Stanford BLSA Refuses To Help Recruit The Class Of 2026 Due To Administration's Response To Judge Duncan's FedSoc Event

ABA Journal, Stanford Law's Black Law Students Association Pulls Out of Recruiting Activities After Federalist Society Event:

Stanford Law School’s Black Law Students Association will not participate in formal recruiting events, following the school’s apology to Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans.

That includes official admit events for the law schools class of 2026, according to a letter posted on the group’s Instagram account. ... [Deans] Martinez and Tessier-Lavigne did not immediately respond to an ABA Journal interview request.

Letter From Stanford BLSA:

We, the Stanford Black Law Students Association, will no longer participate in formal recruitment efforts organized by Stanford Law School. We are deeply disappointed and frustrated with the administration’s handling of division within the law school community. BLSA is dedicated to supporting and guiding Black law students. However, presenting ourselves as aligned with the administration would be insincere and conflict with our organizational values. As a logical next step, we formally communicate our decision to boycott official admit events for the SLS Class of 2026.

Stanford’s administration has actively marginalized its Black community, most recently by scapegoating Dean Tirien Steinbach in an apology to Judge Duncan. The failure of the University to stand on its proclaimed values of diversity, equity, and inclusion is apparent and concerning to us. Dean Martinez and President Tessier-Lavigne’s statements continuously minimize Duncan’s behavior and the impact of his work. As a result, Dean Steinbach, the people for whom she advocated, and the law school’s DEI values were all abandoned. The apology was intimately aligned with White supremacist practices, leaving our members ashamed of the institution we were once excited to attend.

Aaron Sibarium (Washington Free Beacon), Stanford Law School's Black Students' Group Will No Longer Help Law School Recruit Minority Students in the Wake of Duncan Apology

Prior TaxProf Blog coverage:

• Stanford President And Law Dean Apologize To Fifth Circuit Judge For Disruption Of His Speech (Mar. 13, 2023)
• Students Target Stanford Law School Dean In Revolt Over Her Apology To Federal Judge FedSoc Speaker (Mar. 15, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 1) (Mar. 16, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 2) (Mar. 18, 2023)
• Dean Martinez's 10-Page Letter To The Stanford Community About The Disruption Of Judge Duncan's Speech (Mar. 22, 2023)
• DEI Dean Escalates Battle Against Dean; Stanford Law School's Sole Conservative Professor Weighs In (Mar. 24, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 3) (Mar. 27, 2023)
• UC Berkeley Dean Erwin Chemerinsky: Stanford Law Students Violated Free Speech By Shouting Down A Conservative Speaker (Mar. 29, 2023)
• Judge Kyle Duncan: What We Must Expect of Our Law Schools (Mar. 30, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 4) (Mar. 31, 2023)
• Will The ABA And California Bar Get Involved In The Stanford Law School Free Speech Imbroglio? (Apr. 1, 2023)
• Law Profs' Petition Backs Stanford DEI Dean's 'Unimpeachable Approach' With An 'Obviously Repellent' Federal Judge (Apr. 3, 2023)
• Federal Judges Ho And Branch Add Stanford To Their Law Clerk Hiring Boycott (Apr. 3, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 5) (Apr. 4, 2023)
• Stanford President Renews Commitment To Academic Freedom Amid Law School Controversy (Apr. 5, 2023)
• More Commentary On The Disruption Of A Federal Judge's Speech At Stanford Law School (Part 6) (Apr. 8, 2023)
• NY Times: At Stanford Law School, The Dean Takes A Stand For Free Speech. Will It Work? (Apr. 13, 2023)
• More On The Law School Free Speech Wars At BYU, Stanford, And Yale (Apr. 15, 2023)
• Promising Signs For Free Speech At Stanford And Other Elite Schools (Apr. 17, 2023)
• Lessons For Law Students And Law Schools From The Stanford Free Speech Imbroglio (Apr. 20, 2023)
• Stanford BLSA Refuses To Help Recruit The Class Of 2026 Due To Administration's Response To Judge Duncan's FedSoc Event (Apr. 20)