Continuity of Services: Social Justice

Want to learn more?  Visit HUSL Library's Social Justice Guide, compiled for Howard University students and faculty as well as interested members of the public as an introduction to resources on the topics of (1) racial disparity, (2) racial diversity, (3) implicit bias and microaggression, (4) cultural sensitivity, (5) protests, and (6) access to justice. 

ECONOMY AND STRUCTURAL INEQUITY

• How the Coronavirus Outbreak Has – and Hasn’t – Changed the Way Americans Work (Pew Research Center, December 9, 2020)
• Wiped out: Safeway sued for price gouging toilet paper and other supplies (The Counter, June 11, 2020)
• INSIGHT: AGs Turn Focus to Consumer Credit, Mortgages, Stimulus Checks (Bloomberg Law, May 27, 2020)
• This Working Man Was Ready to Retire. But the Virus Took Him. (NYT, May 5, 2020)
• More Than a Lifeline (Inside Higher ED, May 5, 2020)
• Virus Lays Bare Inequality on Buses, Trains With Deadly Results (Bloomberg Law, May 4, 2020)
• Why are so many black-owned small businesses shut out of PPP loans? (NBC News, April 29, 2020)
• Rural America Is Starting To Feel the Impact of the Coronavirus (Center for American Progress, April 28. 2020)
• Unemployment filing failures: millions unable to file for unemployment (Economic Policy Institute, April 28, 2020)
• 'Risking My Life' to Truck in Milk, Wine and Hand Sanitizer (NYT, April 28, 2020)
• Job of Health? Restarting the Economy Threatens to Worsen Economic Inequality (NYT, April 27, 2020)
• Not all unemployed people get unemployment benefits (Pew Research Center, April 24, 2020)
• Women academics seem to be submitting fewer papers during coronavirus (The Lily, April 24, 2020) 
• Color of Covid: The racial justice paradox of our new stay-at-home economy (CNN, April 18, 2020)
• How Millions of Women Became the Most Essential Workers in America (NYT, April 18, 2020)
• Job Cuts in Pandemic Come so Fast That Warning Laws are Gutted (Bloomberg Law, April 17, 2020)
• Struggling in a Good Economy, and Now Struggling in a Crisis (NYT, April 16, 2020)
• Despite Federal Ban, Landlords are Still Moving to Evict During the Pandemic (ProPublica, April 16, 2020)
• US Job Losses Pass 22M with Gig Workers Waiting for Aid (Bloomberg Law, April 16, 2020)
• Rolling Through the Pandemic (NYT, April 15, 2020)
• IMF Predicts the Worst Downturn Since the Great Depression (NYT, April 14, 2020)
• Businesses owned by women and minorities have grown. Will COVID-19 undo that? (Brookings, April 14, 2020)
• Hoping to Save the Postal Service, People Rush to Buy Stamps (NPR, April 14, 2020)
• Major Outbreak in San Francisco Shelter Underlines Danger for the Homeless (NYT, April 13, 2020)
• Coronavirus Stimulus Checks Up to $1200 Start This Week: Are You Getting One? (CNET, April 13, 2020)
• The Coronavirus Class Divide: Space and Privacy (NYT. April 13, 2020)
• It's 'People, People, People' as Lines Stretch Across America (NYT, April 12, 2020)
• Poultry Worker’s Death Highlights Spread of Coronavirus in Meat Plants (NYT, April 9, 2020)
• Coronavirus Numbers Reflect NYC's Deep Economic Divide (The Intercept_, April 9, 2020)
• US Jobless Claims Exceed 6 Million for Second Week in a Row (Reuters, April 9, 2020)
• Economists Predict Coronavirus to Cause Deep US Contraction (WSJ, April 8, 2020)
• Uncle Sam On Track to Subsidize More Than Half the Workforce (Forbes, April 6, 2020)
• Social Distancing is a Privilege (NYT, April 5, 2020)
• Location Data Says It All: Staying at Home During Coronavirus is a Luxury (NYT, April 3, 2020)
• We Need Social Solidarity, Not Just Social Distancing (NYT, March 14, 2020)
• Not Everyone Can Work from Home (Economic Policy Institute, March 19, 2020)

HEALTH (IN)JUSTICE

• OSHA reveals most-violated standards related to COVID-19 (HR DIVE, November 30, 2020)
• More Worker Endangerment: Pernicious COVID-19 Contractual Waivers (Jurist, June 2, 2020)
• How COVID-19 Human Endangerment Might Be Approached as a Domestic Crime or an International Crime Against Humanity (Jurist, May 20, 2020)
• For Latinos and Covid-19, Doctors Are Seeing an 'Alarming' Disparity (NYT, May 7, 2020)
• Sen. Kamala Harris Is Introducing A Bill: Racial Disparity In Coronavirus Cases (BuzzFeedNews, April 30, 2020)
• How Patent Abuse Could Hurt the Fight Against the Pandemic (Slate, April 27, 2020)
• More Covid Testing for Minorities Is Key to Opening U.S. Economy (Bloomberg Law, April 27, 2020)
• States tell workers they'll lose unemployment benefits if they refuse to return to jobs (The Hill, April 28, 2020)
• How Do You Sign 'Don't Drink Bleach'? (New York Times, April 28, 2020)
• Toxic Cleanup Slowdown Hits Low Income Areas Hardest (Bloomberg Law Podcast, April 22, 2020)
• Why one employer won't let COVID-19 derail 'critical' diversity efforts (HR Dive, April 21, 2020)
• Mask-Maker 3M Joins States in Fight Against Virus Price Gouging (Bloomberg Law, April 17, 2020)
• EPA Pandemic Enforcement Policy Draws Environmental Lawsuit (Bloomberg Law, April 16, 2020)
• Four Reasons Coronavirus is Hitting Black Communities so Hard (WAPO, April 10, 2020)
• My Disability Doesn't Shorten My Life Expectancy (WAPO, April 9, 2020)
• America Set up Black Communities to be Harder Hit by COVID-19 (The Verge, April 8, 2020)
• Black Americans Face Alarming Rates of Coronavirus Infection in Some States (NYT, April 7, 2020) 
• What the Racial Data Show: Pandemic Seems to be Hitting POC the Hardest (The Atlantic, April 6, 2020)
• Strategies to Combat COVID-19: Protecting Vulnerable Communities (Health Affairs, March 19, 2020)
• How the Coronavirus Threatens Native American Communitieis (The Hill, March 19, 2020)
• Five Things to Know About Coronavirus and People with Disabilities (Forbes, March 8, 2020)

XENOPHOBIA

• The Disturbing American History Of Anti-Asian Discrimination (Character Media, May 13, 2020)
• Pres. Proclamation Suspends Entry of Certain Immigrants (Center for Immigrants' Rights Clinic, April 22, 2020)
• Job Discrimination in Pandemic Can Extend Past Asian Workers (Bloomberg Law, April 15, 2020)
• Farmworkers, Mostly Undocumented, Become 'Essential' During Pandemic (NYT, April 10, 2020)
• Your Racism Is Showing: Coronavirus and the Racist History of Pandemics (The Root, March 19, 2020)
• How Social Distancing Could Lead to a Spike in White Nationalism (Rolling Stone, March 18, 2020)
• Asian-American Leaders Condemn COVID-19 Racism (Colorlines, March 13, 2020)
• The Coronavirus Doesn't Need a Visa: COVID-19's Effect on Immigrant Populations (Ms., March 13, 2020)
• When Xenophobia Spreads Like a Virus (NPR, March 4, 2020)
• The Science of Why Coronavirus Exposes Racism and Xenophobia (Forbes, February 28, 2020)
• UCLA Professor Explains Racism's Role in the Coronavirus Crisis (PBS, February 12, 2020)

PRISONERS' RIGHTS

• A State-by-State Look at Coronavirus in Prisons (The Marshall Project, November 20, 2020)
• COVID-19 in Correctional and Detention Facilities (CDC, May 15, 2020)
• A Dangerous Limbo: Probation and Parole in the Time of COVID-19 (the Marshall Project, May 6, 2020)
• Over 70 percent of tested inmates in federal prisons have COVID-19 (PBS, April 29, 2020)
• Chicago's Jail Is Top US Hot Spot as Virus Spreads Behind Bars (NYT, April 8, 2020)
• Federal Judge to Order Inspection of DC Jail in Coronavirus Lawsuit (WAPO, April 7, 2020)
• 'Jails are Petri Dishes': Inmates Freed as the Virus Spreads Behind Bars (NYT, March 30, 2020)
• 'We Are Not a Hospital': A Prison Braces for the Coronavirus (NYT, March 17, 2020)

ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND JUSTICE

• Infodemic: The other face of epidemics (COVID-19) (Open Access Government, December 4, 2020)
• NLADA COVID-19 Updates and Resources: "This is a space for advocates to share resources and find policy developments affecting the delivery of legal services and access to justice. This page will be updated and expanded as the pandemic and its collateral consequences continue to develop."
• In response to Reporters Committee letter, US Supreme Court says it plans to issue new rule on sealing records (RCFP, September 3, 2020)
• Reporters Committee, NPR urge Supreme Court to adopt rule governing sealed records (RCFP, September 3, 2020)
• “Shadowland,” a project about conspiracy thinking in America (The Atlantic, 2020)
• These disinformation researchers saw the coronavirus 'infodemic' coming (NBC, May 14, 2020)
• Amid the Epidemic, It Can Be Hard to Know What's Going On Behind Closed Doors (NPR, April 19, 2020)
• Federal Circuit Opinions Surge as Virus Worries Cancel Arguments (Bloomberg Law, April 16, 2020) 
• The Judge Will See You on Zoom, But The Public is Mostly Left Out (Marshall Project, April 13, 2020)
• SCOTUS to Hold Arguments by Teleconference and Make Live Audio Available (Law360, April 13, 2020)
• Reporters Committee Urges Congress to Protect Access to Judicial Proceedings (RCFP, April 9, 2020)
• Human Rights Dimensions of COVID-19 Response (Human Rights Watch, March, 19, 2020)

PRIVACY

• The Importance of Equity in Contact Tracing (LAWFARE, May 1, 2020)
• COVID-19 tracing apps might not be optional at work (MARKETPLACE, April 30, 2020)
• How is the Justice System Responding to the Coronavirus? (The Marshall Project, March 28, 2020)
• What You Should Know About Online Tools During COVID-19 (Electronic Frontier Foundation, March 19, 2020)

TAKE ACTION

• ABA: Disaster Relief Pro Bono Portal, use this resource to find pro bono opportunities, including those helping victims of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Willing to volunteer pro bono legal services to individuals impacted by the coronavirus pandemic but not sure where to promote those pro bono legal services?  The Legal Forum is collecting information on attorneys willing to volunteer help to pandemic victims on a pro bono basis. The coronavirus pandemic is creating a dire need for attorneys to represent clients facing eviction, foreclosure, bankruptcy, or devastating debt collection. Until the emergency subsides, The Legal Forum plans to list attorneys and law firms in their newsletter space who are willing to volunteer to represent at least a few clients on a pro bono basis.

  • If you can help, please send an email to The Legal Forum giving your firm’s name, the name of the contact person, email address, phone number and service you will provide, such as representation in eviction, foreclosure or bankruptcy cases. Send the emails to tramstack@gmail.com with “pro bono” in the subject line.  Information about the listings will be sent to media organizations throughout the Washington area.  Note that in a few cases, a dramatically reduced rate might be acceptable if pro bono is not possible. If that is your reality, please list your rate in the "pro bono" email to tramstack@gmail.com.

• Take a look at the Umanity app.  It's described as "an online platform that anyone can use to efficiently coordinate and safely connect community needs to resources in real-time.  For free."  It helps communities organize and mobilize resources by mapping and matching local needs to volunteers and donations.

• I'm not Racist.  Am I?

  • Eight episodic chapters allow individuals to engage with the content at their own pace.  It's designed to help you understand the content, connect it to your own life and community, and think about what actions you'll take to become antiracist.  This online course is freely available for the month of April with code LDR-30D-FR416. 

• Irish Return an Old Favor, Helping Native Americans Battling the Virus (NYT, May 5, 2020)
• How to Help Those Weathering Financial Storms (NYT, April 14, 2020)
• 10 Ways to Fight for Social Justice During the Coronavirus Pandemic (Teen Vogue, March 30, 2020)
• Mapping Our Social Change Roles in Times of Crisis (Medium, March 27, 2020)
• Centering Justice During Times of Uncertainty and Four Things You Can Do Now (The Justice Collective, March 11, 2020)

• Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
  • Joint Center Hosts Briefing with FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks on COVID-19 & The Digital Divide (April 10, 2020)
  • Joint Center Convenes Black Organizations for COVID-19 Discussion with CBC Chair Karen Bass (March 27, 2020)

• National Center for State Courts: Coronavirus and the Courts Webinars 
  • Recordings of the webinars will be posted.  

• Skoll World Forum: Legal Empowerment, COVID-19 & Expanding Access to Justice with Technology (April 1, 2020, recording available here)

• COVID-19 Washburn School of Law Colloquium: Socio-Legal Dimensions (March 24, 2020 & April 6, 2020)

• COVID-19 Columbia and Duke Law Virtual Event Series: Advancing Rights and Justice During a Pandemic (April 8 - April 21, 2020)
  • COVID-19 in Conflict: What to Expect? And What Can be Done?
  • States of Emergency and Government Powers in and After the Pandemic
  • Impacts of COVID-19 on Marginalized Groups: Implications for Policy and Advocacy
  • COVID-19's Impact on Health, Housing, Water, and Sanitation: Socioeconomic Rights in Crisis
  • Flattening the Pandemic Curve While Upholding Digital and Information Rights

• ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice COVID-19 Series
  • Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic on African Americans and Communities of Color
  • Expanding Pretrial Release in the Age of COVID-19
  • New Jersey COVID-19 Jail Release Agreement
  • COVID-19 and the Compassionate Release of the Elderly, Infirm or High Risk
  • Reentry Planning for COVID-19 Releases
  • Issues Affecting Native American Communities During the COVID-19 Crisis
  • COVID-19 and Child Welfare Cases
  • Coronavirus: Homeless Community Adverse Impact from Eviction & Lack of Safe Housing
  • Public Health Measures in Response to COVID-19
  • Lessons from Past Disasters: Criminal Justice Response to COVID-19
  • COVID-19: Threates to Democracy and to Public Safety Through the Lens of the Asian American Experience
  • Religious Freedom Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Consumer Debtor Protections & Rights for Low-Income Americans During the COVID-19 Pandemic
  • Immigration Policy and Practice during the Coronavirus Pandemic
  • COVID-19 and Tax Relief for Individuals and Tax-Exempt Status Under the CARES Act
  • Coronavirus: Protecting Safety-Net Public Benefits During the Pandemic
  • Learning for Students with Disabilities in the Time of COVID-19