Chicana/o-Latina/o Law Review

The Chicana/o Latina/o Law Review is a student-run law journal which was established by the UCLA law school in 1972. At that time it was the first and only law journal in the United States to focus primarily on how law and policy affect the Chicana/o and Latina/o community within the country. Since then it has provided an essential forum for the discussion of central issues that Latinos in America face. This was a groundbreaking creation because popular law reviews at the time tended to overlook this vibrant and thriving community. Today, the Chicana/o Latina/o Law Review has a strong reputation for publishing reputable scholarly work on an array of topics, such as affirmative action and education, Spanish and Mexican land grants, environmental justice, language rights, and immigration reform. It has been cited as a persuasive authority in courtrooms across the country.[1]

From the beginning of its publication, the most pervasive issue addressed in the Chicana/o Latina/o Law Review is the issue of immigration. Within this topic there have been numerous articles addressing immigration reform laws, immigration restrictions, the process of immigrating to the United States, and the troubles immigrants face once arriving in the United States. Throughout the nearly 40 years of the journal’s publication, the subject of immigration has come up repeatedly.

Schooling is also a common topic of import in multiple articles throughout the CLLR’s publication. Under this heading have been articles on primary schooling, secondary education, the quality of public schools, affirmative action, and graduate and undergraduate schooling and opportunities for the Latino community in the United States. Many articles have focused on the role UCLA plays in the education and betterment of the Latino community. Throughout its publication, the law review has been self-evaluative, often looking at the UCLA community’s effect on Latino students.

There have been many articles discussing the formation of the Latino identity within the United States, especially topics involving the importance of language. The issue of language, within schools and in the greater US society at large, is examined closely in many articles that have been published in CLLR throughout its history. Policies on language and language requirements have been examined and critiqued. Articles discussing language acquisition and how language restrictions affect the greater Latino community in the United States are also commonly found within the journal’s publication history.

Other common topics and issues that have been covered in the Chicana/o Latina/o Law Review since its founding are naturalization, employment and undocumented labor, voting and the protection of other fundamental rights, criminal justice in regard to the Latino community, the political mobilization of the Latino community, and environmental justice.[3]

Long before issues important to the Latina/o and Chicana/o communities, like immigration, language regulation, and bilingual education were being analyzed in mainstream law reviews, the Law Review wrote focused attention on these issues. By publishing articles on issues that impacted the Latino community in a law journal attached to UCLA Law School, the journal helped to bring these issues to the forefront of the academic community.[4]

The Law Review has given a voice to those who have been underrepresented in American society. It has helped to bring to light issues that impact the Chicano community that have been negated or forgotten by mainstream legal academia.[5]

Linda Sánchez, who graduated from UCLA Law School in 1995, was editor of the Law Review. She is the U.S. Representative for California’s 39th congressional district [6]

Michèle Alexandre is an Associate Professor of Law at The University of Mississippi School of Law. She did not graduate from UCLA Law School, but has published law review articles in the UCLA Chicano/a-Latino/a Law Review [7]

Kevin R. Johnson is the Dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest Law and Chicana/o Studies at UC Davis School of Law. Although not a graduate of UCLA Law School, has contributed to the law review. His most recent article is An Essay on the Nomination and Confirmation of the First Latina Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court: Sonia Sotomayor: The Assimilation Demand at Work [8]

Gerald P. Lopez, a current professor of Law at UCLA Law School, has written articles for the law review. He is the founder of the Center for Community Problem Solving at New York University School of Law. He has also written four books and many articles on problem solving, race, immigration, health of undocumented Mexicans, and legal education.[9]

Victor S. Lopez, a former editor of the Law Review, is a Workers Compensation Administration Judge in New Mexico.[10]

Daniel Olivas, an attorney with the California Department of Justice and a noted author of fiction, poetry, essays and book reviews, served as editor of the Law Review (1983-1984) during his last year at UCLA Law School.

• Official website