Justice for the Past

by Stephen Kershnar

Overview

Examines whether race-based programs and slavery reparations are justified.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780791460719
Publisher:	State University of New York Press
Publication date:	07/15/2004
Series:	SUNY series in American Constitutionalism
Pages:	170
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.56(d)

About the Author

Stephen Kershnar is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Fredonia and the author of Desert, Retribution, and Torture.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

SECTION 1

Introduction

SECTION 2: Civil Rights Laws

1. The Most Qualified Applicant

Part 1. The Job Qualification
Part 2. The Best Conception of a Job Qualification Yields at Most a Very Weak Reason to Favor a Meritocracy
Part 3. Antidiscrimination Laws Cannot Be Justified by Meritocratic Concerns
Part 4. Qualifications for Educational Institutions
Part 5. Conclusion

SECTION 3: Strong Affirmative Action

2. Strong Affirmative-Action Programs at State Institutions

Part 1. Introduction
Part 2. The Duty to Judge Persons according to Their Interests and Desert
Part 3. Strong Affirmative-Action Programs at State Educational Institutions Cannot Be Justified via Compensatory Justice
Part 4. Conclusion

3. Uncertain Damages to Racial Minorities and Strong Affirmative Action

Part 1. The Hypothetical Imperative to Distribute Resources in a Just Manner
Part 2. Compensatory Justice and the Assessment of Damages
Part 3. Compensatory Justice and Inadequate Knowledge of Damages
Part 4. We Do Not Have Adequate Knowledge of the Amount of Compensable Injury to Current Members of Some Racial Minority Groups
Part 5. Conclusion

SECTION 4: Reparations for Slavery

4. The Inheritance-Based Claim to Reparations

Part 1. Introduction
Part 2. Slavery Did Not Harm the Descendants of Slaves
Part 3. Compensation May Be Owed to the Descendants of Slaves As a Result of a Legitimate Inheritance Claim
Part 4. Conclusion

5. Reject the Inheritance-Based Claim to Reparations

Part 1. Objections to the Inheritance-Based Claim to Reparations
Part 2. Who Owes Compensation?
Part 3. Conclusion

SECTION 5: Proper Respect

6. Intrinsic Moral Value and Racial Differences

Part 1. The Expression of Equal Moral Value
Part 2. The Argument
Part 3. Implications of the Argument
Part 4. Conclusion

SECTION 6: Educational Diversity

7. Experiential Diversity

Part 1. Grutter and Bakke
Part 2. Experiential Diversity and Truth
Part 3. A More General Approach to Diversity
Part 4. Equal-Opportunity Arguments
Part 5. Conclusion

Notes

Index

Editorial Reviews

This is an important and serious critique of both affirmative action and reparations for slavery. Despite the provocative nature of the subject matter, Kershnar writes coolly and objectively.” — Michael Levin, author of Why Race Matters: Race Differences and What They Mean

“Civil rights, affirmative action, and reparations for slavery are burning issues today. Kershnar’s bold, clearly reasoned arguments are fresh, insightful, and cogent.” — Louis P. Pojman, United States Military Academy, West Point

“Although I strongly disagree with his views, Kershnar provides the most coherent set of arguments against reparations available in the philosophical literature.” — Albert Mosley, coauthor of Affirmative Action: Social Justice or Unfair Preference?

From the Publisher