Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 104 p.; also includes graphics (some col.). Includes bibliographical references (p. 83-87). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Thesis (M.A.)--West Virginia University, 2006. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 95 p. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-95).

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Western Sydney, 2002 / "A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. March 2002; August 2003" Includes bibliography

Thesis (M.A.)--West Virginia University, 2006. / Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-95).

This thesis attempts to analyse the ways in which, a minority responds to varying situations of oppression in a racially structured environment. In order to explicate what constitutes oppression, an historical survey of major legislation affecting Indians in South Africa is outlined. This reveals different techniques used by the dominant group to ward off challenges to its power by counter elites, from direct suppression to neutralisation and co-optation. The reactions of Indians to these changes,and the impact of these responses on their relationship with the dominant group as well as with other subordinate groups at the political, economic, educational and social level guides the focus of this investigation. More specifically, the political behaviour of Indians is examined, (a) in alliance and conflicts with other subordinate groups, particularly Africans, (b) in developing complementary interests with some members of the superordinate group, (c) in. intra-' communal class or status-group based divisions and factions, and (d) in political introversion and inactivity through cultural exclusivism and cultural immersion. Research procedures used during three periods of field work in Natal included the recording of 86 informal interviews, the content analysis of various official and private documents on Indian affairs^nd the collection of essays written by 65 Indian university students as so-called "future autobiographies". The major literature on race relations and minority behaviour in other societal contexts is critically reviewed regarding the applicability of its concepts and models to the South African case. The political behaviour of Indians would seem to indicate how the dialectic of resistance and acquiescence operates in particular historical circumstances. Indeed, neither class consciousness nor ethnicity in themselves constitute satisfactory concepts for generalizations and predictions. Which bond is successfully activated would seem to depend on the specific historical context and perceptions of interest. These proved to have undergone considerable changes, according to the emerging social stratification of the group, despite the common experience of racial discrimination. Predominant Indian political reactions under future majority rule in an African-dominated government would above all depend on the as yet unpredictable policies at that stage, the degree of animosity experienced, and the kind of security awarded to the vulnerable and, therefore, ambivalent, suspicious -"strangers" in between. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

This dissertation consists of three studies on the economics of education and labor economics. The first essay seeks to deepen understanding of high school student engagement and effort response to changes in incentives. Changing the incentives students face is one lever for educators and policymakers to improve student learning in the presence of student disengagement. A statewide postsecondary admission policy which changes minimum college admissions standards for North Carolina high school students wishing to attend college in-state provides a setting to test how student effort responds to incentive structures. Regression discontinuity estimates show that students respond to the admission policy by increasing GPA and decreasing absences and suspensions. These effects suggest an increase in student engagement, however, the boost in GPA is driven by changes in course composition, with students substituting away from more demanding coursework. These unintended consequences of admission policies on student course-taking decisions can lead students to miss important learning opportunities in high school, possibly generating detrimental effects on student postsecondary success. The second essay, coauthored with Hugh Macartney and Eric Nielsen, analyzes the effect of the Great Recession on racial employment inequality in the United States. It is well understood that adverse economic shocks affect workers non-uniformly. We explore a new channel through which unequal employment outcomes may emerge during a downturn: the extensive margin of establishment deaths. Intuitively, workers who are concentrated in less resilient establishments prior to an economic decline will be disproportionately affected by its onset. Using rich employment and establishment data, we show that black workers bore the brunt of the Great Recession in terms of within-industry employment changes arising from establishment deaths. This finding has important implications for the evolution of worker disparities during future downturns. Finally, the third essay, coauthored with Clive Belfield and Brooks Bowden, examines the use of benefit-cost analysis by the federal government on education regulations from 2006 to 2015. Benefit-cost analysis is an important part of regulatory decision-making, yet there are questions as to how often and how well it is performed. Here we examine 28 Regulatory Impact Assessments performed by the federal government on education regulations since 2006. We find many Regulatory Impact Assessments estimated costs, albeit using informal methods, but most failed to adequately report benefits. Also, most studies did not estimate net present value or clearly report methodological assumptions. In reviewing the relatively high quality studies we identified a number of discrepancies from best practice. Most importantly, few Regulatory Impact Assessments attempted a social benefit-cost analysis: Most examined ”administrative burdens” from compliance with legislation. This alternative focus on administrative burdens has significant implications for economic evaluation in practice. Together, these essays advance what we know about higher education policy, labor market policy, and means of evaluating policies in both fields.

The Best Loser System (BLS) in Mauritius is a component of the electoral system where candidates are selected by established procedure on the basis of their race or community to stand as members of parliament It is as a tool to protect minority interests. The main research question is the following : what are the human rights implications and the prospect of reform of the BLS in Mauritius? / A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Mr Angelo Matusse, Faculty of Law, Universidade Eduardo, Mondlane Mocambique. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/ / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

This thesis explores the complexities of constructing a German identity as a black German. The recent emergence of Germany's black minority group was generally perceived as an opportunity to reevaluate Germanness as it has been understood in the past. However, this thesis shows that a reevaluation of Germanness lacks full support because traditional German ideals of racial superiority continue to exist in the consciousness of all Germans - black and white. This suggests that theories of racial superiority continue to determine belonging and identity construction in Germany. Above all, the presence of Western racial ideology in black German identity construction signifies a development of self-rejection and the disunity of the black German population. This thesis explores these effects through black German literature, survey interviews and German media.

This dissertation examines inequality in school funding in North Carolina from 1964 to 1997. It highlights local, county and state decisions about the distribution of educational funds, and shows that public officials have created and maintained school funding mechanisms that exacerbated inequalities between racial groups to preserve White capital and advantage White communities. Discriminatory taxation schemes, district-line gerrymandering and voter suppression ensured White control of school boards and boards of county commissioners, which presided over school budgets, resulting in uneven revenue distribution. I analyze these mechanisms as instances of theft—theft of civil rights and financial resources—within a tradition of kleptocracy in the state.I first focus on four case studies, including two rural and two urban and suburban counties, where I examine the correlation between financial inequities and racial segregation through quantitative and qualitative analysis. I ask how historical actors have addressed educational inequalities over time, and how local governments, courts and legislatures responded to these intertwined challenges. This study investigates the discrepancy between the legacies of Jim Crow in school finance and racially neutral arguments in education reform and school finance litigation. All four case-study counties became involved in the 1994 Leandro v. State lawsuit, which challenged the state’s school funding formula. The urban-rural plaintiff coalition highlighted contradictions in arguments about the root causes of resource inequalities in public schools. The Leandro case did not address racial discrimination, and I question and historicize this silence.

This dissertation explored existing tensions between legal structures aimed at achieving justice—specifically, concept of dignity and the concept of equality—and groups not fully recognized under the law (“Liminally-recognized groups”). It approached this tension from a critical perspective on identity, exploring it both in the U.S. and in Israel/Palestine. While not comparative in the traditional sense, the dissertation nevertheless journeyed between both geographies, drawing inspiration from each, and exploring similar questions and their differing (albeit parallel) answers in each locality. It examines the limitations of the concept of equality within anti-discrimination law, stemming mainly from its dependency upon legal recognition. Simultaneously, it similarly explores the perils of dignity-based universal protections, rooted in dignity’s cultural and racial biases. For this purpose, all three chapters center groups in a liminal state of legal recognition—groups that often challenge dominant binaries of sex/race/disability—as a methodological vantage point from which to examine legal systems and orthodoxies. It analyzes law’s ability to see past recognition, and its effectiveness for groups who have yet to meet—and shoulder—the burden of recognition. Simultaneously, it explores the ability of liminally-recognized groups to see past the law, and to seek alternative routes for political power. The first chapter, Coming Out of the Shadows: The Non-Western Critique of Dignity, focuses on the intersection between Mizrahi Jews (i.e., descendants of Jews from Arab and Muslim countries who immigrated to Israel) and the right to dignity, exploring this right’s racialized undertones within Israeli courts. Following a conceptual and cultural exploration of the development of dignity (a universal, status-neutral right) as the antithesis of honor, this chapter questions the strong divide and moral hierarchy between both terms. Applying critical race methodology, methods of close reading, and doctrinal analysis, it analyzes multiple legal cases to explore Western influences on the societal and judicial imagination of Israeli dignity. The chapter concludes by arguing that dignity’s pretense of universality obscures racial biases in its interpretation and application. The second chapter, Whiteness at Work, focuses on U.S. antidiscrimination law and identity groups at the margins of whiteness. The chapter analyzes workplace discrimination cases where whites have sued other whites for racial discrimination. Examining intra-white racial discrimination cases, this chapter demonstrate that they suffer from an under-theorization of whiteness, and from the judicial assumption that race becomes relevant only in instances involving racial minorities. Instead, I argue, courts should recognize instances in which white people police other whites to behave according to racial expectations regarding whiteness as instances of racial discrimination. This could be implemented through Title VII’s stereotype doctrine. Accordingly, discrimination against whites due to their association with people of color, as well as discrimination against poor whites not seen as ‘refined’ or ‘sophisticated’ enough for the workplace, are both instances in which whites are discriminated against for failing to perform their racial identities according to white supremacist expectations. The third and final chapter of the dissertation, Identity at Work, develops a thematic, overarching argument regarding liminally-recognized groups and their place within anti-discrimination law. Following an analysis of various types of liminal recognition under U.S. anti-discrimination law, and the normative case for and against recognition, I examine non-essentializing strategies to promote justice that do not force marginalized communities to leave their narratives of oppression (rooted in sexism, white supremacy, ableism, etc.) at the door, but that also do not force these communities to bind their oppression to a rigid sense of what it means to be who they are. The first strategy focuses on possible readings of anti-discrimination laws that enable recognition of patterns of racism, sexism, etc. without tying them back to specific (recognized) identities. The second strategy highlights the potential rooted in labor law to promote antidiscrimination ideals.