The Suffocation of Power: We Can’t Breathe
“Until the story of the hunt is told by the lion, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.”
- African Proverb
Past the Collective Gasp for Help: A Call for Papers
The Intercultural Human Rights Law Review recognizes its privilege and unique platform to give voice to the voiceless. In this publication, we commit to the duties of: actively listening to the solutions offered from within the marginalized; questioning who is showing up to take a seat at the table; and answering our call to action.
How do we move forward as a people, as a community, as a nation, as members of a global family?
Recognizing that intercultural dialogue allows for greater resources and solutions, we issue a call for papers for a symposium on the problem of “We Can’t Breathe,” as described. The papers may come from authors from among the adversely affected groups, as a statement of their treatment of marginalization; they may come from members of majority groups as they realize persisting wrongs; and they may come from scholars who try to identify their observational standpoint as honestly as they can, possibly under the guidance of the New Haven School. The authors may come from around the globe, and include perspectives from the human rights community inside and outside of the United States. They may be lightly footnoted or not footnoted at all; or they may be full-fledged articles. While some may highlight the problem in the vivid experience of the person affected, others might summarize the literature, and ideally, they should arrive at recommendations. Both process and outcome should be oriented at mutual respect and the goal of an order of human dignity wherein everybody can flourish and develop with the support and encouragement of others, without discrimination.
Submission period closes on December 31st, 2020. Contact the Intercultural Human Rights Law Review by phone at (305) 582-6035 or through e-mail at ihrlawreview@stu.edu.
Acknowledgment of the Inequitable Distribution of Power
As people advocating for human dignity, many are not “privileged” to engage in indifference, although occasionally there is a need to do so to preserve one's sanity. Advocating for the innate rights of others requires that we do more than just address the immediate needs of the marginalized - it requires the acknowledgment of power, of its distribution, and calling things out by name. True healing only comes when we identify the “illness.”
The Power in Division.In order to encourage change, we must first acknowledge that there is in fact something to change. Perhaps the most telling thing regarding power is that it comes with the “authority” to control the narrative. Storytelling plays a part in the distribution of a narrative. As the common phrase states, “history is told by the victor.” At times, there is encouragement of the oppressor all at the expense of the oppressed. More recently, we see it when it comes to how protests are covered, the medical treatment (or lack thereof) of people of color during COVID, and the historical lack of equitable distribution of educational resources. Most importantly, some power dynamics emboldens a select group or community to invalidate the human dignity of others, leading the oppressed to have to do so for themselves. This distribution of power was highlighted in the past and continues to be by the key civil rights movements that are taking place today.
Presently, we are witnessing history repeating itself - but this time we are given the unique opportunity to face our problems.
Children of Suffocation
Power gives birth to consequences, repercussions, what we call Children of Generational Suffocation. These Children of Suffocation may seem to be single-faceted systems: Racism, Poverty, Sexism, Homophobia, etc. However, in this publication, we aim to discuss the multidimensional intersection of these deeply rooted systems in our history that give rise to:
Racial Violence in Immigration.
Racial Violence in COVID-19.
Racial Violence in Police Brutality.
Racial Violence in Criminal Justice.
Racial Violence in Housing Policy.
Racial Violence in Wealth Distribution.
Racial Violence in Education Systems.
Racial Violence in Voter Suppression.
Racial Violence in Suppression of First Amendment Rights.
Racial Violence in Access to Affordable and Equitable Healthcare.
These embedded systems show that there are far too many ways in which people cannot breathe. Whichever actual form power gives birth to, the result seems to point at destruction and the stunted growth of the recognition of human dignity in others. These problems have been around for generations and for communities of color (specifically Black and Brown communities), the shared and lived ancestral stories have carried a plea for recognition of their worthiness. Systemic oppression plus unceasing pleas are a recipe for eruption. What does this eruption look like from a legal perspective at a local, national, and global level? What are the systems of consequence that come from action and inaction? These are the evolving questions we aim to answer in this publication.
The voiceless have found their voice, and they are no longer whispering. As a Law School and Law Review, we dare to listen to the screams and reject willful blindness from being our guide.