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I'm taking a break from citing @OrinKerr to reply to Orin Kerr. Sorry to quote tweet, but only way I can thread. https://twitter.com/OrinKerr/status/1305034626339991553
And wow, also, @YLP, who is apparently a member of my faculty, judging from this. https://twitter.com/YPractitioners/status/1305137819967524865?s=20
So let's define ideological diversity. For me, that means that people in the room have different experiences in a way that produces different thoughts and opinions. That could be and most likely is derived in legal academia from racial and gender diversity, but not necessarily.
But to give an example. As someone who has had numerous negative encounters with police, I will have a different opinion about them than someone who has lived in a neighborhood that calls police all the time. I would never call the police. Ever.
THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE.
THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE.
That might translate into different opinions about guilt or innocence. It might translate into different views about community policing. And I might be much more hostile towards SCOTUS and less of a stan.
Now let's look at the law prof pipeline. How does one get into Yale? A good LSAT Score. So we can start with my article with Bush that cites the education literature and the biases inherent in standardized testing. The LSAT is a standardized test.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3339527
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3339527
Yes, @YPractitioners, the diversity numbers are better at Yale, but not great. And this is the first step in the professor pipeline, not the last. Also, while I'm typing this before coffee, it is very difficult to find the unspun data.
And I'm not just picking on Yale here.
And I'm not just picking on Yale here.
So, who's there? @ProfMarkovic's excellent work suggests that the answer is in folks in high socio-economic bands, using parental income. This proxy isn't controversial among economists. His conclusion is also supported by the education literature. https://twitter.com/ProfMarkovic/status/1277640573390905345?s=20
@espinsegall and @AdamSFeldman's work demonstrate the strong concentration in the law professor market among that top band. Or should I say "brand?"
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3279878
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3279878
@meeradeo's work also supports this. https://twitter.com/meeradeo/status/1304935848115228672?s=20
Hiring from same schools leads to: 1. No racial diversity. 2. No SES diversity.
Hiring from same schools leads to: 1. No racial diversity. 2. No SES diversity.
Law faculty use alma mater and placement as their strong proxies, despite no evidence they correlate to success. And law reviews use alma mater as a proxy, too. See @meeradeo. See also:
https://jolt.law.harvard.edu/assets/articlePDFs/v33/05-Thomson.pdf
https://jolt.law.harvard.edu/assets/articlePDFs/v33/05-Thomson.pdf
Even if I were to concede that we could have ideological diversity hiring people from the same schools who are taught by the same professors who were themselves taught by professors who graduated from the same schools, there'd still be a problem.
No, I am not conceding this.
No, I am not conceding this.
As @meeradeo points out, some people are pipelined. Others maybe not so much. https://twitter.com/meeradeo/status/1305031772862705665?s=20
That's one problem with monopoly, lack of choice.
That's one problem with monopoly, lack of choice.
And Law professors are the ones who complain about cable duopoly or concentrated casebook markets while happily perpetuating their own monopoly.
But, whenever I have this discussion, I'm struck with the fact I'm toying with people's belief systems.
For some reason, to suggest others are deserving means we who made it are not? To admit privilege means we didn't have hardships? To admit luck means we did not deserve reward?
I liken ideological diversity as everyone who has lived in the same neighborhood all their lives talking about the world at large. It's quite sheltered, even if we disagree on minutiae of law.
It also looks like a cheap marketing ploy when a school boasts about diversity for students and then has mostly white men and women as the faculty, all from the same school, most likely from the same income range, from the same 5 or 6 schools.
And I'm very mindful of the intersectionality of faculty hiring. I've seen faculty boast about their one new diverse hire (after 10 years of no diversity). https://twitter.com/meeradeo/status/1305161583924899841?s=20
Anyway, those are my thoughts. Others can feel free to chime in. I need to go back to article editing and citing @OrinKerr. (Yes, I'm really doing that).
Exculpatory Language: I'm getting coffee now.
Exculpatory Language: I'm getting coffee now.
