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Conference on "The Movement of Labor, Labor Movements and Economic Justice
March 8, 2009 1:56 p.m.

Justice and Social Inquiry guest speakers, faculty and graduate students gathered for a day-long look at labor issues on Friday, April 11. In the morning, three guest speakers gave keynote lectures:

Eileen Boris (U.C. Santa Barbara), "Domestic Workers Organize!"
Ruth Milkman (UCLA), "Immigration, Low-Wage Work and the Labor Movement"
Rhacel Salazar Parreñas (U.C. Davis), "Benevolent Paternalism: The Moral Determination of Women's Labor and Migration"

Justice and Social Inquiry graduate students gave presentations in the afternoon, with guest speakers serving as discussants. The day concluded with a workshop on local labor-organizing groups.

Hundreds helped to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Justice and Social Inquiry
March 7, 2009 1:52 p.m.

Justice and Social Inquiry began 25 years ago and pioneered a multidisciplinary concept that has spread to more than 30 other schools across the country and the world. On March 6 and 7 we celebrated our accomplishments, people and scholarship. Events began Thursday with a poster session in front of Coor Hall presented by current faculty and students. Our distinguished speakers then participated in a plenary session on the current status and future direction of scholarship in the field. Friday morning our visiting scholars presented their current research and in the afternoon our graduate alumni participated in round table sessions with our current graduate students. See our invitation for details of speakers and events (PDF). View posters.

The John P. Frank Memorial lecture by Judith Resnik
March 6, 2009 1:47 p.m.

Our ninth annual John P. Frank Memorial Lecture was presented this year by Judith Resnik, the Arthur Liman Professor of Law at Yale Law School. Prof. Resnik spoke about the design of places of power and justice in her lecture, "Places of Power: From Renaissance Town Halls to Guantan a.m.o Bay." She teaches about citizenship and sovereignty, federalism, procedure, constitutional relationships, large-scale litigation, feminism and local and global interventions to diminish inequalities and subordination. Among her many honors, she recently received the 2008 Fellows of the American Bar Foundation Outstanding Scholar Award. For the first time, this lecture was offered for CLE credit. See flier for more details (PDF) | Audio of lecture (mp3)

Jurik selected for Women's Leadership Project
March 4, 2009 1:45 p.m.

Professor Nancy Jurik was recently selected to be in the first cohort of the Women's Leadership Project. Designed by Faculty Women's Association President Mary Margaret Fonow (women and gender studies) and President-Elect Stanlie J a.m.es (African and African American studies), the progr a.m. identifies senior faculty women with the experience, talent and enthusiasm to pursue larger leadership roles within the university and gives them tools to reach that level of performance. In the first year, participants network and attend seminars. In the second year they will shadow leaders or work on specific projects.

Recent Ph.D. graduate has new book on politics of U.N. interventions in violent conflicts
March 3, 2009 1:43 p.m.

VDM (Verlag Dr. Müller) has just published a book by Abu Mboka, who received his Ph.D. in justice studies in December, titled “The Politics of Chapter VII Interventions in Violent Conflicts: A Comparative Analysis of Bosnia, Iraq, Rwanda and Sierra Leone.” The book proposes that the United Nation's Security Council's Chapter VII interventions follow a decision making process that weighs not only on legal interpretations of threat to international peace and security but also on common triggers and frequently cited moral reasoning. It ex a.m.ines the main factors that inform this process by comparing the council's involvement in Bosnia, Iraq, Rwanda and Sierra Leone. Mboka concludes that the council's primary concerns were the protection of state functions, diplomatic operations and regime ties. However, the council frequently and conveniently used gross human rights violations as the moral and legal basis for its Chapter VII decisions.

New book by Gerber and Johnson refutes death penalty myths
March 2, 2009 1:40 p.m.

With a moving introduction by Sister Helen Prejean, (author of “Dead Man Walking”), a new book by Lecturer Rudolph Gerber and Professor John Johnson ex a.m.ines “The Top Ten Death Penalty Myths” and presents evidence and analysis refuting each of them. In the book, published in November, the authors provide a comprehensive review of all the scientific literature on the death penalty and argue that it no longer makes sense as public policy. Both have long histories of bringing their scholarship to bear on complex social and legal concerns in the community and Gerber served 22 years as a judge on the State of Arizona Court of Appeals. The book is published by Praeger Publishers.