LatCrit: From Critical Legal Theory to Academic Activism

Francisco Valdes; Steven W. Bender

Published by New York University Press 2021

LatCrit

From Critical Legal Theory to Academic Activism

Francisco Valdes and Steven W. Bender

https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9781479809318.001.0001

Overview
Contents

About this book

Examines LatCrit’s emergence as a scholarly and activist community within and beyond the US legal academy

Emerging from the US legal academy in 1995, LatCrit theory is a genre of critical outsider jurisprudence—a vital hub of contemporary scholarship that includes Feminist Legal Theory and Critical Race Theory, among other critical schools of legal knowledge. Its basic goals have been: (1) to develop a critical, activist, and inter-disciplinary discourse on law and society affecting Latinas/os/x, and (2) to foster both the development of coalitional theory and practice as well as the accessibility of this knowledge to agents of social and legal transformative change.

This slim volume tells the story of LatCrit’s growth and influence as a scholarly and activist community. Francisco Valdes and Steven W. Bender offer a living example of how critical outsider academics can organize long-term collective action, both in law and society, that will help those similarly inclined to better organize themselves. Part roadmap, part historical record, and part a path forward, LatCrit: From Critical Legal Theory to Academic Activismshows that with coalition, collaboration, and community, social transformation can take root.

Author / Editor information

Valdes Francisco :

Francisco Valdes is Professor of Law and Dean's Distinguished Scholar at University of Miami School of Law. Considered the “father” of LatCrit, he is the author of numerous law review articles and the co-editor of an acclaimed collection of essays on the history of Critical Race Theory, entitled Crossroads, Directions, and a New Critical Race Theory (Temple University Press 2002).Bender Steven W. :

Steven W. Bender is Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Planning and Strategic Initiatives at Seattle University School of Law. He is the author of Mea Culpa: Lessons on Law and Regret from US History (NYU Press, 2015), Run for the Border: Vice and Virtue in U.S.-Mexico Border Crossings (NYU Press, 2012), Tierra y Libertad: Land, Liberty, and Latino Housing (NYU Press, 2010), and Greasers and Gringos: Latinos, Law, and the American Imagination (NYU Press, 2003).Francisco Valdes (Author)
Francisco Valdes is Professor of Law and Dean's Distinguished Scholar at University of Miami School of Law. Considered the “father” of LatCrit, he is the author of numerous law review articles and the co-editor of an acclaimed collection of essays on the history of Critical Race Theory, entitled Crossroads, Directions, and a New Critical Race Theory (Temple University Press 2002).

Steven W. Bender (Author)
Steven W. Bender is Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Planning and Strategic Initiatives at Seattle University School of Law. He is the author of Mea Culpa: Lessons on Law and Regret from US History (NYU Press, 2015), Run for the Border: Vice and Virtue in U.S.-Mexico Border Crossings (NYU Press, 2012), Tierra y Libertad: Land, Liberty, and Latino Housing (NYU Press, 2010), and Greasers and Gringos: Latinos, Law, and the American Imagination (NYU Press, 2003).

Reviews

Gerald Torres, Professor of Environmental Justice, Yale School of the Environment and Yale Law School:
Valdes and Bender have performed an amazing service; not only have they summarized and amplified the mission of Critical Race Theory in its expression as LatCrit, but they have provided access to a methodology of grounded and engaged scholarship. This is significant work.

Mary Romero, Professor Emerita in Justice & Social Inquiry, Arizona State University:
Many have been waiting for just such a comprehensive history of the emergence and flourishing of LatCrit. Built into the legal writings is the collective development of an intellectual movement spurring academic activism.

Adrien K. Wing, Associate Dean and Bessie Dutton Murray Professor at the University of Iowa College of Law:
A must-read. Whether you have never read LatCrit literature or are an aficionado, there is much to savor in its transnational and multidimensional approach. The book reflects and celebrates LatCrit’s twenty-five-year commitment to theory, community, pedagogy, and praxis, reinforcing the importance of community building and intellectual evolution.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Foreword: The Gran Trecho That Is LatCrit Margaret E. Montoya Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Preface Publicly Available Download PDF	xxi
1 Background and Origins “LatCrit” Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2 Foundations LatCrit Values and Guiding Principles Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	7
3 LatCrit Contributions to OutCrit Jurisprudence Five Substantive Highlights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	26
4 Community and Method Building Zones of Critical Safety Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	35
5 LatCrit Praxis Personal, Collective, and “Glocal” Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	70
6 Critical Pedagogy Transforming Legal Education and Targeting Systemic Injustice Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	79
7 Designing and Sustaining Self- Governance Theory, Digital Presence, and Bricks and Mortar Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	91
8 Looking Ahead Staying Nimble Yet Grounded Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	107
Afterword El Espíritu de Resistencia Sumi Cho and Angela P. Harr Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	115
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	127
General Discussion Questions Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	129
Appendix A LatCrit Self- Study Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	131
Appendix B LatCrit Annual/Biennial Conference Publications, 1996– 2020 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	133
Appendix C International and Comparative Law Colloquium Publications, 1996– 2020 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	135
Appendix D South- North Exchange Publications, 2003– 2020 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	137
Appendix E Study Space Publications, 2007– 2020 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	139
Appendix F Free- standing Symposium Publications and Books Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	141
Appendix G LatCrit Scholarship Research Toolkit Thematic Index— List of Themes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	143
Appendix H Excerpt from Mission Statement for Living Justice Institute at Campo Sano Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	145
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	147
Further Readings Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	183
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	185
About the Authors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	189

Language: English
Publisher: New York University Press
Audience: College/higher education;
Illustrations
- Other: 10 b/w illustrations

eBook

Published: June 15, 2021
ISBN: 9781479809318