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Against the Grain

Volume 28 Issue 2 Article 42

2016

Wandering the Web--Laws that Affect the Life of from to the 21st Century

Audrey Robinson-Nkongola Western University, [email protected]

Follow this and additional works at: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/atg

Part of the Library and Information Science Commons

Recommended Citation Robinson-Nkongola, Audrey (2016) "Wandering the Web--Laws that Affect the Life of Americans from Slavery to the 21st Century," Against the Grain: Vol. 28: Iss. 2, Article 42. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7771/2380-176X.7341

This document has been made available through Purdue e-Pubs, a service of the Purdue University Libraries. Please contact [email protected] for additional information. Wandering the Web — Laws that Affect the Life of Americans from Slavery to the 21st Century by Audrey Robinson-Nkongola (Assistant Professor/Campus Librarian, Western Kentucky University)

Column Editor: Jack G. Montgomery (Professor, Coordinator, Collection Services, Western Kentucky University Libraries)

Author’s Note: Part One of the bibliog- The “Law Library” link will take the researcher was an attempt to avoid the divide between raphy is a list of Websites where informa- to the online catalog of LOC Law Library. the North and the South that was to occur. tion concerns laws and cases that greatly Items such as “Extracts from the American LeFrancois summarized the aspects under impacted African American lives in the slave code” can be found. the 1850 act that made the recapture of slaves nineteenth century. These laws are listed The site states were in existence easier and the successful escape nearly impos- chronologically beginning at slave codes to from 1660s to 1860s, 200 years of codes that sible. He points out “federal marshals were Plessy v. Ferguson. The slave codes and were designed to control the daily lives of financially liable for not trying to execute the fugitive slave laws were meant to control the . and the District warrants and for allowing fugitives to escape. possibility of . As the History of Columbia’s slave codes were published on Penalties were increased for obstructing slave Channel stated, black codes and the Jim 17, 1862, one month after President owners or helping fugitives, and included Crow laws were meant to maintain white su- signed a law to compensate imprisonment.” LeFrancois states under “an premacy and Southern agricultural society. slave owners for their loss of “property.” Unsuccessful Accommodation” section the The decision declared African PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) — Compromise merely “illustrated the North’s Americans were not citizens. Plessy made http://www.pbs.org/wnet/slavery/experience/ and South’s opposing views on the issue of segregation the law of the land. Laws, such legal/history.html — broadcasted a series slavery.” The last section is a debate about as the Civil Rights Acts and Voting Rights called “Slavery and Making of America.” whether reparations should be paid to African Americans as the result of slavery. Although Act, demanded that the gov- The Website entitled, “The Slave Experience: Legal Rights and Government,” is a part of the an interesting debate, it seems out of place in ernment honor the Constitution, particularly the discussion of the Compromises. the Fourteenth Amendment — “all persons series. The page is divided vertically into two born or naturalized in the United States” are columns. The first column on the left, “Legal The History Channel Website — http:// citizens and “… forbids states from denying Rights and Government,” provides a historical www.history.com/topics/black-history/fugi- any person life, liberty or property without overview. The second column discusses the tive-slave-acts — entitled “Fugitive Slave due process of law” or “deny to any person implementation and rationale for slave codes. Acts” begins with a dramatic banner “The within its jurisdiction the equal protection According to the author, Kimberly Sabol-Tos- Slave-hunter is among us. Be on Your Guard. of the laws.”1 co, one of the first slave codes was enacted An arrest is planned for to-night (sic).” It in in 1696. It was called the summarizes the Fugitive Slave acts and cir- Part Two lists Websites of laws that “Act for the Better Ordering and Governing of cumstances they were enacted. In addition, the attempted to reserve the centuries of oppres- Negroes and Slaves.” This act originated from Website notes that statues regarding runaway sion. These laws illustrate the small gains and became the foundation for what slaves were in the as early African Americans made to obtain other states used for their slave codes. as 1643. freedom. — ARN Fugitive Slave Laws Fugitive Slave Law of 1793 Slave Codes Encyclopedia.com — http://www.ency- U.S. History.org — http://www.ushistory. clopedia.com/topic/fugitive_slave_laws.aspx org/presidentshouse/history/slaveact1793.htm The U.S. History.org — http://www.ushis- — operated by Cengage Learning, repub- — created a Website for the fugitive slave acts. tory.org/us/6f.asp — owned by Independence lished Arthur G. LeFrancois’s article entitled The title of the Website is “The President’s Hall Association of Philadelphia, provides the “Fugitive Slave Acts.” The Website includes House in Philadelphia: Fugitive Slave Act definition and rationale for slave codes. Slave Fugitive Slave laws of 1793 and 1850. The of 1793.” The Website consists of the entire codes were not implemented in the South in Website is divided into five parts, “the Fugitive document of the Fugitive Slave act. In the the 1800s, but it existed in the colonies in the Slave Act of 1793,” “the Fugitive Slave Act of “Fugitive Slave Act of 1793,” in order to force 1700s. U.S. History.org states slave codes 1850,” “an Unsuccessful Accommodation,” a person back into slavery, the burden of proof were employed to control the movement of “Slave Reparations,” and the bibliography. was on the person making the charge. Section slaves in order to avoid rebellion. The bibliography provides citations of Le- Two states “if any person takes a slave or aids At the top of the page is a drop-down menu, Francois’s resources. in the escaping of the slave shall be fined five which provides various aspects of United The site succinctly states the North and hundred dollars and up to a year in prison.” A States history. The subtitle of the page is “Af- South’s views on slavery and the recapture slave owner’s word or a document before the rican Americans in the British New World.” of slaves. The varying views caused division judge was sufficient to provide the proof that a The section for slave codes is label as “6F. between the two regions. According to Le- person should be returned to slavery. African Americans.” The subsection “f” is Francois, the “Fugitive Slave Act of 1793” WGBH New England PBS channel — where slave codes are located. The left side of was an effort to provide a means to enforce http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part2/2h62. the page includes further information on slave the constitutional clause concerning escaped html — aired a series called “Africans in codes on other sites. slaves. “The act allowed a slave owner to seize America.” The Website, “Africans in America: The American Treasures of the Library an escaped slave and present him/her before a Revolution, Fugitive Slave Act of 1793.” This of Congress: Memory — http://www.loc.gov/ federal or local judge, and, upon ownership, Website is a continuation of the program. The exhibits/treasures/trm009.html — maintained receive a certificate authorizing the slave to site quotes Article IV, Section 2 of the Constitu- by the Library of Congress (LOC), is a be retaken.” tion: “any person held to service or labor” can Website about slave codes in the District of LeFrancois maintains that the “Fugitive be returned to the owner. PBS points out the Columbia (DC). To the left of the page is an Slave Act of 1850” “was an important part of Constitution does not say a slave. Additionally, image of the actual slave code passed in D.C. the Compromise of 1850.” The Compromise continued on page 83

82 Against the Grain / April 2016 should any marshal or deputy marshal refuse of Memorabilia. The Webpage features a slide Wandering the Web to receive such warrant or other process when show of some of the museum’s artifacts, which from page 82 tendered or to use all proper means diligently are very disturbing. However, the menu tab, to execute he shall on conviction thereof, be “About us” and under the section “About the the slave law allowed any official the power to fined in the sum of one thousand dollars.” In Museum,” the goal of the museum is “to get seize a slave and return him/her to bondage. the “Fugitive Slave Act of 1793,” the fine was people to think deeply” and show the alarming Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 five hundred dollars. In addition, if a fugitive artifacts of history of in the U.S.” By escape under an officer’s control, that officer clicking on the “video” tab, various YouTube The part four PBS series — http://www.pbs. will be prosecuted “for the full value of the videos on racism are available for viewing. org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2951.html — entitled service or labor of said fugitive.” In this act, “Africans in America: Judgment Day, 1831- The Library of Congress (LOC) — http:// unlike the previous one, the is re- www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/ 1865,” included the Compromise of 1850 and sponsible for the successful return of the slave. Fugitive Slave Act. This Website discusses primarysourcesets/civil-rights — created a Section Five allows “posse commitatus” or “all teachers’ guide of primary sources and imag- the events that led up to the passage of the good citizens” to return slaves to their owners. “Fugitive of Slave Act of 1850.” The passage es of laws and segregation. The of the law was connected to the Compromise. Section Six states that the owner can pursue content can be filtered based upon Common According to PBS.org, several issues could the slave by obtaining a warrant “to seize the Core Standards, state content, grade level, have split the Union quicker than it did. For fugitive without process,” and the owner could and subject. For example, an educator can example, questions such as whether Mexico proclaim by deposition, orally or in writing, to select “Common Core Standards in grade level and California enter the Union as free or slave certify the slave belongs to him. twelve for the subject of social studies. Once states and was Santa Fe a part of the ter- Black Codes the selection has been made, a list appears with the standards the content fulfills. ritory as Texan officials claimed? Additionally, PBS — http://www.pbs.org/tpt/slav- Washington, D.C., the Union’s capital, allowed ery-by-another-name/themes/black-codes/ — Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) slavery and the selling of slaves, which “was created a Website about black codes and pig the largest in North America.” In Dred Scott, a slave, argued for his freedom laws. The Website includes videos on both before the United States Supreme Court in order to forgo the inevitability of the division codes. A pig law was a penalty, a misdemean- of the Union, a compromise was made. As a 1857. According to the majority opinion of or, and a felony solely levied against African the court, slaves and Blacks were not citizens, part of the Compromise of 1850, the “Fugitive Americans when a farm/agricultural crime Slave Act of 1850” was introduced, which was therefore, could not bring their cases before a occurred. These pig laws stayed on the books federal court. one of the agreements to keep the Union intact. well into the Jim Crow era. WGBH New England PBS — www.pbs. NBC News.com — http://www.nbcnews. According to the History Channel — com/id/24714472/ns/us_news-gut_check/t/s-s- org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2932.html — aired http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/ a series “Africans in American.” The title expansion-slavery-us/#.VcfyrstRHug — creat- black-codes — black codes were implemented ed a series called “Gut Check. America.” Gut of part four of the series is “Judgment Day: to control the former slaves and their labor. The Part 4: 1831-1865.” The title of the Website Check America was created to “ask…readers... Website provides a brief chronology of black what matters most to [them]. Then use the is called “People and Events: Dred Scott’s codes, which begin in 1865, with fight for freedom: 1846-1857.” The Website responses to help inform [the] coverage of the and South Carolina being the first states to topic.” The Website entitled “1800-1850s: is exclusively about the Scott case. At the enact them. The purpose of black codes was bottom of the page are links called “Related Expansion of Slavery in the U.S.” is a part “to show a steadfast commitment to ensuring of this series. The site includes the rationale Entries,” which related to Scott’s case. One the [white] supremacy and the survival of link entitled “David Blight on the Dred Scott of the Compromise of 1820 and 1850. These plantation agriculture in the postwar years.” compromises were created to settle a dispute decision.” David Blight, Professor of History between the Northern and Southern states as The page is divided into sections, for exam- and Black Studies of Amherst College, explains to whether a state would enter the Union as a ple “States’ rights in the Former Confederacy,” the significance of theDred Scott decision. free or a slave state. The American Anthro- “Passage of the Black Codes,” and “Enforce- ment and Impact of the Black Codes.” To the Missouri Office of the Secretary of State pological Association (AAA), the providers et al — https://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/ of information on the Website, state the Com- right of the page are illustrations and links of related topics. resources/africanamerican/scott/scott.asp promise of 1850 created the “Fugitive Slave — created an online library of historical doc- Act of 1850.” According to AAA, the act was Jim Crow Laws uments called “Missouri Digital Heritage.” the most devastating legislation to slaves and The (NPS) — The title of the Website is “Missouri State abolitionists. The act required anyone could http://www.nps.gov/malu/learn/education/ Archives, Missouri’s Dred Scott Case: 1846- capture a slave and return him/her to slavery. jim_crow_laws.htm — which is a government 1857.” The Dred Scott case began in St. Louis The slave did not have due process; therefore, entity under the United States Department of Circuit Court. Therefore, many of the detail they could be returned without a trial. As a the Interior, created a Website about Jim Crow regarding the case and the personal lives of result, free blacks could be forced into slavery. Laws. The title of the Website, “Martin Lu- Scott’s family and owners may be discussed This act caused 20,000 African Americans to ther King, Jr: National Historic Site-, in greater detail than elsewhere. According to flee from the United States to . is misleading. However, the topic is about Jim the Website, Scott case began from “an 1846 Lillian Goldman Law Library of Yale Crow laws. This page discusses the Jim Crow action when Dred Scott innocently made his Law School — http://avalon.law.yale. laws in different states. Jim Crow laws are like mark with an ‘X’ signing his petition in a pro edu/19th_century/fugitive.asp — created the the slave and black codes. These laws were forma , initiated under Missouri “Avalon Project: Documents in Law, Histo- designed to limit the African American’s every- to sue for freedom in St. Louis Circuit Court.” ry and Diplomacy.” Avalon’s purpose is to day life after he achieved freedom from slavery. The Library of Congress (LOC) — provide digital documents, which covers the For example, Mississippi had a law against http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/ topics of law, history diplomacy, politics, and the promotion of equality, i.e., “any person… DredScott.html — created an online reference diplomacy. in favor of social equality or of intermarriage guide called “Web Guides: Virtual Services The Avalon Project provided the entire ten between whites and negroes, shall be subject Digital Reference Section.” The title of the sections of the Fugitive Slave act. To summa- to fines not exceeding five hundred (500.00) page is “Primary Documents in American rize two parts of the law that different from the dollars or imprisonment not exceeding six (6) History: Dred Scott v. Sanford. LOC briefly “Fugitive Slave Act of 1793” and to illustrate months or both.” is divided by six sections, for example “Digital how this act significantly inhibited slaves’ The Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Collections,” “Chronicling,” and “Younger attempts towards freedom, Sections Five Michigan — http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/ Readers,” etc. This page is a great resource and Six will be mentioned. Section Five “… what.htm — created the Jim Crow Museum continued on page 84

Against the Grain / April 2016 83 It set the precedent for desegregated schools. “may be detrimental, but not illegal.” In 1954, Wandering the Web Sylvia Mendez was denied access to a school et al successfully argued from page 83 in California, because she was Latina. Mendez the unconstitutionality of segregated schools. et al argued successfully that denying Mendez Legal Information Institute (LII) — to find other types of information on theDred entry into the Westminster Elementary School https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/ Scott decision. was unconstitutional.* text/347/483 — has the full text of the Brown Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Smithsonian National Museum of Amer- v Board of Education. Whereas Plessy v. Fer- History Channel — http://www.history. ican History: Behring Center — *http:// guson made segregation the law of the land, com/topics/black-history/plessy-v-ferguson americanhistory.si.edu/brown/history/2-bat- Brown v. Board of Education (1954) made — summarized the details regarding Plessy tleground/pursuit-equality-2.html — devoted segregation unconstitutional. The syllabus of v. Ferguson (1896). In this landmark case, a Webpage to Brown case entitled “Separate is Brown states “segregation of White and Negro refused to sit in a separate rail- not equal: Brown v. Board of Education.” The (sic) children in the public schools of a state way car in . He argued that his civil subtitle is “In Pursuit of Equality: Mendez v. solely on the basis of race, pursuant to state rights were violated. The seven majority panel Westminster.” As stated in the introduction to laws permitting or requiring such segregation, believed that Plessy’s civil rights were not vi- this section, Sylvia Mendez et al Westminster denies to Negro children the equal protection of olated if the accommodations were “separate, Elementary School, because she was not ad- the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amend- but equal.” As a result, Plessy v. Ferguson set mitted due to her race. Among the arguments ment — even though the physical facilities and the precedent of segregation in every aspect of made in this case, one of them declared that other ‘tangible’ factors of white and Negro African Americans’ lives. “separate schools violated the Fourteenth schools may be equal.” Amendment.” As a result, other courts upheld The Leadership Conference — http:// WNET Indianapolis, Indiana PBS the decision and Californian Governor Earl channel — http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/ www.civilrights.org/education/brown/ — creat- Warren fought to desegregate schools for ed a Website about the Brown v. Board of Edu- stories_events_plessy.html — televised a series Asian and Native Americans. This Webpage in 2002 titled the “Rise and Fall of Jim Crow.” cation Supreme Court ruling. The Leadership does not explicitly make the connection with Conference on Civil and and Under “About the Series” link described “Rise Brown v. Board of Education. and Fall of Jim Crow” as a “landmark four-part The Leadership Education Fund “is a coalition series [that] explores segregation from the end The Constitutional Rights Foundation’s charged by its diverse membership of more of Civil War to the dawn of the modern Civil (CRF) — http://www.crf-usa.org/bill-of- than 200 national organizations to promote and Rights movement.” A Website was created to rights-in-action/bria-23-2-c-mendez-v-west- protect civil and human rights of all persons in summarize the various aspects of the series. minster-paving-the-way-to-school-desegre- the United States.” The Leadership Conference The Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), a United gation — mission is to educate young people was created by A. Phillip Randolph, head of States Supreme Court case that created de to be more civic-minded. As a result, the the Sleeping Car Porters, of the jure of segregation, in spite of the Fourteenth Foundation devoted Website to the Mendez NAACP, and , a leader of Amendment. case titled, “Mendez v. Westminster: Paving the National Jewish Community Relations Legal Information Institute — https:// the Way to School Desegregation.” The Advisory Council. The organization was www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/ Website’s audience is school children, parents, founded in 1950. text/163/537 — which is housed at Cornell and teachers. Teachers can find free lesson The Brown v Board of Education Website is University Law School, provided the entire plans on Black history, the Bill of Rights divided into two sections with eight sections. Plessy v. Ferguson case, including the opinion and the Common Core. The CRF provides Under the “Online Resources,” some of the of the court and lone dissenter, Justice John background information on the Mendez de- resources include “About the Brown decision,” Harlan. The opinion of the Court made by cision and segregation. In addition, it makes “Exhibits,” and a student activity booklet for Justice Brown stated that “all railway com- a clear connection between the Mendez and children, and “Resources and Articles.” The panies carrying passengers in their coaches Brown cases. According to CRF, Mendez majority of the resources and articles are found in this State shall provide equal but separate was “the first time…evidence [presented] in a elsewhere on the Web. accommodations for the white and court that school segregation harmed minority children.” The National Association for the Ad- races by providing two or more passenger vancement of Colored People (NAACP) Le- coaches for each passenger train.” Justice National Park Service (NPS) — http:// gal Defense and Educational Fund — http:// John Harlan, as the sole dissenter, rebuked www.nps.gov/nr/travel/american_latino_her- www.naacpldf.org/case/brown-v-board-educa- the ruling due to “such legislation as that here itage/Los_Angeles_US_Court_House_and_ tion — was created by Thurgood Marshall, in question is inconsistent not only with that Post_Office.html — produced a Webpage to the first African American to serve on the Su- equality of rights which pertains to citizenship, the Mendez case titled “American Latino preme Court, in 1940. The Legal Defense and National and State, but with the personal liberty Heritage: U.S. Court House and Post Office, Educational Fund (LDF) “is the country’s first enjoyed by everyone within the United States.” Los Angeles, California.” NPS included illus- and foremost civil and human rights law firm… trations of the U.S. District Court, Westminster Part 2 of Laws [Its] victories established the foundations for School of Orange County, and Sylvia Mendez the civil rights that all Americans enjoy today”. The following laws illustrate a shift towards receiving her Presidential Medal of Freedom. de facto freedom for African Americans. NPS notes the discriminatory practices of The LDF created a Website to explain the Some scholars believe the Brown v. Board of school administrators in regard to Latino Brown v. Board of Education case. The title Education (1954) decision was the beginning Americans, for example, the less “Mexican” of the Website is “Case: Landmark: Brown v. of the .5 However, a child looked and sound, he/she could attend Board of Education.” On the left side of the while others contend that 1619, when the first the white school. page are “Related Files” or cases that are re- Africans who were sold as slaves to colonists, lated to the Brown case. Below the related files began the Civil Rights era.6 No matter the Brown v. Board of Education (1954) is “Recent News.” LDF provides information date, the succeeding laws demonstrate African According to Kansas state law, cities having on civil and human right cases. Americans’ collective push towards obtaining more than 15,000 citizens were required to es- The National Parks Service (NPS) — their rights under the Constitution. tablish a for African American http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/civilrights/ka1. children. In 1950, the Kansas State Supreme htm — a governmental agency, produced a Mendez v. Westminster (1945) court heard eleven court cases that challenged Website called “: Historic Mendez v. Westminster is not a U.S. segregated schools. Later in 1950, the NAACP Places of the Civil Rights Movement.” The Supreme Court case. However, Mendez v. created a class action lawsuit, which repre- historical places featured were the center of the Westminster had an impact on the Brown v. sented thirteen families. In February 1951, a Brown v. Board of Education case — Monroe Board of Education Supreme Court ruling. federal three-judge panel ruled that segregation continued on page 85

84 Against the Grain / April 2016 listed alphabetically by subject. HG.org has voting in various places of the United States Wandering the Web 535 articles about Civil Rights. before the law was enacted. from page 84 The Legal Information Institute (LII) — The United States Department of Justice https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/civil_rights Civil Rights Division — http://www.justice. Elementary School and Sumner Elementary — is small research engineering and editorial gov/crt/about/vot/intro/intro_b.php — has a School in Topeka, Kansas. group housed at the Cornel Law School voting section on its Website. This section “Brown v. Board of Education National in Ithaca, NY. LII’s collaborators “include includes links of the “History of Federal Vot- Historic Site is the subject of an online lesson publishers, legal scholars, computer scientists, ing Rights Laws.” In addition to the history, plan produced by Teaching with Historic government agencies, and other groups and the Department of Justice provides the “1965 Places, a National Register program that offers individuals that promote open access to law Enactment” of the VRA. According to the site, classroom-ready lesson plans on properties worldwide.” LII created WEX, which is a free two events occurred that impacted the passage listed in the National Register.” legal dictionary and encyclopedia. of VRA, the murders of civil right activists and Civil Rights Laws The encyclopedia defines a civil right as the attack by state troopers on peaceful march- “an enforceable right or privilege which if in- ers on the in Selma, The United States has various Civil Rights terfered with by another gives rise to an action . These acts “persuaded…President laws. The most recognized laws are Civil for injury.” The Website provides information [Johnson] and Congress to overcome Southern Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968. Civil Rights on civil rights laws. legislators’ resistance to effective voting rights Act of 1964 forbade discriminatory practices in legislation.” aspects of employment.2 The Civil Rights Act United States Commission on Civil of 1968, also known as the Fair Housing Act of Rights (CCR) — http://www.usccr.gov/ — is The National Initiative on American His- 1968, prohibited discriminatory a federal government agency. The CCR was tory, Civics, and Service — http://www.our- practices in regards to housing.3 created as a result of the “Civil Rights Act of documents.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=100 The following Websites are 1957.” The forti- — sponsored a Website entitled “Our Docu- fied the federal government’s commitment ments: 100 Milestone Documents from the places on the Internet where 4 these laws can be found. to civil rights. CCR was “established as National Archives.” The Website is comprised an independent, bipartisan fact-finding of 100 primary, digitized documents that had FindLaw — http:// federal agency.” Its mission is to “in- an impact on American history. As a result, civilrights.findlaw.com/ form the development of national civil the actual VRA of 1965 is included as one of enforcing-your-civil-rights/ rights policy and enhance enforcement the one hundred documents. The date stamp civil-rights-laws.html — of federal civil rights laws.” The Website of August 6, 1965 can be seen. The Website which is a Thomson Reuters is sectioned by highlights, recent reports, noted the purpose of the VRA was to enforce product, “provides legal information online.” recent correspondence, recent congressional the Fifteenth Amendment, which was to allow FindLaw provides a list of the Civil Rights reports, and testimony. At the bottom right everyone the right to vote. laws. The laws can be viewed alphabetically of the page are recent meeting transcripts. or by subject. The database provides a link to each law. When clicking on the link, such as Voting Rights Act 1965 : Title VII (Equal Em- The Leadership Conference Website — Endnotes ployment Opportunities), the code and various http://www.civilrights.org/voting-rights/vra/ subsections Title VII appears. 1. https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ history.html — included the history and sec- ourdocs/14thamendment.html HG.org — http://www.hg.org/civilrgt. tions as well as the Supreme Court’s relation- html — is an “online law and government.” 2. https://www.archives.gov/education/ ship to the “Voting Rights Act of 1965” (VRA). lessons/civil-rights-act/ HG.org provides background information on According the Website, Section 2 prohibits the Civil Rights laws. The Website is divided discriminatory practices of minority voters. 3. http://www.history.com/topics/black-his- tory/fair-housing-act into informative sections such as “Excessive Section 5 “requires federal ‘preclearance’ and Police Misconduct” to “Information before covered jurisdictions.” The covered 4. http://civilrights.findlaw.com/enforc- Civil Rights Lawyer.” Further on the page is jurisdictions have historically discriminated ing-your-civil-rights/civil-rights-laws.html information about Civil Rights law. The Civil against minority voters. However, in June 2013 5. http://www.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/ Rights section is not only civil rights laws in in Shelby County v. Holder the “preclearance” links.html the United States, but international laws as was deemed unconstitutional. This act not 6. http://www.civilrights.org/resources/ well. At the top menu bar is the “Articles” only benefitted African Americans, but Asian civilrights101/chronology.html tab. Once this tab is selected, the articles are and Latino Americans were also barred from

falls into the hands of a pig-headed university have to cost $39.95. That might very well be Back Talk librarian with time on his hands. true, but as our presidential candidates repeat- from page 86 But second, I draw the conclusion that edly teach us, just because something is true more transparency is needed. If I go back to doesn’t mean I have to believe it. firm orderand are lucky, your chances of get- the CUP Website, I find that the U.S. pricing Now, I do have a six year old Cambridge ting the washable edition are very high.) for this title is $89.95 hardcover, $29.95 Press Print-on-Demand title on my private I draw two lessons from this epic saga. paperback. All evidence indicates that those shelves that is a perfectly serviceable book, First, the “who knew?” lesson that the physical prices are the same whether you receive a good paper, vividly clear printing, soundly manufacture of the books we buy nowadays is well-made artifact from the oldest university bound. Quality is possible. The problem is a far more complicated process than I realized. press in the world or a junky substitute man- not new technology but cheap people — pub- How many mass market paperbacks sold ufactured by a vendor. I harrumphed about lishers, vendors, and readers who all think that through Amazon are printed by them in this that to a non-Cambridge publisher I know, second and third quality objects are quite good way? Sure, many readers today get a book in suggesting I should get a discount for the enough for “mere” reading. The old Roman their hands and if they take a moment will sniff tacky version, and she was kind enough to senators, when their turn came in debate and at it and grumble about how books aren’t made explain to me patiently that I am getting that they wanted to express dissent, sometimes the way they used to be, but Henry Adams was discount, because if the publisher can’t count confined themselves to a two word spccch: right, “The world grew cheap, as worlds must.” on switching to POD at a certain point in the ceterum censeo. “I think otherwise.” I do. It’s just bad luck when one of those books print run, the paperback copy would probably

Against the Grain / April 2016 85