LAWGENRL 458 : Special Topic: Pasifika Peoples and the Law

Law

2020 Semester Two (1205) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Undeniably, Pasifika peoples in Aotearoa experience a number of inequalities. However, the complex relationships between these inequalities and the law are rarely explored in legal education and scholarship. Therefore, this course aims to give students an understanding of these relationships by encouraging the use of critical perspectives to examine a range of socio-legal issues facing Pasifika communities in Aotearoa today.

Course Overview

Lectures will be taught seminar style, with an emphasis on learning through class discussions. Guest speakers will feature and provide insight into areas of expertise.  Class discussion is an important part of this course and lively debate on the material is encouraged. Teaching resources include articles, short films, music videos, poems, fiction, art and essays. 

The course covers the following topics:
1. Who are Pasifika Peoples in Aotearoa?
2. Race and the Law (Critical Race Theory, Decolonial theory, Intersectionality and LatCrit)
3. Pacific cultural methodologies and frameworks 
4. Immigration issues (The Polynesian Panthers, Dawn Raids, Climate Change Migration)
5. Pasifika Peoples and the State (inequities in housing, health and the economy)
6. Community Outreach (Guest lecture)
7. Issues in education (affirmative action, charter schools, the decile system)
8. Criminal (In)justice (youth justice, the sentencing process and the Pasifika Youth Court)
9. Connecting issues in Aotearoa with the wider Pasifika diaspora and the Pacific islands 




Course Requirements

No pre-requisites or restrictions

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Capability 5: Independence and Integrity
Capability 6: Social and Environmental Responsibilities
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Laws

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate an understanding of some of the key socio-legal issues affecting Pasifika peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand today. Demonstrate an ability to approach these topics in an interdisciplinary way, engaging the law with legal theory, sociology, history, politics, popular culture and other relevant disciplines. (Capability 2.1, 3.1 and 6.3)
  2. Identify and critically evaluate how the law, legal systems and/or policy structures uniquely affect Pasifika peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand through a critical lens. (Capability 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 6.2)
  3. Understand and apply critical legal theories including, but not limited to, Critical Race Theory (CRT), LatCrit, TWAIL and Decolonial theories/methodologies to the appropriate topics and assessments. (Capability 1.3)
  4. Apply and integrate creative responses and/or solutions to the ideas, issues and topics covered in class. The purpose is to encourage innovation in how we teach, respond to and 'present' these issues in order to make the law, as it relates to Pasifika peoples, relevant, accessible and engaging. (Capability 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.1, 5.1 and 5.2)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Class Participation: In-class assigned readings (panels), class discussion and online interaction via Twitter. 10% Individual Coursework
Creative Responses to two readings from the course. 20% Individual Coursework
Final Project: This is split into 2 stages. The first is a written research component involving an analysis of the law on a chosen topic. The second is a creative component to present that research in a way that’s engaging and accessible to others. 70% Individual Coursework
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4
Class Participation: In-class assigned readings (panels), class discussion and online interaction via Twitter.
Creative Responses to two readings from the course.
Final Project: This is split into 2 stages. The first is a written research component involving an analysis of the law on a chosen topic. The second is a creative component to present that research in a way that’s engaging and accessible to others.

The Final Project satisfies the requirements for LAW498.

Learning Resources

The course will touch on excerpts from the resources below. However, you might find the following resources helping in engaging with the material on a deeper level. 

Books
Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings That Formed the Movement (The New Press, New York, 1996).

Patricia Hill Collins, Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the
Politics of Empowerment (Routledge, New York, 2008). 

Patricia Hill Collins, Intersectionality- Key Concepts (2nd edition, Polity Press, New York, 2020).

Lana Lopesi, False Divides (BWB Texts, Wellington, 2018). 

Damon Salesa, Island Time (BWB Texts, Wellington, 2017).

Podcasts
Intersectionality Matters! A podcast hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw, an American civil rights advocate and leading scholar of critical race theory.  Available on Spotify and online. 

Films 
Dawn Raids (2005, Directed by Damon Fepulea'i prod. by Isola Productions) available on https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/dawn-raids-2005/overview

Polynesian Panthers (2010, Directed by Dan Salmon prod. and presented by Nevak Rogers) available on https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/polynesian-panthers-2010/credits

Milk & Honey (2012, Short Film Directed by Marina McCartney) available on https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/milk-and-honey-2012/credits

Workload Expectations

This is a standard 15-point course. There will be around 36 hours of lectures in this course. As a general guide, you should expect a workload of three hours outside of the classroom for each hour spent in class. The guideline for the total workload for this course is 150 hours.

Other Information

Pre-requisites: LAW211, LAW201 and LAW298. 

Digital Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course director, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website at http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a Student Academic and Support Adviser as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter (https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html).

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Published on 22/06/2020 11:49 a.m.