Monday, October 03, 2005

OMG OMG OMG!!!!

I don't think it's fair that law professors don't have groupies. I mean, I understand they might be smaller than those for rock stars or actors, because the fan base is smaller. But still, law geeks should also have the experience of being smitten with absolute adulation for a particular professor.

For me, that Professor (or more accurately, those professors) are Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic--two of the most prolific and accessible authors in the field of Critical Race Theory. I can honestly say that their books and articles have changed the way I think about the world, about politics, about philosophy, and about race. I can't count the number of blog posts that have been inspired by what they had to say, but here is a brief list:
Speaking Double

Eyes on the Prize

The Internal Critic and Intersectionality: Who's Looking Out for the Minority Right?

Standpoint Theory, The "Voice of Color", and Uncle Toms: Positioning Conservative Minorities

They're Boycotting WHAT? And Other Thoughts on Reparations

Recasting "The Lorax"; Or, The Triumph of the Crits

I don't expect the two Profs to agree with all I write--especially my effort to apply Critical Theories to non-leftist groups. But the point is that they've expanded my horizons at a time when I thought my politics had reached a dead end. At the end of high school, I was in the midst of a slow spiral into libertarianism, and I hated myself for it. Then, I stumbled across "Critical Race Theory: An Introduction," which they co-wrote, and I saw there was another way that was both philosophically coherent and responded to the gaping injustices I saw in the world around me. In my opinion, they are two of the most important social thinkers and legal minds in America today, and I wish that more people--of all political persuasions--were exposed to their trechant criticisms of American life and society.

And now they can, because THEY'RE GUEST BLOGGING AT BLACKPROF FOR TWO WHOLE WEEKS!!!!!!

You can color me excited.

Oh, and on the subject of neat professors blogging, the Chicago Law Blog is up, with a neat post by Cass R. Sunstein on how we evaluate Supreme Court nominees. Sunstein also is a uber-cool law professor--just not quite on the hallowed terrain of a Delgado or Stefancic.

I look forward to what all of them have to offer the blogosphere.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Delgado is speaking on my campus this Thurday. Jealous?!