Berkeley Law Students Describe Value of Court Externships

The Recorder, September 22, by Mike McKee
http://www.law.com/jsp/ca/PubArticleCA.jsp?id=1202424682361

Amir Amiri, a student at UC-Berkeley School of Law who externed for Chief Justice George … said, “In my first meeting, I was honestly scared…. But they give you the briefs and memos and you go to town.”

“Because we’re externs,” said Luiz Arroyo, a UC-Berkeley law student who worked for Moreno … “they’re not going to give us the really hard ones that the judges would scratch their heads on.”

It can be tough at times, said Brian Israel, a UC-Berkeley law student…. “One of the staff attorneys distributes conference memos … and you have two hours … to research and argue why review should or should not be granted. It was a hair-raising experience at first, but it’s really quite useful to see what you can do in two hours.”

David Kirp Reviews New Book on Harlem Children’s Zone Program

The American Prospect, September 22, by David L. Kirp
http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=audacity_in_harlem

“From the outset, the Harlem Children’s Zone has been both the beneficiary and the victim of hype and expectations. The national media regard New York City as the center of the known universe, and so this high-voltage program has been smothered with coverage. Out-of-town delegations, looking to devise their own children’s zones, descend in droves.”

Maria Echaveste Blames Employers, Not Immigrants, for Cheap Labor Practices

The American Prospect, September 22, by Maria Echaveste
http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=african_american_and_immigrants_the_common_good

“By focusing on the illegal status of millions of people, the vast majority of whom are workers, and their violation of civil immigration laws, the public fails to ask the real questions: Why do employers prefer immigrants to native-born Americans? Why don’t these jobs pay more, be safer, and offer benefits, including health care? Why is it that communities are subsidizing the lack of health care and housing offered by the meat-packing, agricultural, construction, and hospitality industries?”

Maria Ledesma Joins Affirmative Action Debate

Diverse Issues in Higher Education, September 18, by Maria Ledesma
http://www.diverseeducation.com/artman/publish/article_11696.shtml

“Affirmative action may not be a perfect policy, but an open and honest dialogue about the policy’s future would be an important and welcome exercise. However, such a dialogue must be framed within a contextual historic backdrop. We must avoid being swayed by … arguments that have come to condemn affirmative action as simply a ‘preference’ for the ‘unmeritorious.'”