Inequality Inquiry
Shorter Form Content from the Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality
Are Infant Safe Haven Laws Fulfilling their Intended Purpose?
October 26, 2023
By: Alexandra Schrader-Dobris* In the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, infant safe haven laws are put to the test as more women give birth because of decreased abortion access.[1] During the Dobbs oral argument Justice Barrett asked whether safe haven laws were sufficient alternatives to abortion.[2] The laws allow parents to…
Continue ReadingThe Texas Crown Act Policy Woes: Facially Neutral Grooming and Appearance Policies of Texas School Districts
October 17, 2023
In our most recent Blog Post, JLI Vol. 42 Lead Online Editor Alejandrea Brown discusses challenges of the recently enacted Texas Crown Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of hair texture and protective hairstyling associated with race.
Continue ReadingLong-Term Discrimination: Addressing the Disparate Treatment of Claimants with Mental Disabilities in Long-Term Disability Insurance
July 11, 2023
By: Joseph Scanlon View/Download PDF Version
Continue ReadingRight to Spiritual Advisors During Executions: Missouri’s Latest Refusal and the Supreme Court’s Evolving Jurisprudence
June 12, 2023
In Inequality Inquiry’s latest blog post, Britane Hubbard discusses how the Missouri Department of Corrections denied Leonard “Raheem” Taylor’s request for a spiritual advisor leading up to his execution.
Continue ReadingInequality as the Vertical partiality of Public Administration: Empirical Evidence from the Judiciary
June 1, 2023
By Paolo D’Anselmi† 1. Introduction One of the tenets of democratic – and perhaps totalitarian – governance is the impartiality of public administration. Public managers in fact are supposed to take decisions without discriminating between one citizen and the next citizen nor between one politician and the next politician. This is the quality of public…
Continue ReadingPrescribing “Justice”? How the Court’s Stay in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine Demonstrates the Dangerous Growth of Policy-Driven Adjudication in Federal Courts
May 16, 2023
By Evelyn Doran* In August 2022, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) filed its articles of incorporation in Amarillo, Texas.[1] Three months later, it filed a complaint in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, the federal district court that serves Amarillo and the surrounding region.[2] In this complaint, it alleged that the…
Continue ReadingCALLING ALL ASYLUM SEEKERS: PLEASE, TELL US YOUR TRAUMA, OVER AND OVER AGAIN
May 15, 2023
A Look into the United States Asylum Process for Recent Afghan Evacuees By Coryn Johnson* I met the girl with the quiet not-quite-smile in a small building on a military base.[1] Laminate tiles in a dirty-off white made the flooring, coupled by white-paned windows framing cheap glass. The place resembled a one-room schoolhouse built in…
Continue ReadingA New Future for Social Media Platforms, Courtesy of State Legislators.
May 13, 2023
By: Anitra Varhadkar
In March 2023, the Utah Governor signed into law a bill that greatly restricts social media use for minors, citing mental health. This blog post discusses whether or not mental health is the real reason for the legislation.
Examining the Constitutionality of Targeted Residential Protest Bans
May 12, 2023
By Alexandra Schrader-Dobris Introduction: Minnesota cities are steadily banning targeted residential protests in response to several Black Lives Matter demonstrations following George Floyd’s death in 2020.[1] That summer, over one hundred Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters picketed outside Minneapolis Police Union President Bob Kroll’s house, calling for his resignation as a result of his failure…
Continue Reading“Reasonable Efforts” Inequities in Minnesota Child Welfare Removals
By Luke Srodulski When Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed House File 4065 into law on June 2, 2022, much of the media coverage surrounded provisions legalizing THC-infused edibles and beverages, and whether Republican state lawmakers had actually intended to pass them.[1] Far less notable to most observers were reforms to child welfare law.[2] These amendments…
Continue ReadingExpungement: The Missing Federal Piece
May 10, 2023
While states have created their own expungement laws, nothing similar exists under federal law. In this blog post, staff member Diana Kawka explores federal expungement law and offers solutions to solve this gap.
Continue ReadingBreonna Taylor is Not Forgotten: Department of Justice Finds Civil Rights Violations by the Louisville Metro Police Department and the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government
May 9, 2023
By Alejandrea Brown* Police violence and misconduct against Black people in America is not a new phenomenon. Studies have shown that Black people are 3.23 times more likely than White people to be killed by the police.[1] The lack of accountability concerning police misconduct and violence against the Black community is also not new trend.[2] …
Continue ReadingMinnesota Crisis Pregnancy Centers and The Positive Pregnancies Bill
By Lizzy Miller* Introduction In 2022, the federal constitutional right to abortion previously found in Roe v. Wade was overturned by Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.[1] Crucially, Dobbs found that “the state has an ‘important and legitimate interest’ in protecting fetuses that it does not have in preventing contraception.”[2] While abortion remains constitutionally protected…
Continue ReadingThe Clash Between LGBTQ Anti-Discrimination Law and Freedom of Speech in 303 Creative v. Elenis: Which Will Take the Cake?
April 2, 2023
By Elizabeth Wellhausen* In December 2022, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for 303 Creative v. Elenis, a case that is basically a “redo” of Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.[1] In Masterpiece, a baker refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple because same-sex marriage conflicted with his religious views.[2] The…
Continue ReadingWill the Indian Child Welfare Act Survive? The Supreme Court Will Decide in Haaland v. Brackeen
March 30, 2023
By Layni Miramontes* The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is a federally enacted statute that became law in 1978 as a response to the disproportionate number of Native children that were being systemically removed from their homes with little to no evidence justifying their removal. ICWA was the legislative response to the U.S. government’s brutal…
Continue ReadingFundamental, Not Absolute: Implications of the Minnesota Supreme Court’s Ruling in Schroeder v. Simon
March 29, 2023
In this blog, Staff Member John Leiner examines the Minnesota Supreme Court’s ruling in Schroeder v. Simon and how legislation could restore voting rights to Minnesotans with past felony convictions.
Continue ReadingThe Right to Choose From An Empty Shelf: Anti-Abortionists Sue to Remove FDA Approval of Crucial Medication
March 28, 2023
Staff Member Bethany Jewison analyzes a recent lawsuit where multiple anti-abortion organizations seek to repeal the FDA’s approval of an important abortion drug, mifepristone.
Continue ReadingHow Current Law Fails to Protect Defendants with Mental Illnesses from the Death Penalty
March 27, 2023
By Bailey Martin Eighteen men were executed in the United States in 2022[1], and so far, seven more men and women have been executed in 2023.[2] Despite numerous arguments that these individuals suffered from severe mental illnesses, last-minute appeals and clemency requests were unsuccessful.[3] Furthermore, upcoming scheduled executions continue this pattern of executing individuals…
Continue ReadingReason-Specific Abortion Bans Under Current Abortion Jurisprudence
March 13, 2023
View/Download PDF Version By Jocelyn Rimes† Introduction In 2021 alone, 108 restrictions on abortion were enacted in just nineteen states.[1] With the recent Supreme Court decision, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, that eliminated the federal constitutional right to obtain an abortion, abortion access is in a perilous position for millions of individuals.[2] Currently, ten…
Continue ReadingCrypto and the Climate Crisis
March 8, 2023
Cryptocurrency mining has done more than shake up financial industries – it has had an enormous impact on climate change as well. In this blog, JLI Note & Comment Editor Mallory Harrington breaks down how cryptocurrencies impact the environment and potential solutions to these problems.
Continue ReadingFace It: Police Can’t Be Trusted with Facial Recognition Technology
March 7, 2023
As facial recognition technology becomes more common, governments must confront the more sinister aspects of this new field, including privacy concerns, threats to free speech, and government surveillance. This piece by JLI Online Editor Joseph Scanlon breaks down the issues with police’s use of facial recognition technology.
Continue ReadingThe Respect for Marriage Act: Limitations, Protections, and Future Implications
March 3, 2023
In this blog post, Staff Member Elise Skarda reviews the impact of the much-anticipated Respect for Marriage Act, and, due to the Act’s limits, proposes further actions to be taken to protect same-sex marriage.
Continue ReadingNot-So Affordable Housing: Regulatory Blocks on Accessory Dwelling Units in the Twin Cities
JLI Vol. 41 Staff Member Jacque Randolph explains the benefits of and barriers to using Accessory Dwelling Units for affordable housing in the Twin Cities.
Continue ReadingNoncompete Clauses and the Federal Trade Commission’s Proposal to Ban: Pros, Cons, and Questions on the FTC’s Authority
March 1, 2023
**By Mike Fadden Introduction: On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced a new rule proposal that would result in a ban on noncompete clauses in the United States.[1] This proposed rule specifically impacts noncompete clauses in the employer-employee relationship, which “block people from working for a competing employer, or starting a…
Continue ReadingUpdated Minnesota Child Support Guidelines Starting January 1, 2023: What’s Changing and Who Will Be Impacted?
February 10, 2023
*By Sydnie Peterson Effective January 1, 2023, the Minnesota child support guidelines will undergo various targeted changes that aim to have a large impact on child support awards. Child support awards are court ordered and intended to adequately provide for children’s “care, housing, food, clothing, transportation, and additional support for medical costs” and child care.[1]…
Continue Reading