Publication Date

2020

Abstract

Should traditional liberals and insurgent scholars who disdain "the system" nevertheless work together? They start at different points, build on clashing presumptions, and follow different methodologies. Nevertheless, they often come out the same way. Indeed, practitioners of the standard cases-and-policies approach sometimes end up instinctively applying radical techniques, such as the flip or shift of point of view, to great effect. After analyzing a number of examples, we conclude that progressive scholars should not reflexively reject lawyering that proceeds in the time- honored manner merely because it strikes them as quaint or square. By the same token, neither should they ignore those even further to the left than they, merely because those circles may contain a Marxist or two. We conclude by describing a second source of support for progressive agendas that is even easier to ignore, namely the far left. This examination shows that progressive scholars, including our fellow race-crits, would do well to heed the powerful insights of critical legal studies even if those insights strike them as deracinated or unrealistic.

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