In Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v. NLRB, the U.S. Supreme Court held that an undocumented immigrant who has been fired in retaliation for exercising his right to engage in union organizing activity must nevertheless be denied the remedy of backpay. The majority reasoned that awarding backpay to vindicate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) would run afoul of conflicting provisions of the...
The Rule of Law: Mexico's Approach to Expropriation Disputes in the Face of Investment Globalization
A new constitutional design is emerging in Mexico to address investment and expropriation disputes. Assurance of the rule of law, understood as independent legal process to resolve disputes, is a key element. Although the rule of law assumed growing importance as Mexico’s historical expropriations progressed, questions persisted as to its effective application. Mexico’s opening to global...
NAFTA as a Symbol on the Border
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has two faces: the real and the symbolic. Although the “real” NAFTA—tariff-free trade, increased investments, and new mechanisms for cooperation on environmental protection within North America—has been substantially successful, NAFTA as a symbol of disappointed hopes for a better life and fear of globalization continues to resonate in the popular...
Open Borders?
U.S. immigration law is premised on the fundamental idea that it is permissible, desirable, and necessary to restrict immigration into the United States and to treat borders as a barrier to entry rather than a port of entry. In this Article, Kevin Johnson seeks to add to the scholarly dialogue on immigration law by considering the possible reimagination of the meaning and significance of the...
Human Rights and Undocumented Migration Along the Mexican-U.S. Border
The statistics are clear: Between 1990 and 2002, there have been more than 3000 dead and missing unauthorized immigrants and 15,000,000 apprehensions and deportations along the Mexican-U.S. border. The border strategy of U.S. authorities has forced undocumented immigrants to pay higher prices to "coyote guides," providing enormous financial incentives for smuggling. The immediate effect has been...
A Brief History of Race and the U.S.-Mexican Border: Tracing the Trajectories of Conquest
The conquest of Mexico between 1846 and 1848 has largely disappeared from public consciousness as a significant historical event with contemporary consequences. Yet this conquest resulted in the annexation by the United States of approximately one-half of former Mexico, constituting most of the current southwestern United States. In this Article, I describe the roles that race and racism played...
Stating a Title VII Claim for Sexual Orientation Discrimination in the Workplace: The Legal Theories Available After Rene v. MGM Grand Hotel
No federal statute explicitly authorizes victims of workplace sexual orientation discrimination to sue their employers for damages. Nevertheless, many such victims have advanced novel legal theories that analyze sexual orientation discrimination as a kind of sex discrimination, thus bringing sexual orientation discrimination within the protection of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This...
Rethinking Assumption of Risk and Sports Spectators
In 2002, the puck-related death of thirteen-year-old Brittanie Cecil at a National Hockey League game spurred calls for improved safety measures in professional sports arenas. However, common law tort principles—under which injured fans’ claims have traditionally failed—are unlikely to provide the impetus for any such change. Under the “baseball rule,” stadium owners owe the “limited duty” of...