White by Law: The Legal Construction of Race

Haney López, born in 1964, is an American lawyer and legal scholar. He specializes in race, racism, and racial justice in US law. He received his J. D. from Harvard University in 1991. Currently, he is Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Public Law at the University of California, Berkeley, where he teaches race and constitutional law. Haney Lopez’s personal background informed his interest in race: He was born in Hawaii to a white father and a Salvadoran mother. During graduate school at Princeton University, he changed his name from Haney to Haney López to follow Latino custom of adopting each of his parents’ names, and avoid “honorary whiteness.”

Haney López is a pioneer in CRT. White by Law, his first book-length study, paved the way for future critical race theorists interested in the intersection of race and US law. The book was reprinted with a new chapter on colorblind white dominance to mark the 10th anniversary of its publication, and remains an important source for legal scholars and students of race, ethnicity, gender, culture, and other constructed facets of American society.

In addition to White by Law, Haney López has published numerous op-eds and blog posts, as well as peer-reviewed articles, essays, and books, all addressing different facets of race and law in the US.