Dorothy A. Brown (born 1960) is a law professor known for her work on the racial implications of federal tax policy.[1] Brown is Asa Griggs Candler professor of law at Emory University and the author of The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans--and How We Can Fix It (2021).

Early life and education

Brown grew up in The Bronx in New York City.[2] Her father James was a plumber who was unable to join the local union because of his race.[2] Brown graduated high school at age 16.[2] She received a Bachelor of Science from Fordham University in 1980, a JD from Georgetown University Law Center in 1983 and an LLM in Tax from New York University School of Law in 1984.[2]

Career

Brown was initially interested in the U.S. tax code and worked as a tax attorney, an investment banker, and was appointed to the Department of Housing and Urban Development by President George H.W. Bush's administration in 1989.[2] Initially a Republican, she switched parties and supported Barack Obama's election in 2008.[2]

Brown has been a professor of law at Emory University School of Law since 2008.[1] Prior to coming to Emory she worked at Washington and Lee University School of Law where she was the director of the Frances Lewis Law Center.[1][3] Before that, she taught at both George Mason University and the University of Cincinnati.[1]

Brown's book, The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans--and How We Can Fix It, views tax policies through a critical race theory lens and examines the Black-white wealth gap with an eye towards tax reforms that could help lessen this gap.[4][5] Brown has also written two legal textbooks: Federal Income Taxation: Cases, Problems; and Materials, and Critical Race Theory: Cases, Materials and Problems, both published by Thomson West.[1] Brown writes about the historical and present-day implications of U.S. tax policy for mainstream media outlets such as Bloomberg News, NPR, and CNN.[6][7]

Brown was featured on the cover of Bloomberg Businessweek in March 2021 with the tagline "Is the Tax Code Racist?"[8] The feature article about her outlines some of her research on the ways the existing tax code preferences white Americans.[2] It outlines her reform plan which would remove exemptions and deductions that increase this inequality.[2] Brown believes that all income should be taxable, including proceeds from investments, gifts, inheritances, or property sales[2] She also supports an annual tax credit for people whose wealth is below the U.S. median which would help Americans with fewer resources to build up their personal wealth.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Dorothy A. Brown - Atlanta, GA". Emory University School of Law. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Steverman, Ben (2021-03-10). "A Tax Code Optimized for White Wealth Leaves Black Americans Behind". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  3. ↑ "Dorothy A. Brown". law2.wlu.edu. 2004-01-25. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  4. ↑ "Nonfiction Book Review: The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans—and How We Can Fix It by Dorothy A. Brown. Crown, $27 (288p) ISBN 978-0-525-57732-4". PublishersWeekly.com. 2021-01-08. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  5. ↑ Brown, Dorothy A.; McNamee, Gregory. "THE WHITENESS OF WEALTH". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  6. ↑ Brown, Dorothy (2019-06-15). "The real reason Trump won't put Harriet Tubman on $20 bill". CNN. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  7. ↑ "The History Behind The Highs And Lows Of The Marginal Tax Rate". NPR.org. 2019-02-02. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
  8. ↑ Caron, Paul (2021-03-10). "TaxProf Blog: BloombergBusinessweek Cover Story: Is The Tax Code Racist? Dorothy Brown On the Secrets Of White Wealth". TaxProf Blog. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
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