Here at the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library circulation desk, we serve as a home base to the James E. Rogers College of Law students and public patrons. As some of the first faces you see when you walk in, we are the first to answer any questions you may have on course textbooks, locating resources, or most importantly Lost & Found. However, rarely do we get questions about our additional resources and collections here in the library. As an LIS professional and advocate of continual learning, I’m often eager to encourage students to take a moment to explore all that our Libraries has to offer. That is why in recognition and celebration of Hispanic Heritage month, we at the circulation desk are going to take a moment explore the rich history of why we celebrate as well as highlight some of the exciting stories and collections we have available on campus.

The Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library is proud to partner with the Jewish Law Student Association (JLSA) to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month. Starting this week and throughout the entire month of May, we have set up a book display of relevant and insightful titles chosen by two JLSA members, Brendan Cotta and Sequoia Kay Hill. I had the pleasure of interviewing both students about the importance of such celebration and visible representation at the College of Law. Please do not forget to come to the library and peruse the books by our entrance. For your reference, I have also included the entire list of the books on display at the end of this post.

Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos) The Day of the Dead (el Día de los Muertos), is a Mexican holiday where families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives for a brief reunion that includes food, drink and celebration. A blend of Mesoamerican ritual, European religion and Spanish culture. The holiday is celebrated each year from October 31- November 2. While October 31 is Halloween, November 1 is "el Dia de los Inocentes," or the day of the children who have passed away, and All Saints Day. November 2 is All Souls Day or the Day of the Dead. According to tradition, the gates of heaven are open at midnight on October 31 and the spirits of children can rejoin their families for 24 hours. The spirits of adults can do the same on November 2.

A study published in February 2018 by the American Journal of Public Health was conducted to update previous examinations of racial/ethnic disparities in the use of lethal force by law enforcement in the United States. Join HeinOnline as we take a deeper dive into this hot topic.

The weaponization of medical language emboldened white supremacy with the authority of the white coat. How will we stop it from happening again?

Images from the Prints & Photographs Division’s collections help to illustrate the sustained contributions of Black Americans to the United States through military service over the course of the nation’s history. We hope you can join us for one of two “Finding Pictures: African Americans in the Military” webinar sessions this month (details at the …

In The Muse: Performing Arts Blog. A blog from the Library of Congress.

The Slavery in America and the World database is particularly special because of the meticulous development and organization that went into its development, opening up opportunities for unique browse and search tools. Learn how to use these tools in this guide.

“Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King, Jr. BLL-SIS is honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his vision for America. We can all look to Dr. King’s…

With more than 450 protests occurring in towns and cities of the United States and across three continents, some are calling this the biggest civil rights movement yet. Join us as we explore past civil rights movements in U.S. history, and what changes have occurred as a result.

Guest post from Nicholas Mignanelli, University of Miami   The “culture wars,” such as they are, have come to The Bluebook. Of course, The Bluebook is a cultural produ…

February is Black History Month, and the Muse Law Library is proud to present our celebration of Black achievement in the law. Here you will find the full collection of the 47 slides exhibited throughout the Library this month, each one documenting a different Black trailblazer or icon. The people featured here all displayed resounding courage and perseverance as they struggled against injustices and abuses at the hands of an oppressive, bigoted system. You will find lawyers and judges, writers and artists, and civil rights activists all connected by the common thread of a dedication to racial justice.

In an eerie echo of the 2016 presidential campaign, President Trump has denied that the brutal murder of George Floyd by police officer Derek Chauvin

The current study investigated the direct and moderating effects of racial identity, ethnic identity, Asian values, and race-related stress on positive psychological well-being among 402 Asian American and Asian international college students.

This post describes ongoing research by Kenny Peng, Arunesh Mathur, and Arvind Narayanan. We are grateful to Marshini Chetty for useful feedback. Computer

Most white people in the US are familiar with explicit racism or racism that is a conscious choice to actively hate or discriminate someone of another race.  Most white people associate explicit ra…

Elizabeth Martinez Smith noted the “balancing act” dilemma Black people face as they run the gauntlet of contradictory pressures. She describes the meaning of “running the gauntle…

By Andre Davison On February 1st, 2022, the first day of Black History Month, former Miami Dolphins head coach, Brian Flores, filed a class-action suit against the Miami Dolphins and the National F…

A group blog on constitutional law, theory, and politics

By Jessica Almeida, LISP-SIS During the AALL Virtual Meeting, the LISP-SIS sponsored program was the thought provoking “Understanding Bias in Artificial Intelligence: How Algorithms Impact Our Patr…

Moving the conversation about race forward into action.

"Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed SB 1480 into law on March 23 2021. Effective immediately the law significantly amends the Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) Illinois Equal Pay Act (IEPA) and the Illinois Business Corporation Act. The amendments affect employers' ability to use criminal conviction records in employment decisions and imposes new reporting requirements regarding pay equity."

"Juneteenth celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. It is also known as Emancipation Day Juneteenth Independence Day and Black Independence Day. On June 19 1865 Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston TX and announced the end of the Civil War and the end of slavery. Although the Emancipation Proclamation came 2 years earlier on January 1, 1863 many slave owners continued to hold their slaves captive after the announcement so Juneteenth became a symbolic date representing African American freedom. This fact sheet assists congressional offices with work related to Juneteenth. It contains sample speeches and remarks from the Congressional Record presidential proclamations and remarks and selected historical and cultural resources."

"The 2020 elections may be over but the Supreme Court will soon hear oral argument in a pair of voting-rights cases from one of last year's key battleground states and the eventual outcome may determine how courts will assess allegedly discriminatory voting rules for years to come."

"Against a backdrop of increasing national attention to police violence the Supreme Court on Thursday issued an opinion in a closely watched criminal-procedure case that clarifies the meaning of the term seizure."

"On January 5 2022 the governor of Louisiana posthumously pardoned Homer Plessy the defendant in the famous 1896 U.S. Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson. Plessy is known for affirming the legal theory of 'separate but equal' that was used to justify Jim Crow laws in the 19th and 20th centuries. It was later overturned in part by Brown v. Board of Education."

"In 1994 death penalty lawyer Stephen Bright published his seminal essay Counsel for the Poor: The Death Sentence Not for the Worst Crime but for the Worst Lawyer. His argument 'succinctly stated in the title' was that indigent defendants were disproportionately sentenced to death because their lawyers (who were often court-appointed) were under-resourced ill-prepared and failed at the most basic levels in their duty to represent their clients."

"This blog is maintained by Pamela Oliver. I am a professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. My specialties are collective action and social movements race and ethnicity and racial disparities in criminal justice."

"Race Racism And The Law considers race racism and racial distinctions in the law. It examines the role of domestic and international law in promoting and/or alleviating racism. This website makes law review scholarship (and related material) more accessible to community activists students and non-legal faculty."