Articles

North Carolina's contracting quotas found to be unconstitutional in H.B. Rowe v. Tippett

July 23, 2010 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

Author:  Ralph W. Kasarda Under the guise of its Minority Business Enterprise and Woman Business Enterprise Program (MWBE Program), North Carolina has operated a discriminatory public contracting program since 1989.  Yesterday, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, in H.B. Rowe v. Tippett, held that most of the MWBE Program is unconstitu ...

Articles

Is there a de minimis exception to the Equal Protection Clause?

March 31, 2010 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

Author: Ralph W. Kasarda Would the government be correct in arguing that a public contracting scheme that discriminates and grants preferences on the basis of race is not subject to strict scrutiny, if the program discriminates only a little bit? I recently participated in oral argument before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in PLF& ...

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Doe v. Kamehameha Schools : "Kill Haole Day" is not a reasonable concern

March 05, 2010 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

Author: Ralph W. Kasarda For anyone unfamiliar with Native Hawaiian language, a "haole" is a term used to describe a foreigner, especially a white person. Over time, it has become a derogatory slang term to be used in contempt of white people. See here. While some Native Hawaiians may use the term in contempt, others … ...

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The "race" for stimulus money

February 25, 2010 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

Author: Ralph W. Kasarda The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was signed into law by President Obama just over a year ago, on February 17, 2009.  The Recovery Act distributes $787 billion dollars through tax benefits, contracts, grants, loans and entitlements.  Soon after the Recovery Act became law, an argument emerged that the s ...

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What does "reverse discrimination" mean?

February 19, 2010 | By PACIFIC LEGAL FOUNDATION

Author: Joshua Thompson Discrimination.  Period.  With respect to race, it means treating certain people differently because they have a certain favored or disfavored skin color. I am often dismayed by opponents of racial preferences (opponents of discrimination), or proponents of equality under the law, when they use the the term & ...