Race, Schools and the Equal Protection Clause This seminar will
critically analyze the U.S. Supreme Court’s evolving
interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause from the time of
the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment after the Civil War
to the race-conscious student assignment cases currently before
the Court. Topics will include the rise and fall of “separate
but equal” doctrine, the “neutral principles” debate, remedies
for de jure desegregation, de jure v. de facto segregation,
facially neutral laws with a disparate impact on racial
minorities, affirmative action, and voluntary integration plans.
Please note that course organization and content may vary
substantially from semester to semester and descriptions are not
necessarily professor specific. Please contact the instructor
directly if you have particular course-related questions.