Can Parochial School Teachers Claim Employment Discrimination? The Court (Correctly) Says No
“The Supreme Court handed down a number of high stakes decisions in its summer term, deciding issues ranging from disclosing Trump’s tax returns to deciding the fate of DACA recipients. One particular, though less notable, case that reached the court involved the question of whether the 1st Amendment’s religion clauses bar civil courts from adjudicating employment-discrimination claims brought against a religious employer.”
Will Kamala Harris' Nomination as VP Help Joe Biden Win?
Kamala Harris’s nomination feels much more impactful than any other vice presidential nomination in recent memory. But could it help Joe make it to the Oval Office?
Note:
This article was written before President-Elect Joe Biden was projected to win the 2020 General Election.
Intersectional Understandings of Brutality: State Violence and Sexual Assault
“In that moment, my mind only considered the “what-ifs.” What if my mother was not so close by? What if there were fewer people around? What if I were to be arrested by him, alone in a police car?”
WARNING: This article contains discussions of sexual assault and sexual violence.
Wildfires and The Utilities that Light Them
“Of all the hot topics in the news today, nothing burns hotter than California’s wildfire crisis… However, if you recall from middle school science classes, fire requires another ingredient to ignite; all fires require a spark, or ignition source, to start. That source has a name in California, the most detested company in the state, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E).”
China's Information War on Covid-19
“During the last week of 2020, I traveled to Shanghai to visit a friend before New Year’s. While having lunch, I got a Wechat message from my mom forwarding an article titled “The Situation is Worse than we Think.” This must be about the “new virus” from Wuhan that I had heard bits about from here and there, I thought after reading the title, but soon put my phone away, thinking that it is just one thing among hundred others that mom worries too much about.”
Where Public Health Meets Politics: COVID-19 in the US
“The question of overcoming the virus is hardly a scientific one anymore, but a political and ethical one.”
The State of The Union: A Battleground
Pelosi’s heavy involvement in President Trump’s history-making impeachment, among several other more specific instances demonstrating the pair’s mutual animosity- namely their respective State of the Union behavior and the ensuing social media battle- have led to the House Speaker coming to represent different things to different people.
Oil Spill in Mauritius: A Long, Bitter Trial for Environmental and Social Justice
Co-Authors: Taahirah Zahraa Boodhoo Beeharry and Navneesh Ramessur (Guest Writers)
The Downturn of American Freedom Starts with Amy Coney Barrett
“History has repeatedly demonstrated that it only takes one election, one coup, or a handful of new laws to transform a historically peaceful country into an unrecognizable nation seemingly overnight…. The Republican Party’s nomination and confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court was the last straw. I can now confirm that I no longer believe in the narrative of America’s integrity and moral superiority.”
Buttigieg Should Have Been the Democratic Nomination, Not Biden
Watching the democratic candidates drop out of the presidential race at the end of February and the beginning of March was akin to watching a successful ending to a game of dominoes. And while many have come to terms with a Biden presidency, there are many reasons why we shouldn’t have been so quick to write off a Buttigieg ticket.
Line of Actual Control: India-China Territorial Imperative
Whenever we discuss India and China’s border dispute, there is an air of mystery and ambivalence surrounding the narrative. There is a remarkable lack of concrete statistics and official statements. Whatever the reason for that may be, the border dispute with China— especially in Aksai Chin, Ladakh— is undeniably one of the most pressing security concerns for the Indian nation state in the present scenario, as border tensions continue to snowball.
Afro-Iranians: The Forgotten Community of Iran
Afro Iranians today are integrated into southern Iran and its culture. Southern culture, called Bandari (Bandar or Bandargah meaning port), is a mixture of Native Iranian, African, and Arab elements. Within Iran itself, they are little known by those in the northern provinces due to lack of exposure.
Climate, Criminal Justice, and Covid-19: What the West Coast Wildfires Have Revealed
For many Americans, 2020 has been an avalanche of unrelenting crises. But for people living on the west coast, three of these crises–wildfires, racial injustice in the form of mass incarceration, and the COVID-19 pandemic–are inextricably related.
How Circuit Courts Abuse "Weapons of War" Rationale in 2nd Amendment Cases
With many judgements in circuit courts based on fault information, it is especially important for future 2nd Amendment cases to be decided with concrete information. This does not mean that assault weapon bans cannot be implemented, or that legislatures have to go to extraordinary steps to ensure that weapons bans strictly adhere to 2nd Amendment protections. It does, however, mean that courts cannot rely on faulty information, especially when applied to regulations that excessively burden the right to keep and bear arms.
Clash and Chaos: A Recap of the First Presidential Debate
The long-awaited first debate of the 2020 presidential election between President Donald J. Trump and former Vice President Joseph Biden Jr. took place on Tuesday night, marking an important and exciting moment in what has been a unique election cycle. This event, moderated by Fox News anchor Christopher Wallace, was entertaining, though extremely undignified for a presidential debate. Despite Wallace’s best efforts, the verbal sparring between Trump and Biden got comically out of hand at times.
2. Wes for Bernie & Wes for Warren
Guests Bryan Chong and Maya Gomberg discuss the most important policies of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, where they differ, and even something they haven't appreciated about their favorite candidate.
 
                         
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
