"The critical race theory (CRT) movement is a collection of activists and scholars engaged in studying and transforming the relationship among race, racism, and power. The movement considers many of the same issues that conventional civil rights and ethnic studies discourses take up but places them in a broader perspective that includes economics, history, setting, group and self-interest, and emotions and the unconscious. Unlike traditional civil rights discourse, which stresses incrementalism and step-by-step progress, critical race theory questions the very foundations of the liberal order, including equality theory, legal reasoning, Enlightenment rationalism, and neutral principles of constitutional law."
- Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic, Critical Race Theory: An Introduction (3rd Edition)
This guide provides an overview of the major texts, scholars, and related subjects that comprise Critical Race Theory. This introductory page provides an overview of legal research strategies and recommended journals for updating research in the field. The other pages in this guide provide a list of selected texts from CRT. It is organized into the following sections:
It is a common misconception that libraries and library catalogs are neutral and unbiased. They are not. Bibliographic indexing terms used in libraries were created within a historically white hegemonic information infrastructure. Click the link below to view a list, created by Harvard libraries, of selected open-access writings on this topic.
Bias, Neutrality, and Libraries, Harvard Law Library Research Services
This research guide was created to help researchers effectively navigate the University of North Carolina Libraries' collections for Critical Race Theory research. Because of the origins of libraries' classifying languages in traditionally white spaces, research in this area may require the use of language that is othering, objectionable, triggering, and/or offensive to people of many backgrounds, identities, identifications, and presentations. This language may not reflect the most current beliefs on race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or any number of categories of identity. One of the goals of Critical Race Theory is to provide students and scholars with the tools necessary to critique these structures.
Most of the scholarly work on Critical Race Theory appears in books, chapters, and academic journals, both legal and otherwise. Though CRT is a well established area of scholarship, new works in or related to the subject appear often. This libguide provides a selection of core and related materials on CRT, but researchers will also want to check multiple databases, journals, and publications for new developments.
CRT is also interdisciplinary in nature, so a good researcher may want to venture beyond legal databases for articles and books. Links to UNC databases that may contain works related to CRT are below.
Anti-racism - United States - History - 20th Century
African-Americans - Civil Rights - Cases
African-Americans - Legal status, laws, etc. - Cases
Critical legal studies - United States
Discrimination - Law and legislation
Hispanic Americans - Legal status, laws, etc.
Minorities - Legal status, laws, etc. - United States
People with disabilities -- Legal status, laws, etc -- United States -- History
Race awareness - United States
Race discrimination - Law and legislation - United States
Social movements - United States - History - 20th Century
United States - Race relations
UNC African-American Studies databases
UNC American Indian Studies databases
Many legal journals have a specific focus on, and serve as ongoing forums for, Critical Race Theory and related subjects. Some selected journals are below:
African American Intellectual History Society
ALWD's Reading Lists on Diversity and Inclusion
Arizona State University College of Law's Racial Justice Resources
Cardozo Law's Law Teaching Guides for Confronting Structural Violence
Drake Law's Racial Justice in the U.S. Libguide
Gonzaga University School of Law's Chastek Library Race and Justice Libguide
Harvard Law Library's Critical Legal Studies Libguide
Howard Law Library's Social Justice Guide
Law Deans Anti-Racist Clearinghouse Project
The Ohio State University Moritz Law Library's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Resources
Stanford University's Clearinghouse on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Research
Texas A&M Law's Antiracism Resources Libguide
The University of Oregon's Jaqua Law Library Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Practices in the Law School Classroom
The University of Washington's Gallagher Law Library Diversity Readings Related to 1st-Year Courses and Diversity in the Legal Profession
We Need Diverse Books Resources for Race, Equity, Anti-racism, and Inclusion
Several faculty members at the University of North Carolina's School of Law specialize and/or publish in the field of Critical Race Theory. Carolina Law has also pioneered a Critical Race Lawyering Civil Rights clinic, directed by Professor Erika Wilson, and hosts the UNC Center for Civil Rights, directed by Prof. Theodore Shaw, both of which engage Critical Race Theory as well as other tools to fight discrimination and inequality.
More information can be found on their faculty pages, linked here:
Critical Race Theory has been associated with and developed by a number of scholars over the years. This guide features some of their works, but most have published many books, chapters, essays, and journal articles far beyond what is included here. The scholars listed here have been highlighted in publications like Critical Race Theory: An Introduction (3rd edition) by Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic or Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings That Formed the Movement, edited by Kimberlé Crenshaw. Links in this box go to their author entries in the UNC catalog or to a faculty webpage. Researchers may also want to search for their articles in databases like HeinOnline.
Further research into their publications may be helpful:
