Last
week,
over
80
Harvard
Law
professors
called
out
the
Trump
administration’s
vendetta
against
Biglaw
firms
for
violating
the
6th
Amendment
and
disregarding
the
rule
of
law.
The
recent
crackdowns
on
dissent
have
also
chilled
the
speech
of
international
students.
Imagine
the
horror
of
getting
cold
called
in
a
contracts
or
property
class
and
making
the
argument
that
the
widespread
use
and
enforcement
of
racial
covenants
shows
that
there
were
periods
of
American
history
that
maintained
white
superiority
and
property
rights
by
enacting
racism
structurally.
If
that’s
enough
grounds
for
Trump
to
sign
an
executive
order
attacking
the
Smithsonian,
that’s
definitely
enough
to
get
you
deported!
In
times
like
these,
it
helps
to
know
that
your
professors
acknowledge
and
are
willing
to
speak
out
against
what
you’re
going
through.
It’s
even
better
to
know
that
your
alumni
network
is
doing
the
same.
The
Crimson
has
coverage:
More
than
300
Harvard
Law
School
alumni
signed
a
letter
asking
Dean
John
C.P.
Goldberg
to
speak
out
against
the
Trump
administration’s
efforts
to
penalize
law
firms
for
representing
the
president’s
political
adversaries
in
recent
weeks.…
“We
believe
Harvard
Law
School
as
an
institution
must
raise
its
voice
in
support
of
these
principles
and
in
denouncing
the
Executive
Orders,”
the
letter
reads.
Alumni
aren’t
the
only
ones
stressing
the
importance
of
institutional
response
to
the
Trump
administration.
In
a
recent
talk
at
Georgetown,
Justice
Sonia
Sotomayor
opined
that
law
schools
have
a
role
to
play
in
preventing
the
erosion
of
norms
that
the
rule
of
law
relies
on.
Harvard
Law
as
an
institution
should
have
a
very
clear
interest
in
doing
what
it
can
to
prevent
what
will
come
if
everyone
takes
the
Skadden
route:
a
genuine
fear
that
not
pledging
fealty
to
the
man
in
charge
could
mean
financial
or
personal
ruin.
There’s
a
colorable
argument
that
Goldberg
speaking
out
could
motivate
Trump
to
set
his
sights
on
Harvard,
but
the
majority
of
the
law
school
faculty
already
circulated
a
letter
condemning
the
administration’s
retaliation
tactics
—
whatever
is
going
to
hit
the
fan
is
going
to
hit
it.
And
while
there
probably
should
be
a
bias
toward
maintaining
institutional
neutrality
under
normal
circumstances,
these
are
not
normal
circumstances.
Dissent
matters.
It
lets
people
know
that
they
aren’t
alone
and
galvanizes
them
to
action.
Whether
it’s
Perkins
Coie
or
Georgetown,
each
institution
that
takes
a
stand
emboldens
others,
just
by
virtue
of
being
able
to
see
people
refuse
to
be
bullied
toward
a
new
non-democratic
normal.
The
students,
professors,
and
alumni
are
waiting,
Dean
Goldberg.
If
the
rule
of
law
is
worth
fighting
for
(it
is),
you
and
other
law
school
deans
should
be
publicly
advocating
for
it.
300
Alums
Call
on
HLS
to
Denounce
Trump’s
Attacks
on
Law
Firms
[The
Crimson]
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
cannot
swim, a
published
author
on
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected] and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.