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An essential collection of the writings of progressive lawyer and race activist Derrick Bell
Lawyer, activist, teacher, writer: for over 40 years, Derrick Bell provoked his critics and challenged his readers with uncompromising candor and progressive views on race and class in America. A founder of Critical Race Theory and pioneer of the use of allegorical stories as tools of analysis, Bell's groundbreaking work shattered conventional legal orthodoxies and turned comfortable majoritarian myths inside out.
Edited and with an extensive introduction by leading critical race theorists Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic, The Derrick Bell Reader reflects the tremendous breadth of issues that Bell grappled with over his phenomenal career, including affirmative action, Black nationalism, legal education and ethics. Together, these selections offer the most complete collection of Derrick Bell's writing available today.
— Henry Louis Gates, Jr., co-author of The Future of the Race
"Biting, intense, full of dramatic surprises and brilliant insights, Bell's work is the antidote to all the feel-good narratives of racial change."
— Duncan Kennedy, author of Legal Education and the Reproduction of Hierarchy
"Derrick Bell's impressive body of scholarship continues to inspire generations of readers by inviting them into an extended conversation between him and a community of people who gave life to his vision and generously shared their own wisdom in search of justice."
— Lani Guinier and Gerald Torres, co-authors of The Miner's Canary
"Finally, the essence of Derrick Bell as a scholar, teacher, and activist is captured in The Derrick Bell Reader. Bell's remarkable career, as a civil rights attorney, scholar on race and justice, and activist promoting the rights of all citizens, is fully addressed. It is a great read."
— Charles J. Ogletree, Jr., author of All Deliberate Speed
"For those who agree, or disagree, with Bell's radical departure from accepted racial notions, The Derrick Bell Reader offers plenty to dissect. The book could not have arrived at a better time."
— Brian Gilmore, Howard University School of Law
Richard Delgado is John J. Sparkman Chair of Law at the University of Alabama and one of the founders of critical race theory. His books include The Latino/a Condition: A Critical Reader (coedited with Jean Stefancic) and The Rodrigo Chronicles.
Jean Stefancic (Editor)
Jean Stefancic is Professor and Clement Research Affiliate at the University of Alabama School of Law. Her books include No Mercy: How Conservative Think Tanks and Foundations Changed America’s Social Agenda. She and Delgado edited Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge.