I am devoting today and tomorrow to participate in #ScholarStrike.
Subject: Fall 2020 LAW 315 A01 (13083) - Announcements: Readings for Day 1 of Class - A Comment on #ScholarStrike
Hello Class:
I am participating in #ScholarStrikeCanada. If you haven't been following this thread on social media, here is some background:
http://scholarstrike.ca https://scholarstrikecanada.ca
It is not my intention to withdraw my labour (by cancelling class), but I do want to begin the course on a foundation which acknowledges that issues of racial injustice, anti-Black and anti-Indigenous police violence are not just questions for Criminal Law. On the contrary, I believe they are at the heart of questions about Economy, and are questions that will run like a taproot through our course on Business Associations.
You may choose, as individual students, to participate in one of many digital Teach-in events that are taking place over the next two days. They will be live-streamed, as well as recorded so they can be accessed later. There are amazing events happening. Here is a link to the schedule. https://scholarstrikecanada.ca/schedule/. I will be recording the first class, and will not be taking attendance, so you can choose the form and proximity of your own engagement with this moment.
And so, we will begin our first class on Business Associations with a discussion of issues of racial injustice police violence and economy, whether in the US, or here in Canada. Tomorrow I will speak with you about some texts that can help us in this conversation. The first of these is a chapter from Patricia Williams book, The Alchemy of Race and Rights: Diary of a Law Professor. I adore this book. I first read it in grad school (when I was living in Michigan), and I return to it on a yearly basis. I highly recommend it on so many fronts. Amongst other things, she centers discussions of race in the context of discussions of economy (asking question like, what does it mean to be object of property, rather than a subject). She helps make visible that so many instances of racial violence emerge in contexts of economy (who can purchase what, where people are expected to shop or not shop, who can access what kind of financing, prices available to different customers, and more). It is also beautiful writing. See her chapter, “Teleology on the Rocks”. I invite you to read it, thinking in particular about the ‘economic assumptions’ behind the stories she recounts.
There is much in these chapters that resonates with the police violence we have seen over the past year, and with the second suggested text, which is a recent episode from political comedian Hasan Minhaj’s Netflix show, Patriot Act [you can find it here on youtube]:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_FE78X-qdY
Minhaj, in this episode, is speaking to the death of George Floyd, and calling out anti-black racism in his own South Asian community. In doing this, he provides a model for many of us to take on the difficult conversations of patterns of racism, homophobia, and oppression that are present in the very communities that nurture us. Certainly, the arguments he makes are equally important for settler folk (such as myself) in a colonial Canada. But what really strikes me is the reminder that acts of police violence are often set in motion by the seemingly neutral decision-making of ordinary people in spaces of economy. I am guessing (given its viral status) that many of you will have seen this episode. But it is a hard watch (I have seen it many times, but it still grips me by the throat, and it will not be to everyone’s taste or comfort level). Video is easier for some folks, and harder for others, so you can gauge for yourself the proximity or distance you wish to have to both of these texts.
What I find important about both these texts are the ways they show us how systemic injustice is embedded and embodied in the ‘small’ decisions of ordinary individuals, and often individuals in contexts we might call economic. The economy is neither neutral, nor distant from our lives and relations in a complex world. I will begin tomorrow’s class with some of these big questions.
In advance, I would invite you to take a look at Williams or Minhaj, and also to re-read TRC Call to Action #92. This is the section on Business and Reconciliation of the "Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action".
Business and Reconciliation
92. We call upon the corporate sector in Canada to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a reconciliation framework and to apply its principles, norms, and standards to corporate policy and core operational activities involving Indigenous peoples and their lands and resources. This would include, but not be limited to, the following:
i. Commit to meaningful consultation, building respectful relationships, and obtaining the free, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous peoples before proceeding with economic development projects.
ii. Ensure that Aboriginal peoples have equitable access to jobs, training, and education opportunities in the corporate sector, and that Aboriginal communities gain long-term sustainable benefits from economic development projects.
iii. Provide education for management and staff on the history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal–Crown relations. This will require skills based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.
Just a final note on the Patricia Williams chapter. She was the first Black woman ever hired at Harvard Law, and then they didn’t keep her on, and Derek Bell (an other famous black critical race prof) resigned in protest. She is lovely.
I received an email from Rebecca inviting her brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews to participate with her in #ScholarStrike.
And by extension, she is inviting anyone who reads this blog.
So here it is, dear reader. Her words are below. An invitation to join her on the first day of Law 315 Business Associations. Maybe you will find time for a few sessions of #ScholarStrike as well.
Rebecca Begins:
I had a long thought about how to participate in ScholarStrike, and this was the result. There should be some amazing stuff on the go for the digital teach-ins. Maybe some of the cousins will be interested too.
Rebecca Begins:
 |
| I am participating in #ScholarStrikeCanada |
I had a long thought about how to participate in ScholarStrike, and this was the result. There should be some amazing stuff on the go for the digital teach-ins. Maybe some of the cousins will be interested too.
Subject: Fall 2020 LAW 315 A01 (13083) - Announcements: Readings for Day 1 of Class - A Comment on #ScholarStrike
Hello Class:
I am participating in #ScholarStrikeCanada. If you haven't been following this thread on social media, here is some background:
http://scholarstrike.ca https://scholarstrikecanada.ca
It is not my intention to withdraw my labour (by cancelling class), but I do want to begin the course on a foundation which acknowledges that issues of racial injustice, anti-Black and anti-Indigenous police violence are not just questions for Criminal Law. On the contrary, I believe they are at the heart of questions about Economy, and are questions that will run like a taproot through our course on Business Associations.
You may choose, as individual students, to participate in one of many digital Teach-in events that are taking place over the next two days. They will be live-streamed, as well as recorded so they can be accessed later. There are amazing events happening. Here is a link to the schedule. https://scholarstrikecanada.ca/schedule/. I will be recording the first class, and will not be taking attendance, so you can choose the form and proximity of your own engagement with this moment.
And so, we will begin our first class on Business Associations with a discussion of issues of racial injustice police violence and economy, whether in the US, or here in Canada. Tomorrow I will speak with you about some texts that can help us in this conversation. The first of these is a chapter from Patricia Williams book, The Alchemy of Race and Rights: Diary of a Law Professor. I adore this book. I first read it in grad school (when I was living in Michigan), and I return to it on a yearly basis. I highly recommend it on so many fronts. Amongst other things, she centers discussions of race in the context of discussions of economy (asking question like, what does it mean to be object of property, rather than a subject). She helps make visible that so many instances of racial violence emerge in contexts of economy (who can purchase what, where people are expected to shop or not shop, who can access what kind of financing, prices available to different customers, and more). It is also beautiful writing. See her chapter, “Teleology on the Rocks”. I invite you to read it, thinking in particular about the ‘economic assumptions’ behind the stories she recounts.
There is much in these chapters that resonates with the police violence we have seen over the past year, and with the second suggested text, which is a recent episode from political comedian Hasan Minhaj’s Netflix show, Patriot Act [you can find it here on youtube]:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_FE78X-qdY
Minhaj, in this episode, is speaking to the death of George Floyd, and calling out anti-black racism in his own South Asian community. In doing this, he provides a model for many of us to take on the difficult conversations of patterns of racism, homophobia, and oppression that are present in the very communities that nurture us. Certainly, the arguments he makes are equally important for settler folk (such as myself) in a colonial Canada. But what really strikes me is the reminder that acts of police violence are often set in motion by the seemingly neutral decision-making of ordinary people in spaces of economy. I am guessing (given its viral status) that many of you will have seen this episode. But it is a hard watch (I have seen it many times, but it still grips me by the throat, and it will not be to everyone’s taste or comfort level). Video is easier for some folks, and harder for others, so you can gauge for yourself the proximity or distance you wish to have to both of these texts.
What I find important about both these texts are the ways they show us how systemic injustice is embedded and embodied in the ‘small’ decisions of ordinary individuals, and often individuals in contexts we might call economic. The economy is neither neutral, nor distant from our lives and relations in a complex world. I will begin tomorrow’s class with some of these big questions.
In advance, I would invite you to take a look at Williams or Minhaj, and also to re-read TRC Call to Action #92. This is the section on Business and Reconciliation of the "Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action".
Business and Reconciliation
92. We call upon the corporate sector in Canada to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a reconciliation framework and to apply its principles, norms, and standards to corporate policy and core operational activities involving Indigenous peoples and their lands and resources. This would include, but not be limited to, the following:
i. Commit to meaningful consultation, building respectful relationships, and obtaining the free, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous peoples before proceeding with economic development projects.
ii. Ensure that Aboriginal peoples have equitable access to jobs, training, and education opportunities in the corporate sector, and that Aboriginal communities gain long-term sustainable benefits from economic development projects.
iii. Provide education for management and staff on the history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal–Crown relations. This will require skills based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.
Just a final note on the Patricia Williams chapter. She was the first Black woman ever hired at Harvard Law, and then they didn’t keep her on, and Derek Bell (an other famous black critical race prof) resigned in protest. She is lovely.
Rebecca Johnson
Professor of Law | Associate Director, Indigenous Law Research Unit
University of Victoria Faculty of Law
Territory of the Songhees, Esquimalt and WSÁNEĆ peoples
Tel 250-721-8187 | Fax 250-721-8146
rjohnson@uvic.ca
Co-curator, Project Pedagogy: https://onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/projectpedagogy/
Co-curator, #ReconciliationSyllabus: https://reconciliationsyllabus.wordpress.com/
Personal Website: https://rebeccaj63.wordpress.com/
Professor of Law | Associate Director, Indigenous Law Research Unit
University of Victoria Faculty of Law
Territory of the Songhees, Esquimalt and WSÁNEĆ peoples
Tel 250-721-8187 | Fax 250-721-8146
rjohnson@uvic.ca
Co-curator, Project Pedagogy: https://onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/projectpedagogy/
Co-curator, #ReconciliationSyllabus: https://reconciliationsyllabus.wordpress.com/
Personal Website: https://rebeccaj63.wordpress.com/
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