The Legal Eagle Review

Native American Issues in North Carolina

On the second Monday in October, many cities and states celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day, instead of the federally recognized but controversial Columbus Day holiday. Indigenous Peoples' Day has been officially recognized in North Carolina since 2017 when Gov. Cooper issued a proclamation declaring the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples' Day in the state. He has issued a proclamation every year. North Carolina is home to more than 122,000 American Indians and has eight historic tribes. On this show, we talk about the rich culture of Native Americans in the state and the legal issues facing their communities with guests Greg Richardson, Executive Director of the NC Commission of Indian Affairs, Native American attorney Heather McMillan Nakai, and Joshua Richardson, third-year law student, SBA President, and President of the Native American Law Students Association.

Federal Higher Education Policies and the Impact on American Women

In this episode, we have a discussion with Dr. Deondra Rose about her book “Citizens by Degree: Higher Education Policy and the Changing Gender Dynamics of American Citizenship.” Dr. Rose is an Assistant Professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy with a secondary appointment in the Department of Political Science. Also, joining the discussion is NCCU Law professor and Mayor of Carrboro, N.C., Lydia Lavelle.

NCCU Drama Department & Authur Reese Podcast

The NCCU Theatre Department is putting on a production of “A Need Fulfilled,” which tells the story of the 600 brave black women who fought for the right to serve their country as nurses in World War II. The musical drama, first performed at NCCU in spring 2019, was written and directed by NCCU Theatre Professor Arthur M. Reese. On this show, we talk with Professor Reese about the play and the NCCU Theatre Department.

The Crown Act & Natural Hair Discrimination

The CROWN Act stands for Creating a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair Act. And the recently enacted California CROWN Act makes it not only unlawful for employers and schools to ban natural and protective hairstyles African descendants commonly wear, but it also recognizes that these grooming policies constitute racial discrimination. On this show, we talk about the harms associated with race-based hair discrimination and efforts to enact the CROWN Act throughout the country with Professor Wendy Greene, Professor of Law at Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law in Philadelphia and one of the nation’s leading scholars (if not the leading scholar) on grooming code discrimination.

Reconstruction, Redemption and the Ongoing Struggle For Freedom

The Reconstruction era is typically defined as that period starting at 1865 with the ratification of the 13th Amendment and ending in 1877 with the disputed presidential election of Rutherford B. Hayes and the Compromise of 1877. But so often in school, that time period in our nation’s history is glossed over. What do we really know about Reconstruction? And how can studying that period help us better understand where we are today as a county? On this show, we talk with Attorney James Williams, retired Orange County Chief Public Defender and the organizer of an upcoming symposium on the Reconstruction period, and Dr. William Sturkey, Professor of History at UNC Chapel Hill, and author of a recently published book titled “Hattiesburg: An American City in Black and White.”

Impact of NCCU Law Alumni - Judge Ashleigh Parker Dunston

The mission of North Carolina Central University School of Law is to provide high quality, personalized, practice-oriented, and affordable legal education to historically underrepresented students from diverse backgrounds to increase diversity in the legal profession. NCCU Law graduates are encouraged and empowered to become highly competent and socially responsible lawyers and leaders committed to public service and to meeting the needs of underserved communities. This mission helps NCCU Law and its graduates create a more just society. Many NCCU Law alums are living the mission and using the legal training they received at NCCU Law to serve the community. On this show, we talked with one such alum -- Judge Ashleigh Parker Dunston. In 2017, only five years after graduating from law school, Judge Dunston was appointed by the governor to the District Court bench in Wake County, NC. Judge Dunston, who was 30 at the time of her appointment, was only the third and the youngest African American female District Court Judge in Wake County history.

Midyear Political Assessment

In 1971, the noted philosopher Marvin Gaye recorded a blockbuster song, What’s Going On, which captured the political mood of a large portion of Americans and the vast majority of African Americans. Today, we find a similar mood in this country as many people question the State of Democracy and whether the political process is being abused and misused.

As we move toward the 2020 elections, we take the time tonight to talk about an assessment of “what is going on” with respect to the actions of elected officials as they affect the rights and expectations of people. As we sit here today, there are ongoing discussions of efforts to impeach Donald Trump as President, there are widening use of racist antagonisms within the political process, and there are alarming and escalating attacks upon established political institutions and protections.

Joining us tonight to discuss this topic is the NCCU resident political science expert Dr. Jarvis Hall, a Professor in the NCCU Political Science Department. We want to thank you for taking time from your busy summer schedule to participate in this discussion.

Supreme Court Term Review 2018-19

On October 1, 2018, the first Monday in October last year, the U.S. Supreme Court began its most recent term. On Thursday, June 27, 2019, the Court issued its final decisions of the term. During this show, we’re going to talk about some of the major cases from the Supreme Court’s term and their implications. Joining us for this discussion are NCCU Law Professor and Associate Dean Malik Edwards and NCCU Law Professor Don Corbett. Both Professors Edwards and Corbett teach a number of courses including Constitutional Law.

Juneteenth & Reparations [Rebroadcast]

Juneteenth, which is celebrated on June 19th, recognizes the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, and the official conclusion of the Civil War on May 13, 1865. This celebration date results from the arrival of General Gordon Granger in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, and announced to the inhabitants that slavery had ended. June 19th became the symbolic day for the celebration of the end of slavery following celebrations which began in Texas in 1866. As a holiday, Juneteenth is now celebrated in forty-five State and in the District of Columbia. Slavery exacted a tremendous toll on enslaved Africans and upon their descendants. For generations, Africans were forced to provide free labor for Whites and were subjected to the most brutal and degrading treatment imaginable. An increasing number of people have joined in efforts to demand Reparations for the many years of forced labor endured by the ancestors of African Americans. Many also advocate for compensation for the official sanctioned oppression and dehumanization which were inflicted upon African Americans during the “Jim Crow” era, which lasted from the late 1890s up until 1970s. By every measure, the impacts of slavery and “Jim Crow” continue to negatively impact African Americans and are the principal causes of the huge wealth gap which presently exists in the United States between Africa Americans and whites. On this show, we discussed Juneteenth and Reparations with Dr. Sandy Darity, the Director of the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity at Duke University and Dr. Keisha Bentley-Edwards, an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Duke University and the Research Director at the Cook Center for Social Equity.

African American Women in Politics

In 1969, a little over 50 years ago, Shirley Chisholm was sworn in as the first African American woman to serve in Congress as a congressional representative for Brooklyn, NY. Since that time, African American women have made significant gains in politics. However, even though African American women are being elected in record numbers (at a rate that has outpaced African American men), it is still difficult for African American women to secure high-profile offices at both the state and national level. And while the Black female electorate is recognized as a valuable voting block, many of the issues that are of particular importance to Black women are still the most likely to be overlooked when elected official make policy-making decisions. On this show, we discussed African American women in politics with Chief Justice Cheri Beasley, the first African American woman Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court; Jessica Holmes, Attorney and Chair, Wake County Board of Commissioners, and a candidate for NC Commissioner of Labor; and Erika Wilson, Law Professor at UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law.