April 05, 2019

Race + IP

Intellectual property (IP) is an increasingly important site of social, political and economic struggle. An emerging body of scholarship has begun to consider how IP reflects and reinforces inequalities along lines of race, gender, sexual orientation, class and disability. Drawing upon critical race theory and critical legal theory, this scholarship is asking integral questions about the hidden racialized categories that inform law, legal decision-making, and policy making within the context of intellectual property law.

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This conference builds on the conversations begun at Boston College in 2017, the site of the inaugural Race + IP conference. This year, our speakers will emphasize the embedded legacies of colonialism and racism in IP law, which contribute to local and global economic inequality as well as facilitate the ongoing dispossession of marginalized populations.

The conference will feature five plenary sessions which develop and engage the subfield of critical race IP, concurrent sessions with scholars across disciplines conducting multi-methodological research, roundtable discussions on special topics related to race and intellectual property (e.g. the intersections of social media, algorithmic culture, and racial justice). All participants and registered attendees are invited to an evening reception on Friday, April 5.