Kangaroo Court: The Black Power Movement and the Courtroom as a Space of Resistance

Scholars in many disciplines have examined how social movements use the law to create social change. While the study of the law and social movements has largely relied on studies of the US civil rights movement to develop theoretical tools for understanding how movements target the state to create legal changes, none of these studies have examined the legal strategy of the Black Power movement. This article draws on data from a larger project on Black Power law and the National Conference of Black Lawyers to develop the idea of the courtroom as contested space and construct a concept of courtroom resistance. I argue that the courtroom, operating as hegemonic white space, was viewed as a site of contestation by Black Power activists who found creative ways to challenge the legal, ideological, and physical “space” of the courtroom. These conceptual tools open an important avenue for researchers interested in examining the relationship between social movements and the law and how race operates in the courts.

Social movements and the law: the legal group inside the occupation of Porto Alegre city council in 2013

This work is part of the research project developed by the Observatory on New Social Movements and Law in Brazil at La Salle University, focusing in the city of Porto Alegre and on the occupation of the City Council on July of 2013, which is placed in the context of the protests against the increase of bus fares and for free fare, attempting to understand the relationship between the political organization of the Bloco de Lutas pelo Transporte Publico and its legal group during the eight days of City Council occupation. We conducted semi-structured interviews with members of the occupation in order to clarify the dynamics in the movement and its understanding of the relationship between law and social movements, highlighting the deferment of the eviction order and the elaboration of two Bills as fundamental moments of the relationship between the collective organization of the occupation and its legal team. Este artículo forma parte de un proyecto de investigación desarrollado por el Observatorio de Nuevos Movimientos Sociales y Derecho de la Universidad La Salle de Brasil. Nos centramos en la ciudad de Porto Alegre y en la ocupación de su ayuntamiento en julio de 2013, en el contexto de las protestas contra el aumento de las tarifas de autobús y a favor del transporte gratuito. Intentamos comprender la relación entre la organización política del Bloco de Lutas pelo Transporte Publico y su grupo jurídico durante los ocho días que duró la ocupación. Realizamos entrevistas semiestructuradas con miembros de la ocupación para aclarar las dinámicas del movimiento y cómo entendía la relación entre derecho y movimientos sociales, destacando el aplazamiento de la orden de desalojo y la elaboración de dos leyes como momentos fundamentales de la relación entre la organización colectiva de la ocupación y su equipo jurídico.

A práxis da assessoria jurídica popular como vetor para o estudo da relação entre Direito e movimentos populares: ensaio sobre o Direito insurgente

O presente ensaio procura apresentar a práxis da assessoria jurídica popular (AJP) a partir da experiência histórica da construção da concepção do Direito insurgente elaborada por advogados populares brasileiros. Tomando como referência os escritos de Miguel Pressburger, é possível visualizar o lugar da relação entre direito e movimentos populares, a qual está intimamente relacionada com a recepção da educação popular na AJP. Para contextualizar o debate, o texto apresenta um breve balanço histórico da AJP, bem como suas principais modalidades e uma interpretação a respeito de seus fundamentos, desde uma perspectiva crítica oriunda do marxismo. The Praxis of Popular Advocacy as a Vector for the Study of the Relationship between Law and Social Movements: the case of Insurgent Law This essay aims to present the practice of “assessoria jurídica popular – AJP” (Popular Advocacy), based on the historical experience of construction of the Insurgent Law elaborated by Brazilian popular lawyers. By reference to the writings of Miguel Pressburger, it’s possible to outline the place of the relationship between Law and Social Movements, which is closely related to the reception of popular education in AJP. Contextualizing the debate, the text presents a brief historical account of AJP as well as a typology, and an interpretation about its foundations, from a critical perspective derived from Marxism.

Contexto sociopolítico brasileiro da advocacia e das práticas de insurgência

Para uma sociologia da insurgência, envolve-se o contexto sociopolítico da advocacia para compreender como as práticas de insurgência modificam o Direito. O protagonismo dos movimentos populares na América Latina pode ser mais bem estudado com a aproximação aos advogados populares envolvidos na defesa de suas causas. Esta agenda de pesquisa serve para a reflexão sobre a relação entre direito e movimentos sociais e a ação junto a esses atores em um contexto de insurgência e contrainsurgência, próprio do período recente do contexto brasileiro. A advocacia popular é estudada com base em entrevistas e pesquisa em acervo profissional dos advogados, como uma possibilidade de atuação em apoio às práticas de insurgência. Brazilian sociopolitical context of advocacy and insurgent practices The sociopolitical context of advocacy is involved to understand how insurgency practices modify law, for a sociology of insurgency. The protagonism of popular movements in Latin America can be better studied by approaching popular advocates involved in the defense of their causes. This research agenda serves to reflect on the relationship between law and social movements, the action of these actors in a context of insurgency and counterinsurgency, typical of the recent period of the Brazilian context. The popular advocacy is studied based on interviews and research in the professional documents of lawyers, as a possibility to act in support of insurgency practices.