Racial Justice - Berkeley Law

Community

Law Students of African Descent

La Alianza – Law Students of Latin American Descent

Native American Law Students Association

Asian Pacific American Law Student Association

Faculty Scholarship & Writings

Dylan Penningroth: Before the Movement

Abhay Aneja: The Costs of Employment Segregation

Kathryn Abrams: Movement Storytelling and the Transformation of the Dreamer Narrative

Russell Robinson: Marriage Equality & Intersectionality

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Student Journals & Voices

Insia Zaidi ’24: California’s Fight for Diversity in a Non-Affirmative Action Era

Brains of Berkeley Law: Sewit Beraki ’24

Latine Journal of Law & Policy

Berkeley Journal of African-American Law & Policy

Fellowships, Faculty & Curricular Highlights

Faculty Approves Race and Law Course Requirement

‘Berkeley Model’ for Combating Antisemitism on College Campuses Finds a National Audience

Thelton E. Henderson Racial Justice Fellowship

Race and Law Certificate

Event Spotlights

California Law Review/Civil Justice Research Initiative Symposium: Excessive Police Use of Force

Asian American Law Journal Symposium on Nullifying Korematsu

Upcoming

There are no upcoming events scheduled at this time. Check back later!

Conversations

‘More Just’: Tracking the Diversity of Federal Judicial Clerks Audio

Purvi Shah ’06 on Moments of Beauty as a Civil Rights Lawyer Audio

Nazune Menka on Creating the ‘Decolonizing UC Berkeley’ Course Audio

Professor Khiara M. Bridges on Claiming Her Voice as a Prominent Black Woman Audio

Featured Stories

Bridging the Town-Gown Divide: 3L Appointed to Berkeley Police Accountability Board
Berkeley City Councilmember Rigel Robinson tapped Josh Cayetano ’24 for the panel, calling him “a rockstar and a role model.”
Jarring Events in Nagorno-Karabakh Sharpen International Focus for 3L Margarita Akopyan
Over 100,000 ethnic Armenians have fled the region after a military offensive by Azerbaijan.
Professor Dylan Penningroth’s New Book Centers the Law in Black Lives, from the 1830s to the 1970s
Before the Movement explores how Black people worked within the laws of property, contracts, and more to assert their rights — even while other parts of the legal system offered discrimination, hostility, and violence.
‘A Strong Sense of Belonging’: New J.D. Students Bring Rich Mix of Backgrounds, Skills to Class
The Class of 2026 recently arrived on campus with some impressive metrics, and other numbers fill out a deeper story.
New Scholarship Categories Aim to Help Student Interests and School Strengths ‘Meet in the Middle’
With an eye on aligning student enthusiasm with some of Berkeley Law’s strongest offerings, the Admissions Office is repackaging some gift aid into a new set of scholarships.

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In the News

Opinion: The outlandish ruling that could eviscerate what’s left of the landmark Voting Rights Act
Topics: Constitutional Law Topic, Racial Justice Topic
“If the Supreme Court doesn’t reverse the 8th Circuit’s decision, it will leave little remedy for violations of one of our most important rights,” writes Dean Erwin Chemerinsky.
Backlash to affirmative action hits pioneering maternal health program for Black women
Topics: Racial Justice Topic, Reproductive Justice Topic
Professor Khiara M.Bridges also drew another distinction between the role of race in college admissions and the role of race in health disparities. “If you don’t get into Harvard, there’s always Princeton or Columbia or Cornell,” she said. “Maternal death — the stakes are a little bit higher.”
Angela Davis, Chesa Boudin discuss decarceration, activism in Criminal Law and Justice center event
Topics: Criminal Justice Topic, Public Mission Topic, Racial Justice Topic
Berkeley Law’s Criminal Law and Justice Center, or CLJC, held its inaugural event Tuesday, hosting UC Santa Cruz professor Angela Davis in conversation with Chesa Boudin, the center’s executive director.
The Legal Lives of Slaves in America
Topics: Racial Justice Topic
To understand slavery in all its cruelty, writes historian and Berkeley Law professor Dylan C. Penningroth, we have to grasp what sounds like an oxymoron: the legal lives of slaves.

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Get Involved With Centers, Clinics & Pro Bono

Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice

Our Clinics

Helen Diller Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies

Student-Led Pro Bono Projects

Trailblazers

Annie Coker ’29: Berkeley Law’s First Black Woman Graduate

Legendary Activist Pauli Murray LL.M. ’45

The Legacy of John Robinson Wilkins, Berkeley Law’s First Black Professor

Social Justice Champion: Judge Thelton Henderson ’62

A Trailblazing Legacy: Justice Cruz Reynoso ’58

Native American Scholar and Activist: Joseph Myers ’75

Other Campus Resources

Othering & Belonging Institute

Center for Race & Gender

Timeline: Black Americans and the Law

UC Berkeley Center for Jewish Studies: Antisemitism Education

UC Berkeley Racial Justice in America Series

Graduate Division Anti-Racism Initiatives

Berkeley Diversity: Becoming an Anti-Racist Campus

Division of Student Affairs: Black Lives Matter