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LESSON EIGHT Civil Rights Law-第八课  民权法

2013-03-06 10:11阅读：

http://blog.sina.cn/dpool/blog/u/1821544237

Text 课文
Cases alleging racial discrimination in the workplace have most often been brought by and against members of different races or ethnic background. In Walker v. IRS, however, the United State District Court for the Northern District of Georgia recognized a discrimination claim by a light-skinned black employee against her dark-skinned black supervisor under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. By identifying “race” and
“color” as distinct factors upon which a title VII claim may be based, Walker took an important step in acknowledging the historic tension between light-skinned and dark skinned blacks that engenders intraracial discrimination. At the same time, however, the court’s expansion of title VII coverage threatens to undermine that statute’s protection of blacks against more pervasive and damaging forms of discrimination.
指控工作场所种族歧视的案件绝大多数都是在不同的种族或者不同的种族背景的成员之间互相提起的。但在“沃克诉美国国内税务署（IRS）”一案中，美国佐治亚州北区的美国（联邦）地区法院根据《1964年民权法案》的第七编认定了由一个浅黑皮肤的雇员针对其深黑皮肤的上司的提出的歧视指控。通过将“种族”和“肤色” 确定为一个依据（民权法案）第七编提出的诉讼请求可以根据的显著因素，沃克一案在承认产生种族内部歧视的浅黑皮肤和深黑皮肤的人之间的历史性紧张关系问题上迈出了重要的一步。但同时，法院对于第七编范围的扩张（性解释）却预示着削弱法律对黑人不受更为普遍的和破坏性的歧视的保护的危险。

Tracy Walker, a light-skinned woman, worked as a clerk typist in the predominately black Atlanta office of the Internal Revenue Service (ISR). In November 1985, Walker’s supervisor was replaced by Ruby Lewis, a dark-skinned black woman. Though Walker had enjoyed a very “cordial” working relationship with her former supervisor, her dealings with Lewis were “strained from the very beginning.” Walker alleged that Lewis often reprimanded her for matters that were either “false or insubstantial” and subjected her to a “close scrutiny” not extended to her fellow employees. Walker met with the Equal Employment Office (EEO) program manager for the Atlanta district of the IRS in an attempt to air her grievances, Two weeks later, she was discharged on Lewis’s recommendation.
翠西·沃克是一名浅黑皮肤妇女，在女性占多数的美国国内税务署（IRS）亚特兰大办公室工作。1985年11月，沃克的上司由拉比·刘易斯接替，这是一位深黑皮肤的妇女。虽然沃克与其前任上司有着很友好的工作关系，但她与刘易斯的交往从一开始就比较紧张。沃克声称刘易斯经常因为一些“伪造的或无关紧要的”事情而斥责她并使她遭受一种其同事均未受到过的“严格审查”。沃克找到了IRS“同等就业办公室（EEO）”亚特兰大地区的项目经理倾诉其冤苦。两周以后，在刘易斯的建议下她被解雇。

Walker filed a pro se employment discrimination suit under title VII. She claimed that Lewis was “prejudiced against light-colored skinned blacks” and had subjected her to “invidious discrimination” before her termination. She further alleged that she had been discharged in retaliation for her complaints to the EEO program manager. The case first came before a magistrate, who recommended granting the defendant’s summary judgment motion on Walker’s invidious discrimination claim and denying the defendant’s summary judgment motion on her retaliation claim. On appeal, the district court denied both summary judgment motions.
沃克依据第七编规定自己提起了雇佣歧视之诉。她诉称刘易斯“对浅黑皮肤的黑人有偏见”，而且在其离职之前对其进行“嫉恨式的歧视”。她还诉称她是由于向EEO项目经理投诉而被报复性地解雇的。该案首先由一名治安法官审理，这名治安法官建议对于沃克的嫉恨式歧视诉讼请求准予被告的即决（简易）审判动议，而驳回了被告要求对于沃克的报复性诉讼请求的即决（简易） 审判动议。在上诉中，地区法院驳回了这两项即决（简易） 审判动议。

The court identified two principal issued: whether color, in addition to race, may form the basis of a discrimination action under title VII, and whether a suit based on color may be brought by one black person against another, On the first issue, the court rejected the defendant’s contention that “race” and “color” must be treated synonymously. Instead, the court linked tile VII to section 1981, thus affording title VII a more expansive interpretation of “race” and “color”.
法院确认了两个首要问题：在种族之外，肤色是否可以构成第七编规定的歧视行为的基础，以及一个基于肤色的案件是否可以由一名有色人针对另一名有色人提起。对于第一个问题，法庭驳回了被告关于“种族”和“肤色”必须按照同义词对待的主张。相反，法庭将第七编与（美国法典）第1981条联系了起来，因此对第七编提供了一个关于“肤色”和“种族”的更广义的解释。

The court observed that according to the Supreme Court’s interpretation, section 1981，the “historical predecessor” of title VII, protects citizens from discrimination on the basis of “

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