In the practice of law, it is important for attorneys to be exposed to and aware of aspects of the world beyond their own daily experiences. The One Read program highlights the importance of cross-cultural awareness and the obligation of attorneys to actively create an equitable justice system. To facilitate this understanding, and to strengthen our community at Hulston Hall, law students, staff, and faculty are invited to read a particular book that relates to law, the legal profession, or legal education, and touches on important issues of the moment.
We believe that a One Read program strengthens our community within Hulston Hall by providing a focus for conversations and events within the law school exploring the issues of race and the experience of “otherness.” There is no requirement that anyone agree with the concepts presented in any One Read book. Our goal is not conformity, but a challenging of the mind to learn more about law and its effect on people. We welcome respectful dissent and encourage thoughtful conversation.
Over the past few years, our One Read program has led us to read books that consider otherness from different vantage points. Our inaugural One Read opened our eyes to the justice offered to the marginalized and impoverished in Just Mercy by attorney Bryan Stevenson.
Since then, we’ve considered the Japanese American internment experience in the United States during World War II, the effects of the “War on Drugs” and the resulting mass incarceration, and health care, power, and self-determination. More recently, we read Hillbilly Elegy, J.D. Vance’s compassionate yet provocative account of poverty in Appalachia and his tumultuous childhood.
We considered how to have hard conversations about race by reading Ijeoma Oluo’s best-seller, So You Want to Talk about Race, we explored life-long advocacy by reading Judy Heumann’s memoir Being Heumann detailing her fight for rights for the disabled community, and took a deep dive into the constitutional protections for religious freedom by reading Asma Uddin’s When Islam Is Not a Religion.
Last year, we chose After Misogyny: How the Law Fails Women and What to Do About It as the 2023 One Read title because it looks at the systemic effects of misogyny, even after legal discrimination against women has ended. By highlighting a variety of constitutional changes around the world that impact women’s rights, the author lays out ideas to implement in the United States to address this issue.
There are several ways you can access the book:
- You can purchase a copy at a local bookshop or via Amazon.
- Borrow it from our Law Library: The Law Library has purchased several print copies of the title and unlimited access to the ebook for current faculty, staff, and students. Incoming 1Ls may contact the Circulation Desk for information about the book.
- Find it at a library near you: You can find local public and academic libraries that have the title.
2022-2023: When Islam is Not a Religion: Inside America’s Fight for Religious Freedom by Asma Uddin
We chose When Islam Is Not a Religion: Inside America’s Fight for Religious Freedom as the 2022-23 One Read title because it dives into the constitutional values of religious freedom for people of all faiths and explores the tensions that press on this American idea. Author Asma Uddin defends people of all religious faiths so that all can live and worship freely.2021-2022: Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights ActivistJudith Heumann’s memoir, Being Heumann, gives a first-hand account of the feeling of invisibility marginalized people experience. We chose this book because it illustrates one person’s journey as an advocate for equal rights for disabled people, it is an invigorating read, and it provides a road map for attorneys who want to make a difference. We were incredibly excited to welcome Ms. Heumann as a virtual speaker to Mizzou as part of the One Read programming.
2020-2021: So You Want to Talk About Race
Ijeoma Oluo’s best-seller, So You Want to Talk about Race explores how to have hard conversations about race. Oluo conveys experiences from her own life to raise a wide array of conversations about race and racism that are “necessary and urgent . . . for people to have in good faith.” As one review states, her empathetic yet blunt writing provides all of us with “language to engage in clear, constructive, and confident dialogue with each other about how to deal with racial prejudices and biases.”
2019-2020: Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis is a memoir by J.D. Vance, a graduate of Yale Law School. This book is about Vance’s tumultuous childhood in Appalachia, “surviving his mother’s drug addiction and a long series of hapless stepfathers” in a family where poverty “is the … tradition.” According to a New York Times book review, Vance offers “a compassionate, discerning sociological analysis of the white underclass that has helped drive the politics of rebellion.” The book also is controversial and provocative, assigning significant responsibility to his ‘hillbilly kin’ and their culture for their misfortunes.
2018-2019: The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander, presents pages of statistics and legal citations on American criminal justice policies, comes at a time when “declining crime rates and exploding prison budgets have made conservatives and liberals alike more ready to question the wisdom of keeping nearly 1 in 100 Americans behind bars.” It also is controversial and provocative, arguing that the war on drugs and unequal enforcement of criminal laws have legalized old forms of discrimination regarding employment, housing, voting rights, educational opportunities, and other public benefits.
2017-18: Infamy: The Shocking Story of the Japanese American Internment in World War II
Infamy: The Shocking Story of the Japanese American Internment in World War II by Richard Reeves provides a powerful narrative about the 120,000 Japanese-Americans and aliens forced from their homes and into prison camps following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Reeves’ book passionately describes the experiences of individuals and families and invites reflection on the fragility of fundamental legal rights.
2016-17: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebeca Skloot is a fascinating exploration of issues touching medicine, healthcare policy and ethics, genetics and identity, property rights, race, and class. Skloot’s in-depth reporting on the experience of a marginalized family with the health care system, and their deeply felt distrust for it, gives modern insight into the issues public health employees have in gaining the trust of many members of American society.
2015-16: Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
Just Mercy, by attorney Bryan Stevenson, recounts Stevenson’s experiences representing marginalized people on death row. Stevenson’s life work has been to change the narrative on otherness in the United States. His book asks us to step into the shoes of marginalized people and see the world from their perspective. Once we do, we must reconsider how our society offers justice and mercy.