Overview
critical race theory
Quick Reference
(CRT)
A radical movement within jurisprudence that traces its origin to a conference held in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1989. Sometimes called outsider jurisprudence, it sets out to challenge the conventional liberal approach to civil rights issues, in particular the notion that there can be a colour-blind view of social justice. CRT regards the privileged position occupied by mostly White, middle-class academics as a major obstacle to a comprehensive exposure of the racism that is seen to permeate the law, its rules, concepts, and institutions. Adherents generally argue that only those who have themselves suffered the indignity and injustice of discrimination can be the authentic voices of marginalized racial minorities. The law's formal constructs reproduce, it is claimed, the reality of a privileged male White elite, whose culture, way of life, attitudes, and norms constitute the prevailing “neutrality” of the law.
Subjects: Law
