E D I T O R S ’ I N T R O D U C T I O N

The first Issue of Volume 14 of the Northeastern University Law Review grew out of a year filled with challenge and reflection. Persevering through the second year of the coronavirus pandemic and witnessing the imminence of the climate crisis has put the fragility of life at front of mind. Consequently, people around the world are facing political and personal instability that threatens to disrupt their livelihoods. Notably, we must not forget that in this challenging time, marginalized peoples, both globally and in the United States, continue to face the greatest hardships, yet receive the least attention and support.

Against this backdrop, the Law Review has continued to hold steadfast to our mission to publish articles focused on serving the public interest. We continue to center academic scholarship that approaches the law from a social justice lens, and further grounds our work in our diversity, equity, and inclusion mission to elevate the voices and experiences of the BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized communities.

In line with this mission, Volume 14, Issue I is comprised of five articles and two student notes that reflect on health, domestic policy, and international relations. Specifically, the articles in this issue highlight the importance of Tribal consultation for effective American Indian and Alaska Native health policy; urge legislators to recognize and address the health impacts Black and Brown activists face; call for the democratization of gubernatorial selection; use COVID-19 litigation to expose gaps in, and propose solutions to workplace safety for employees in the meatpacking industry; examine the need for countries to apologize to wrongfully convicted terror detainees; advocate for the equitable return practice of the Iraqi Jewish archive; and outline the illegality of Title 42 and recommend policy changes to undo the harm caused to immigrants. In partnership with the Northeastern Center for Health Policy and Law, two articles in this issue were presented at the Center’s 2021 conference, Health and the Body Politic: Undermining Democracy, Undermining Health.

As Issue I developed, the Law Review’s online publications, Extra Legal and the Forum, continued to publish timely articles to shed light on a variety of legal developments. Specifically, the Forum has published pieces relating to abortion access, cannabis legalization, criminal justice reform in the clemency context, and free speech doctrine. The online publications remain core pillars of the Law Review by supporting our goal to make current legal scholarship accessible to all.

The long-term effects of the pandemic and on-going social and political turmoil have also been felt by our own staff. As we began work on Issue I, we placed special emphasis on providing our staff with the support they needed to continue to navigate changing pandemic conditions and feel empowered in their work. To do this, we instituted the Law Review’s first kick-off and training weekend, established new procedures for providing feedback to staff members, provided additional opportunities for training, and worked to adjust article timelines to allow for lighter workloads. With virtual meetings as the main platform for collaboration, intentional outreach at all levels of the publication has helped build community and ensure high-quality work.

The Law Review has continued to build on the work of our predecessors in centering diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) in our own organization-wide processes. This year, the write-on application included its first Diversity Statement that asked applicants to reflect on recent events, their own positionality and privileges, and the role of the Law Review in addressing social justice issues. Our inaugural Chief Diversity Editor has driven this work through building in review of articles in both the submissions review and final review processes, facilitating trainings and workshops, instituting a DE&I speaker series, and establishing connections with Law Reviews across the country who share in our commitment. The DE&I committee also continues to think critically about ways in which the organization can recruit and maintain diverse authors and editors.

This year, in witnessing on-going threats to democracy on a global scale and reflecting on our own commitment to the missions and goals that guide our publication, the Law Review has internalized the importance of democratization, informing one of this year’s biggest institutional changes: democratizing the Law Review’s Editorial Board selection process. All editors on the Law Review now have a vote in who leads the organization. This change not only builds transparency but creates the opportunity for all editors to have greater ownership over the organization and the pieces we publish.

Implementing this institutional growth has not been easy. With the consequences of the pandemic, continued assaults on the civil rights of Black and Brown individuals, and the climate crisis heightening before our eyes, our editors are experiencing emotional and mental exhaustion. Yet, despite these intense events, our editors have stayed committed to the publication and the mission of the Law Review. We are grateful for their work.

In addition to the editors of the Law Review, we would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the individuals and groups who have helped make Issue I possible. We would like to thank our faculty advisors, Director Sharon Persons and Dean Kara Swanson, for offering their invaluable advice as we navigated expected and unexpected challenges. Next, we would like to thank Dean James Hackney and the entire faculty and staff of Northeastern University School of Law for their unwavering support of the Law Review as we continue to grow. We would also like to thank our authors for trusting us with their work. Finally, we would like to thank our subscribers and readers. With your engagement, we can work towards our goal to make academic legal scholarship accessible for all.

Editorial Board
Northeastern University Law Review