MC Library Research Guides: Critical Race Theory: Find Sources: Critical Race Theory

Key Scholars in Critical Race Theory

Derrick Bell from Contemporary Black Biography "Derrick Bell." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 98, Gale, 2012. Gale In Context: Biography, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1606005540/BIC?u=rock77357&sid=bookmark-BIC&xid=b0a85c63. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022. A civil rights activist, Derrick Bell is best known for being the first African American to become a tenured professor at Harvard Law School. Throughout his life, Bell consistently fought for civil rights and wrote the seminal textbook Race, Racism and American Law and helped pioneer the critical race theory that the American legal system, and by extension American higher education, was entrenched in a white power structure that had failed to consider class when establishing standards for equality and hiring.
More on Derrick Bell from West's Encyclopedia of American Law "Bell, Derrick Albert, Jr." West's Encyclopedia of American Law, edited by Shirelle Phelps and Jeffrey Lehman, 2nd ed., vol. 2, Gale, 2005, pp. 7-10. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3437700499/GVRL?u=rock77357&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=a9134d94.
Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw from Contemporary Black Biography "Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 88, Gale, 2011. Gale In Context: Biography, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1606005161/BIC?u=rock77357&sid=bookmark-BIC&xid=bba1cc7b. Legal scholar Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw is a leader in the study of race and gender in the law and an early proponent of critical race theory, an avenue of study that explores the intersection of law and society to understand how racial inequalities are perpetuated in the judicial system.
Richard Delgado from the scholar's website at the University of Alabama Author of over 200 journal articles and 20 books. His books have won eight national book prizes, including six Gustavus Myers awards for outstanding book on human rights in North America, the American Library Association’s Outstanding Academic Book, and a Pulitzer Prize nomination.
Cheryl Harris from the scholar's website at UCLA Cheryl I. Harris is the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Chair in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at UCLA School of Law where she teaches Constitutional Law, Civil Rights, Employment Discrimination, Critical Race Theory and Race Conscious Remedies.
Jean Stefancic from the scholar's website at the University of Alabama Professor Jean Stefancic earned her B.A. cum laude from Maryville College and her M.A. from the University of San Francisco. Her writing, which focuses on law reform, social change, and legal scholarship, includes over fifty articles and fifteen books, some co-authored with Richard Delgado with whom she co-teaches courses on race and the law.
Patricia J. Williams from Contemporary Black Biography "Patricia J. Williams." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 54, Gale, 2006. Gale In Context: Biography, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1606003277/BIC?u=rock77357&sid=bookmark-BIC&xid=3984e1d6. In her numerous articles in mainstream newspapers and periodicals, law professor Patricia J. Williams has been an outspoken critic of U.S. race relations. Her 1991 publication, The Alchemy of Race and Rights: Diary of a Law Professor, and 1995's The Rooster's Egg: On the Persistence of Prejudice, both speak to the continuing tensions that exist between whites and African Americans.
Patricia Hill Collins from Contemporary Black Biography Gianoulis, Tina. "Collins, Patricia Hill." Contemporary Black Biography, edited by Paula Kepos and Derek Jacques, vol. 67, Gale, 2008, pp. 24-27. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3027700015/GVRL?u=rock77357&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=f982bdde

Books @ MC Library

Below is a non-comprehensive list of major works in the scholarship of Critical Race Theory (CRT) available at the MC Library. You can find locations and editions by searching these titles in the MC Library Catalog from the homepage.

MC Library Website
Critical Race Theory: An Introduction By Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic
Written for a general audience, this text is a comprehensive introduction to the topic, covering major ideas, resources, and scholars. Each chapter provides discussion questions and a useful bibliography.

Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge
Published in 1995, this collection gathers key essays from the early era of CRT; many are now foundational texts in the subject.

The Alchemy of Race and Rights
Published in 1991, Patricia Williams presents a moving and forceful argument, using her own personal and professional experiences as well as those of others, that race, gender and class inequality are deeply rooted in language, law and other major societal institutions, policies and

White by Law : The Legal Construction of Race by Ian F. Haney López
Exploring the social, and specifically legal origins, of white racial identity, Ian F. Haney Lopez examines cases in America's past that have been instrumental in forming contemporary conceptions of race, law, and whiteness.

Articles and more...

Search in MC Library Education, Legal, and Social Science Databases:

Education Collection (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
This collection provides access to ERIC, the leading index for education research, in combination with the full-text Education Database. Together, they provide abstracts, indexing and full text coverage of journal articles, books, book chapters, dissertations, working papers and more, including full- text from hundreds of leading education journals.
Ethnic NewsWatch This link opens in a new window
Database of the newspapers, magazines and journals of the ethnic, minority and native press. Contains over 830,000 full-text articles from 240 publications. Covers 1990 to present.
Lexis Advance This link opens in a new window
Lexis+ (formerly Lexis Advance) is a comprehensive law database which includes primary law, secondary sources, and practical guidance. In addition, it contains a Shepard's citator, a Practice Advisor, Litigation Profile Suite, and public records.
SocINDEX with Full Text This link opens in a new window
Sociology resource containing full text for 860 journals (dating back to 1908), over 800 books, and thousands of conference papers.
WestlawNext Campus Research - News + Law This link opens in a new window
This full text legal database includes encyclopedia and law reviews; federal, state and Supreme Court cases; federal (USCA) and state statutes and administrative materials; and legal news. You can search a document by citation if known or search a case by title. You can also search by keyword, natural language or West "Terms and Connectors."

Step 2: Find Sources

To find sources, start by thinking about your research questions and the type of information you need. For example, you may need to search in different places to find statistics than you would if you need to find images.

This page provides tips for how to develop a search strategy and also links to search tools you can use to find specific types of sources.

As you search, consider the tips on the Evaluate Sources page, and assess each article, book, website or other source that you find.

Understanding the Current Legislative Landscape

Restricting the discussion of CRT through legislation, state by state. The education reporting project, Chalkbeat, has compiled there data.

Chalkbeat's CRT Map Project
"CRT Map: Efforts to restrict teaching racism and bias have multiplied across the U.S."