Uploaded February 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Efforts to erase race-conscious policies threaten broader equality initiatives.
Olatunde C.A. Johnson, a professor of law at@columbia University, discusses the legal and historical dimensions of affirmative action, tracing its origins from civil rights-era policies to recent Supreme Court rulings. She highlights how the latest challenges to race-conscious admissions at Harvard and UNC represent a broader movement to dismantle policies that address racial inequality—not just in education, but in employment, environmental justice, and beyond. Johnson critiques the shift toward "colorblind" interpretations of the Equal Protection Clause, arguing that they ignore the amendment’s abolitionist roots and purpose. As affirmative action faces increasing legal scrutiny, she urges a deeper understanding of its role in fostering substantive equality.
Learn more about her work at https://www.law.columbia.edu/faculty/olatunde-c-johnson
Efforts to erase race-conscious policies threaten broader equality initiatives.
Olatunde C.A. Johnson, a professor of law at@columbia University, discusses the legal and historical dimensions of affirmative action, tracing its origins from civil rights-era policies to recent Supreme Court rulings. She highlights how the latest challenges to race-conscious admissions at Harvard and UNC represent a broader movement to dismantle policies that address racial inequality—not just in education, but in employment, environmental justice, and beyond. Johnson critiques the shift toward "colorblind" interpretations of the Equal Protection Clause, arguing that they ignore the amendment’s abolitionist roots and purpose. As affirmative action faces increasing legal scrutiny, she urges a deeper understanding of its role in fostering substantive equality.
Learn more about her work at https://www.law.columbia.edu/faculty/olatunde-c-johnson
![Intellectual Property Is Broken [Dean Baker]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/cJJZUgt8kVM/mqdefault.jpg "Intellectual Property Is Broken [Dean Baker]
Why are we incentivizing wealth at the expense of health?
Dean Baker (@cepr) breaks down why our intellectual property system is in desperate need of reform.
Produced by Matthew Kulvicki & Nick Alpha")
