Race, Gender & Activism in our Communities

5th Annual Shirley Kennedy Memorial Lecture
LANI GUINIER

Race, Gender & Activism in our Communities

“Gifted with second sight, we can share our stories ... build coalitions, develop a voice ... We shall speak until all the people gain a voice.” —Lani Guinier

In 1998, Lani Guinier became the first black woman to be appointed to a tenured professorship at Harvard Law School. Guinier came to public attention when she was nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1993 to head the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, only to have her name withdrawn without a confirmation hearing. Guinier turned that incident into a powerful personal and political memoir, Lift Every Voice: Turning a Civil Rights Setback into a New Vision of Social Justice.
A nationally-renowned speaker and the author of many articles and op-ed pieces on democratic theory, political representation, educational equity, and issues of race and gender, Guinier has written Becoming Gentlemen: Women, Law School and Institutional Change, The Tyranny of the Majority, Who’s Qualified? (with Susan Sturm), and The Miner’s Canary (with Gerald Torres).
The Shirley Kennedy Memorial Lecture honors the memory of one of Santa Barbara’s most outspoken advocates for women and people of color. Dr. Kennedy transformed the Santa Barbara community with her commitment to social justice, activism, and democracy.