Black Law Students Allowed to Keep
Controversial Library Display
An exhibit featuring photos and quotations about the legal system’s treatment of African Americans throughout history has been approved for display at the University of Colorado/Boulder’s Fleming Law Library, thanks to a February 16 ruling by Law School Dean Harold Bruff. The week before, Library Director Barbara Bintliff had rejected most of the exhibit’s content as unsuitable, citing its controversial nature and stating that only law library staff could use the display case, according to the February 16 Denver Post.
However, the group that created the exhibit, the Black American Law Students Association, appealed to the dean for a decision. In a prepared statement, Bruff acknowledged that student groups or graduating classes have been allowed to create their own displays in the past. “I think it best to grant access to the [display] case to BALSA, which is one of our recognized student groups,” to celebrate Black History Month, he said, “an event important to our society, our campus, and our school.”
“We feel pretty good,” BALSA President Ryan Haygood told the Post. “The students are really excited to see that we didn’t have to settle for being treated—we felt—unfavorably.”
Posted February 21, 2000.
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