Racism and the Law is a text and casebook that provides an introduction to the close and complex relationships between race and law, legal institutions, and legal personnel. It combines original text with primary source documents such as judicial decisions and statutory materials. Historical, political, and linguistic analyses of legal materials are provided throughout the text. The book deals with the major historical legal developments that have caused and reinforced discrimination against African Americans, Asians, and Latinos, and addresses the courageous efforts of civil rights lawyers and organizations working for racial justice and equality in America. The volume is intended for use in undergraduate studies in several fields, including political science, history, African American studies, public policy, sociology, and criminal justice. It includes a bibliography for readers who wish to explore the topics in greater depth and the concluding chapter features specific directions for prospective lawyers who hope to work for racial justice in the early 21st century.

"Censorship is a casebook designed to help readers understand the complexities of censorship and expressive freedom in America during the past century. The cases and other materials presented in this volume reveal many of the high and low points in the continuing struggle between the promise of the First Amendment and the reality of intermittent censorship and government interference. By focusing on concrete cases and examples, the volume encourages students and other readers to explore the underlying conflicts of values that First Amendment and censorship controversies promote. Censorship is divided into four thematic units: Freedom of Communication: The First Amendment and its Many Limitations Schools and Freedom of Expression The Arts and Censorship Reputational Censorship: Beyond the First Amendment

" Paul Von Blum is Senior Lecturer in African American Studies and Communication Studies at UCLA, where he has taught since 1980, after 11 years of faculty service at the University of California at Berkeley. He has received Distinguished Teaching Awards at both Berkeley and UCLA and teaches a course in Race, Racism and the Law. Trained originally as a lawyer at UC Berkeley, he has handled racial profiling and other public interest cases for 40 years. He is the author of six previous books and over 100 articles on art and cultural history, law, education, and politics."