blog:

Monday, October 4, 2021

It’s the opening day of the Supreme Court’s 2021-22 term!

Mississippi v. Tennessee — (1) whether the Court will grant Mississippi leave to file an original action to seek relief from respondents’ use of a pumping operation to take approximately 252 billion gallons of high-quality groundwater; (2) whether Mississippi has sole sovereign authority over and control of groundwater naturally stored within its borders, including in sandstone within Mississippi’s borders; and (3) whether Mississippi is entitled to damages, injunctive, and other equitable relief for the Mississippi intrastate groundwater intentionally and forcibly taken by respondents.

Wooden v. United States — whether offenses that were committed as part of a single criminal spree, but sequentially in time, were “committed on occasions different from one another” for purposes of a sentencing enhancement under the Armed Career Criminal Act.

Tuesday,October 5, 2021

Hemphill v. New York — whether, or under what circumstances, a criminal defendant, whose argumentation or introduction of evidence at trial “opens the door” to the admission of responsive evidence that would otherwise be barred by the rules of evidence, also forfeits his right to exclude evidence otherwise barred by the confrontation clause.

Brown v. Davenport — whether a federal habeas court may grant relief based solely on its conclusion that the test from Brecht v. Abrahamson is satisfied, as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit held, or whether the court must also find that the state court’s application of Chapman v. California was unreasonable under 28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)(1), as the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 9th and 10th Circuits have held.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

United States v. Zubaydah — whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit erred when it rejected the United States’ assertion of the state-secrets privilege based on the court’s own assessment of potential harms to the national security, and required discovery to proceed further under 28 U.S.C. 1782(a) against former Central Intelligence Agency contractors on matters concerning alleged clandestine CIA activities.

 

National Domestic Violence Awareness Month

October National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Begun in 1981 by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, it is a Day of Unity to connect battered women’s advocates across the country. At UC Law, you can gain hands-on experience as you learn how to provide holistic legal services to survivors of domestic violence. At the Domestic Violence and Civil Protection Order Clinic, you’ll work alongside clinic staff to learn every aspect of civil practice, from initial interviews through advocacy.

 

National Cybersecurity Awareness Month

October (2)
October is also National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Cybersecurity Awareness Month was launched by the National Cyber Security Alliance & the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in October 2004. The overarching theme for Cybersecurity Awareness Month is “Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart.”

Censorship Divides Us, Books Unite Us

Banned Books Week: Censorship Divides Us Books Unite Us

Artwork courtesy of the American Library Association, www.ala.org

Held in September, Banned Books week brings attention to the freedom of expression and the freedom to be free of censorship. Launched by the American Booksellers Association (ABA), American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, and the National Association of College Stores in 1982, it has become an annual event. You can read more about the history of Banned Books Week at the American Library Association, Office for Intellectual Freedom, Banned Books Week page.

Challenges, Banning & Self-Censorship

According to the American Library Association, “A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Article I of the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights states, “Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.” Article II further declares, “Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.” These statements do not just apply to outside attempts to challenge, ban, or censor, but also to those working in libraries. According to the American Library Association’s Diverse Collections: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights, “Library workers should not permit their personal biases, opinions, or preferences to unduly influence collection-development decisions.” It goes on to state, “Best practices in collection development assert that materials should not be excluded from a collection solely because the content or its creator may be considered offensive or controversial. Refusing to select resources due to potential controversy is considered censorship, as is withdrawing resources for that reason.”

Critical Race Theory & Book Bans

2021 Banned Books Week Censorship By the Numbers

Artwork courtesy of the American Library Association, www.ala.org

According to Education Week, as of late August “27 states have introduced bills or taken other steps that would restrict teaching critical race theory or limit how teachers can discuss racism and sexism ….Twelve states have enacted these bans, either through legislation or other avenues.” Ohio has two bills that fit this category: HB 327, titled “To amend sections 3314.03 and 3326.11 and to enact sections 3313.6027 and 4113.35 of the Revised Code to prohibit school districts, community schools, STEM schools, and state agencies from teaching, advocating, or promoting divisive concepts.” and HB 322 “To amend sections 3301.079, 3314.03, and 3326.11 and to enact sections 3313.6027, 3313.6028, and 3313.6029 of the Revised Code regarding the teaching of certain current events and certain concepts regarding race and sex in public schools.”

Richard Price, a professor at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah researches censorship and authors a blog Adventures in Censorship. In their September 29th blog post titled “Banning Books to Control History,” they state “the 2020 most challenged books were overwhelmingly driven by the moral panic over an essentially fictitious critical race theory.” In their blog post, they specifically cite as an example, complaints by Moms for Liberty in Williamson County, Tennessee about Ruby Bridges Goes to School by Ruby Bridges and The Story of Ruby Bridges illustrated by Coretta Scott King Award-illustrator George Ford, and written by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Coles. Ruby Bridges was the first African-American child to integrate a New Orleans school. Tennessee has passed Pub.Ch. 493, a law that “establishes parameters for the teaching of certain concepts related to race and sex.” According to a CNN article written by Evan McMorris-Santoro & Meridith Edwards “A spokesperson for the school board in Williamson County told CNN school leaders in the county have launched a ‘Reconsideration Committee’ to review the books Moms For Liberty has complained about. One board member familiar with the process said new Tennessee law is hard to interpret, but this board member said they expect the state will ban at least one of the books Moms For Liberty cited.” Moms for Liberty filed an 11-page complaint with the Tennessee Department of Education and four books dealing with civil rights were specifically mentioned in their complaint. In addition to the Ruby Bridges books, Martin Luther King Jr. and the March on Washington by Frances E. Ruffin, and Separate Is Never Equal by Duncan Tonatiuh.

Students in Central York School District in Philadelphia protested the “freeze” of books and other materials intended serve as resources for learning about diversity. On September 20, 2021 the Central York School District rescinded the freeze.

According to a Military.com article, Senator Tom Cotton might have introduced S. 968, Combating Racist Training in the Military Act of 2021, in part because “he was motivated to offer the bill after the Navy added ‘How to Be an Antiracist’ by Ibram X. Kendi to a list of 74 books it recommends to leaders…”

Top 10 Challenged Books of 2020

Of the 273 books that were targeted in 2020, the ALA Top 10 Most Challenged Books are:

  1. George by Alex Gino
    Reasons: Challenged, banned, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content, conflicting with a religious viewpoint, and not reflecting “the values of our community”
  2. Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
    Reasons: Banned and challenged because of author’s public statements, and because of claims that the book contains “selective storytelling incidents” and does not encompass racism against all people
  3. All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
    Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, drug use, and alcoholism, and because it was thought to promote anti-police views, contain divisive topics, and be “too much of a sensitive matter right now”
  4. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
    Reasons: Banned, challenged, and restricted because it was thought to contain a political viewpoint and it was claimed to be biased against male students, and for the novel’s inclusion of rape and profanity
  5. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
    Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, sexual references, and allegations of sexual misconduct by the author
  6. Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard, illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin
    Reasons: Challenged for “divisive language” and because it was thought to promote anti-police views
  7. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
    Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and their negative effect on students, featuring a “white savior” character, and its perception of the Black experience
  8. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
    Reasons: Banned and challenged for racial slurs and racist stereotypes, and their negative effect on students
  9. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
    Reasons: Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and depicts child sexual abuse
  10. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
    Reasons: Challenged for profanity, and it was thought to promote an anti-police message

This Week in the Law Library …

This week in the Law Library, we’re teaching secondary sources, case law, finding and citing materials, and legal technology. We’re also recognizing Banned Books Week and continuing our celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month.

This Week’s Research Sessions

Monday, September 27, 2021

Lawyering I, sec. 2

Ron Jones, Electronic Resources Instructional Services Librarian
10:40am – 12:05pm
Room 104
Secondary Sources

Lawyering I, sec. 1

Ron Jones, Electronic Resources Instructional Services Librarian
1:30pm – 2:55pm
Room 100A
Secondary Sources

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

Technology in Law Practice

Shannon Kemen, Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
Room 208
11:10am – 12:05pm

Lawyering I, sec. 4

Ron Jones, Electronic Resources Instructional Services Librarian
Room 100A
2:00pm – 3:25pm
Researching Cases & Citators

Lawyering I, sec. 6

Michael Whiteman, Associate Dean of Library Services
Room 100A
4:00pm – 5:25pm
Researching Cases & Citators

Thursday, September 30, 2021

Technology in Law Practice

Shannon Kemen, Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
Room 208
11:10am – 12:05pm

Friday, Oct. 1, 2021

Immigration & Human Rights Law Review

Susan Boland, Associate Director
12:15pm – 1:15pm
Zoom

Banned Books Week

Banned Books Week: Censorship Divides Us Books Unite Us

Censorship divides us but libraries unite us! Held in September, Banned Books week brings attention to the freedom of expression and the freedom to be free of censorship. Launched by the American Booksellers Association (ABA), American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, and the National Association of College Stores in 1982, it has become an annual event. You can read more about the history of Banned Books Week at the American Library Association, Office for Intellectual Freedom, Banned Books Week page.

Featured Study Aids

Banned books are a First Amendment issue! Check out these study aids on the First Amendment:
1st amendment studyaids

First Amendment: Examples and Explanations by Laura E. Little

This book, available through the Wolters Kluwer study aid subscription, covers all of the First Amendment’s major topics – with emphasis on speech and religion. The topics covered include a comprehensive review of the most recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions on speech, association, and religion as well as cutting edge issues raised by current events, including the COVID-19 pandemic. While providing deep coverage of abstract concepts, the book includes many practical introductions to law practice reality. Figures, examples, explanations, and varying difficulty in the presented material ensure that the book will serve the needs of a variety of users and will appeal to different learning styles.

First Amendment Stories by Richard W. Garnett; Andrew Koppelman

First Amendment Stories, available through the West Academic study aid subscription, goes behind the scenes of landmark, foundational cases involving the fundamental freedoms of speech, religion, and the press. By filling in the details, setting the stage, and presenting fully the context, the text provides readers with a richer understanding of these cases, the people involved in them, and their implications for the future. Considered together, these stories highlight the leading themes and questions that have animated our legal doctrines, and our public conversations, about the conflicts that arise between the power and goals of government, on the one hand, and the liberty and conscience of the individual, on the other. This Stories title will enrich First Amendment courses and help students appreciate the premises that animate the cases and the values that are at stake in religious-liberty and free-speech controversies, rarely captured fully by doctrinal presentations. This collection offers carefully selected and rich cases that involve real stories, which can themselves serve as points-of-entry to the many great, ongoing debates that run through our free-speech and religious-liberty traditions.

Understanding the First Amendment by Russell L. Weaver

This text, available through the LexisNexis Digital Library study aid subscription, covers the origins and nature of the First Amendment, speech advocating violent or illegal action, content regulation of speech, limited protection of speech, content neutrality of speech, freedom of association and compelled expression, media and the first amendment, the Establishment Clause, and the Free Exercise Clause. The beginning of each chapter highlights key points of coverage. The end of each chapter indicates essential points to remember. The seventh edition covers all of the recent relevant decisions, including Iancu v. Brunetti; Manhattan Community Access Corp. v. Halleck; Matal v. Tam; The American Legion v. American Humanist Assocation; National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra; Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky; Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd. V. Colorado Civil Rights Commission; Expressions Hair Design v. Schneiderman; Packingham v. North Carolina; and Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer.

Featured Guide

Banned Books Week Guide
Get more information on banned books in this guide, including some of the cases that made it to the courts and highlighting the issue of banned books in prison settings.

Featured Videos

Banned Books Week YouTube Channel

Featured Treatise

Smolla and Nimmer on Freedom of Speech
Smolla & Nimmer on Freedom of Speech, available on Westlaw, provides in-depth coverage and expert analysis of free speech and free press First Amendment issues, including history, theory, doctrine, and insights into cases and decisions. Includes cross-references within the text and in footnotes, which contain full citations and parallel citations to other materials.

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Theme Poster
Artist: Ms. Eliana De León, Hispanic Employment Program Manager at the Environmental Protection Agency

Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15 to October 15 and celebrates the contributions and importance of Hispanics and Latinos to the United States and those American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. This year’s theme is “Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope.” Below are resources to help recognize the contributions and importance of LatinX people to the United States.

5 LatinX Resources to Explore Hispanic Heritage

A Latinx Resource Guide: Civil Rights Cases and Events in the United States

This Hispanic Reading Room research guide from the Library of Congress focuses on 20th and 21st century American court cases, legislation, and events that had important impacts on civil rights in Chicana/o/x, Hispanic, Latina/o/x, Mexican-American and Puerto Rican communities.

ABA Diversity and Inclusion Center, Celebrate Hispanic/Latino/a/x Heritage Month Honoring Activists and Legal Trailblazers (2021)

This PDF by the ABA Diversity and Inclusion Center highlights LatinX legal trailblazers and activists.

ABA Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights & Responsibilities, The Hispanic LGBTQ+ Community – One Year After Bostock

While Hispanics comprise the largest minority segment of the LGBTQ+ population in the United States, they often face unique challenges coming out to their families, reconciling their faith, and experiencing discrimination in employment and other basic programs and services. Last year, the Supreme Court decided a trio of Title VII cases that banned employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In this program, panelists will share their personal stories, summarize this historic decision, and discuss its ramifications, especially regarding the intersectional issues facing Hispanic LGBTQ+ individuals. Panelists will also offer best practices to better ensure fairness and dignity across the country.

ABA Wide 21-Day Hispanic Heritage Equity Habit Building Challenge

The ABA Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council is proud to launch a 21-Day Hispanic Heritage Equity Habit Building Challenge syllabus in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. The goal of the Challenge is to assist each of us to become more aware, compassionate, constructive, engaged people in the quest for equity, and specifically to learn more about the Hispanic Heritage, and many communities included under the “Hispanic umbrella.” It transcends our roles as lawyers. Non-lawyers are also welcome to participate.

National Archives, Hispanic / Latino Heritage

Resources from the National Archives featuring collections on Arts, Entertainment & Culture, Diplomacy/Foreign Affairs, Education and Civil Rights, Family History Research, Government and Politics, Immigration / Hispanic Society in the US, Labor, Military and Veterans, Notable Hispanics in the US, and Women.

University of Cincinnati Events to Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month

September 27 – October 1, 2021

Pulsera Project

11:00am – 4:00pm
Main Street

September 30, 2021

Be Historic Lunch & Learn: “What’s the Difference Between Latinx and Hispanic Cultures?”

Be Historic is excited to host a Lunch and Learn to discuss the difference between the Latinx and Hispanic cultures. Please join us to celebrate together the rich culture and history captured during Hispanic Heritage Month!

12:00pm – 1:15pm
Registration Link

October 1 2021

Defining Latinx: Nuestras Historias (Our Stories) panel presentation

An in-person panel that will include the sharing of immigrant stories from students (especially, but not limited to, Latinx students) followed by discussion. Please use this form to submit your story (anonymously if you wish) so that it can be read at the panel! Please note that while this event will be held in person in Walters 100, there will be an opportunity to view the event via Zoom (and livestream) if you are unable to attend the event in person. However you attend, we look forward to seeing you there. RSVP strongly encouraged.

11:30am – 12:30pm
UC Blue Ash
Walters Hall room 100
9555 Plainfield Road Walters 100, Cincinnati, OH

Bisexual Awareness Day

Bisexuality Awareness Day, also known as Bisexuality Day, Bi Visibility Day, and Bisexual Pride Day is observed on September 23 by members of the bisexual community and their supporters. This day is a call for the bisexual community, their friends and supporters to recognize and celebrate bisexuality, bisexual history, bisexual community and culture, and all the bisexual people in their lives. Below are some selected resources on bisexuality for those seeking to learn more.

Selected Web Resources

Alexandra Booles, 13 Things You Didn’t Know About Being Bisexual+, GLAAD (Sept. 28, 2016), https://www.glaad.org/blog/13-things-you-didn%E2%80%99t-know-about-being-bisexual

American Institute of Bisexuality

Bisexual Resource Center

Gender & Law Research Guide

GLAAD, BiNet USA, Bisexual Organizing Project, and Bisexual Resource Center, In Focus: Reporting on the Bisexual Community (2016), https://www.glaad.org/publications/focus-reporting-bisexual-community

Movement Advance Project, Invisible Majority: The Disparities Facing Bisexual People and How to Remedy Them (2016)

Still Bisexual

Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Guide

 

Selected Recent Law Journal Articles

Elizabeth Childress Burneson, The Invisible Minority: Discrimination against Bisexuals in the Workplace, 52 U. Rich. L. Rev. 63 (2018)

This Comment argues that legal theories in recent Title VII cases fail to take notice of how discrimination against bi-sexuals differs from discrimination against homosexuals and other key differences between bisexuals and monosexuals. To ensure full protection of the law for bisexuals, LGBTQ+ advocates must urge Congress to amend Title VII to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. The LGBTQ+ community and the legal community must also acknowledge the bisexual population in their legal analyses and advocacy.

Michael Conklin, Good for Thee, but Not for Me: How Bisexuals Are Overlooked in Title VII Sexual Orientation Arguments, 11 U. Miami Race & Soc. Just. L. Rev. 33 (2020)

In this article, the author looks at how legal theories and cases on Title VII protections for LGBT individuals focus on lesbian, gay, and transgender individuals while excluding bisexual individuals. The author covers the history of bisexuality treatment under the law, relevant Title VII history, the arguments in Bostock v. Clayton County and how they would affect a future case involving a similarly situated bisexual plaintiff, gender stereotyping, and associational discrimination.

Thomas Lloyd, Protecting Bisexual Victims instead of Harassers: Alternatives to Monosexist Theories of Sexual Orientation Discrimination under Title VII, 47 Fordham Urb. L.J. 431 (2020)

This article discusses the evolution of Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination, evaluates Title VII interpretive theories in Hively v. Ivy Tech and Zarda v. Altitude Express concerning sexual orientation, and looks at their failure to include discrimination of bisexuals, asexuals, and other non-monosexual orientations.

Nancy C. Marcus, The Global Problem of Bisexual Erasure in Litigation and Jurisprudence, 18 J. Bisexuality 67 (2018)

After discussing the grounds on which sexual minorities may qualify for refugee status under international refugee law, the paper empirically assesses the success rates of bisexual refugee claimants in three major host states: Canada, the United States, and Australia. It concludes that bisexuals are significantly less successful than other sexual minority groups in obtaining refugee status in those countries.

Nancy C. Marcus, Bostock v. Clayton County and the Problem of Bisexual Erasure, 115 NW. U. L. Rev. Online 223 (2020)

Along with calling for greater bi inclusivity, this Essay offers an interpretive guide to ensuring Bostock’s precedent, textualist emphasis notwithstanding, is extended to bisexuals. While resolving such tensions, the Essay also describes how systemic bi erasure in LGBTQ rights cases beyond Bostock remains a significant problem. In doing so, it explains the reciprocal benefits of being bi-inclusive, including the role bisexuals can play in illustrating that sexual orientation discrimination is a form of sex discrimination.

Campus Resources

Cincinnati Law LGBTQ+ Resources

Nathaniel R. Jones Center for Race, Gender, and Social Justice

Out & Allies

CAPS

Department of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies (WGSS)

LGBTQ Center

LGBTQ Faculty and Staff Association

Office of Equity & Inclusion

Office of Equal Opportunity & Access

Title IX