Legal Source Entry

Wiecek, William M. The Origins of the Law of Slavery in British North America. Yeshiva University, 1996.

From this legal source, I will mainly focus on chapter 4, “The Origins of Slavery in the Mainland Colonies A. New England”. Many Americans believe that Massachusetts was anti-slavery, however it was one of the earliests midland colonies to establish slavery. In Rhode Island, they attempted to ban slavery in their anti-slavery statute in 1652 that states, “Whereas, there is a common course practised amongst English men to buy negers, to that end they may have them for service or slaves forever; for the preventinge of such practices among us, let it be ordered, that no blacke mankind or white being forced by covenant bond, or otherwise, to serve any man or his assighnes longer than ten years, or untill they come to bee twentie four yeares of age, if they bee taken in under fourteen, from the time of their cominge within the liberties of this Collonie. And at the end or terme of ten yeares to sett them free, as the manner is with the English servants. And that man that will not let them goe free, or shall sell them away elsewhere, to that end that they may bee enslaved to others for a long time, hee or they shall forfeit to the Collonie forty pounds.” But this statute isn’t what it appears to be. Newport was not considered when the act was first created, and the port that was indicated in the slave trade, was the “slaving center” in the Atlantic slave trade until the nineteenth century. The statute was never enforced. The Rhode Island plantations were as big as 12,000 acres, and were worked by numerous enslaved Africans “who were strictly disciplined by colonial statute and local ordinance.”
In the first part of chapter 4 the author includes, “Because most Americans associate Massachusetts with antislavery, here is a poignant irony in the fact that it was the earliest of the mainland colonies to establish slavery.” Again, Massachusetts is mentioned in being the first or earliest to participate in racism. It was the earliest colony to establish slavery and it was the first state to suggest Jim Crow Laws. What does this show us? This gives us plenty of reasons to believe that America has tainted it’s history in order to seem liberal. The truth of Massachusetts isn’t taught in schools, and I, myself, is taken aback from information like this. Most northern states, if not all, have engaged in slavery.

Timekeeping

Draw: 1.50 (I was started to draw a piece on Android 18 from the Dragon Ball series, for a challenge on instagram called Blacktober.)

Watch Anime: 1.50 (The anime I was watching is called The God of High School, it’s super interesting and funny to watch.)

Cooking: 1.0 (After I took a nap, I made spaghetti with shrimp to eat. I’m not really good at cooking because I always end up adding too much salt, but this time it was perfect.)

It was kind of hard tracking how much time I spent on each task because I always end up forgetting, but I think I did a good job at guesstimating what time I started. Since timekeeping is vital for being a paralegal, I need to work on paying close attention to when I begin something.

 

 

Law Office

I would like to work at the Aston & Bird Law Firm, which practice corporate law. Their address is 90 Park Ave, New York, NY 10016 and their website is https://www.alston.com/en/

The reason why I want to work there is because I want to gain experience in dealing with corporate law. With this experience, I want to use it to become a freelance paralegal and open my own business so that attorneys can hire me, instead of the other way around. In addition, I might gain information on how to run a business properly, how to avoid certain mistakes, and how to market.

Being a freelancer is more ideal for me due to my introverted personality. I can choose to work from home and I can choose my own schedule.

Legal Issues in “Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan

One legal issue that I identified in “Mother Tongue”, was when Tan’s mother asked her to talk to her stockbroker who refused to pay her. She explains, “…my mother was standing in the back whispering loudly, ‘Why he don’t send me check, already two weeks late. So mad he lie to me, losing me money.'”

The stockbroker took advantage of the fact that Tan’s mother was an immigrant whose English isn’t “clear”. He thought that because she didn’t understand English, he didn’t have to give her a check.

The legal issue that is displayed here is, discrimination based on race and work without pay

Law in Culture Review (Daredevil)

“Daredevil” is a Netflix series based on Marvel’s superhero, Daredevil, or Matt Murdock. It was released on April 10, 2015.

When Murdock was a young boy, he got into a serious accident that caused him to become blind and it also gave him superhuman abilities, which include: enhanced senses and echolocation.

Consequently, he was able to hear everything that happened from miles away. Police sirens and crimes always kept him awake at night and that fueled his passion to help innocent people that were getting harassed.

He became an attorney by day (defending innocent people using the justice system) and a vigilante by night (fighting criminals near death).

Murdock was always questioning his moral compass because, he believed that the police should handle the criminal activities that occurred in Hell’s Kitchen, but as a vigilante, he saw how corrupted the police force was. He had to take things into his own hands.

This show displays the mind of Murdock that are ethical/unethical, as a result of his personas.

Who I am

My name is Ninmah Andre.

The reason why I chose this major was because I was deeply interested in the justice system. It was my plan A, but after deep thought it became my plan B.

At the moment I have a really small art account on instagram (@nastyartzbyna, support if you’d like). I want to be able to sell my art and have a t-shirt shop, where I create my own designs. At the moment, I am focusing on improving my skills as an artist, before I start worrying about the business side of things.

Other than drawing, I am currently learning how to play the bass. And if I’m not doing that, I like to watch anime, do my makeup, or sleep.