Copyright (c) 2009 Cornell Law Library All rights reserved. http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu Recent documents in Scholarship@Cornell Law en-us Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:56:58 PST 3600 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/62 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/62 Wed, 07 Oct 2009 10:13:42 PDT This paper is the first comprehensive examination of modern English-only laws as applied to voting materials. In short, I argue that these English-only policies are constitutionally suspect. After providing background about the English-only movement and the recent high-profile Iowa decision, the piece considers complex and uncertain areas of constitutional law, outlining how one might argue that English-only laws violate the U.S. Constitution and the federal Voting Rights Act. Michael A. Zuckerman http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/61 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/61 Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:53:05 PDT In 1994, Congress passed legislation stating that Presidents elected to office after January 1, 1997 would no longer receive lifetime Secret Service protection. Such legislation was unremarkable until the first Black President--Barack Obama--was elected. From the outset of his campaign until today, and likely beyond, President Obama has received unprecedented death threats. These threats, we argue, are at least in part tied to critics' and commentators' use of symbols, pictures, and words to characterize Obama as a primate in various forms. As a point of departure, we refer specifically to the racist humor in Sean Delonas' controversial New York Post cartoon of February 2009. Against this backdrop while looking to history, cultural studies, theories of humor, federal case law, as well as cognitive and social psychology, we explore how the use of seemingly harmless imagery may still be racially-laden and evoke violence against its object. By employing this rigorously interdisciplinary approach to the topic, we bridge the theoretical with the empirical in order to make a compelling case for the direct link between jokes--and cultural symbolism more broadly--and assassination threat to the United States' first Black President. Gregory S. Parks http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/60 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/60 Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:26:08 PDT This Note considers application of the constitutional law principle of "one person, one vote" to campus elections at public universities. Part I of the Note discusses the history, scope, and current application of the "one person, one vote" principle. Part II.A considers whether elected student governments at public universities might be sufficiently governmental to trigger "one person, one vote." Assuming they are, Part II.B uses the elected student governments at the University of Georgia and the University of Michigan as representative examples of how current methods of student government apportionment violate "one person, one vote." Finally, notwithstanding constitutional concerns, Part II.C argues that student governments should comply with "one person, one vote" as a matter of good policy. Michael A. Zuckerman http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/59 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/clsops_papers/59 Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:40:13 PDT The Chinese state does not allow rural collectives to sell land, but takes land from them and makes it available on the urban property market. While rural land rights are thus easily obliterated, the newly created urban rights in what used to be rural land enjoy legal protection. The state justifies these land takings by the need for urbanization and economic growth. The takings have resulted in an impressive contribution of the construction and property sector to state revenue and GDP growth, but also in unfairness toward peasants evicted from their land and homes. The example discussed here shows that certain economic theories of property rights are consistent with discrimination and should therefore be rejected. A further conclusion is that we must reconsider the claim that property rights are desirable because they serve economic growth. The discussion here contributes to an understanding of property in terms of dignity, rather than wealth. Eva M. Pils http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/10 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/10 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:58 PDT Aslihan A. Bulut http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/9 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/9 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:57 PDT Thomas W. Mills http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/8 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/8 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:56 PDT Duncan Alford http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/7 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/7 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:55 PDT Amy Burchfield International Law, Environmental Law http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/6 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/6 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:53 PDT This Article explores Microfinance and microcredit ("MFI") programs from several perspectives, with particular emphasis on human rights issues. These programs involve making small loans to people who would otherwise be unable to borrow money to facilitate them starting their own businesses: frequently, the programs focus on women borrowers in developing countries. The emphasis of MFI programs on women in developing countries makes it important to consider these programs in terms of both women's and indigenous rights, while MFI as an approach to poverty merits a discussion of economic rights. Part I of the article will explore the concept and scope of current MFI programs, describing key components of these programs and assessing comments from both fans and critics. The Grameen Bank, which has been studied extensively and has acted as a model for several other programs, will be examined in detail. Part II of this Article considers MFI in the context of human rights considerations, including economic, indigenous, and women's rights. One particular aspect of Grameen's program, namely the use of Sixteen Decisions, is also critiqued, applying organizational behavior theory. Part III will compare MFI with other approaches to poverty, including property rights initiatives, women's cooperatives and social enterprise approaches. Rebecca Farrer Human Rights Law, Women http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/5 http://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/ijli/vol36/iss3/5 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:04:52 PDT This paper briefly outlines what copyright is, the main actors in the copyright phenomenon, and the need to maintain a balance among them. The paper further discusses the difficulty in upholding copyright in relation to access to information in the University of Ghana, problems associated with the use of digital materials, the inadequacy of the permitted use principle, and the failure of copyright legislation to address the needs of the library and other groups or institutions. Emmanuel Mensah Darkey Intellectual Property