Event description
We are told that everyone is equal in the eyes of the law, but is it true in practice? How do race and racism permeate our legal system and social structures? What can we do about it?
Join us in a discussion on race and criminal justice co-hosted by The Australian National University (ANU) Law Reform and Social Justice research and policy group and student-run ANU Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) Department. Jody Armour (Professor, University of Southern California Gould School of Law) specialises in criminal law and is an author of the recently published book N*gga Theory: Race, Language, Unequal Justice and the Law on the long shadow of racism in America. He will be joined in conversation with Mary Spiers Williams (Sub Dean, Australian Indigenous Studies at ANU and a criminal lawyer), who will provide her insights relating Jody Armour's thoughts to the inequities of the criminal justice system in Australia.
Comment will be provided by Jonathan Liljeblad (ANU College of Law), who will also moderate the discussion to encourage questions from the audience.
Speakers
Featured Speakers
Jody Armour is the Roy P. Crocker Professor of Law at the University of Southern California. A widely published scholar and popular lecturer, he studies the intersection of race, law, morality, psychology, politics, ordinary language philosophy, and the performing arts. His latest book, N*gga Theory: Race, Language, Unequal Justice, and the Law, looks at America’s criminal justice system – among the deadliest and most racist in the world – through deeply interdisciplinary lenses.
He has published articles in Stanford Law Review, California Law Review, University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law, American Journal of Criminal Law, Vanderbilt Law Review, Boston College Law Review, Southern California Review of Law and Women’s Studies, University of Colorado Law Review, University of Pittsburgh Law Review, Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, Southwestern University Law Review, and Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law. His award-winning book, Negrophobia and Reasonable Racism: The Hidden Costs of Being Black in America (New York University Press) addresses three core concerns of the Black Lives Matter movement – namely, racial profiling, police brutality, and mass incarceration.
Jonathan Liljeblad is a Senior Lecturer at the ANU College of Law. His research largely focuses on rule-of-law, with case studies from human rights and environmental issues. His fieldwork is mostly in Myanmar. Generally, his research falls within the fields of international law, rule-of-law, human rights, environmental law, law and development, and law and society. Due to the empirical nature of his research, his work connects academia, government, and civil society; seeks interdisciplinary, transboundary, and cross-cultural collaborations; and endeavors to nurture direct impact upon policy-makers and societal leaders.
Mary Spiers Williams is the Sub Dean of Australian Indigenous Studies at the Australian National University. She currently teaches introductory courses in Australian Indigenous Studies, and convenes courses in decolonising research.
Prior to joining academia full-time, Mary researched in criminology and practised criminal law in New South Wales and the Northern Territory at all levels. She was a senior policy officer in criminal law reform for the NSW Attorney General's Department, facilitated law and justice projects with and for Warlpiri people, and conducted community legal education for Aboriginal communities in central Australia.