The renowned civil rights advocate reflects on the personal experiences that shaped her groundbreaking ideas on race, gender, and equality.

Blending memoir with cultural and political history, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw’s new book traces her journey from a childhood in Canton, Ohio, to becoming one of the most influential public intellectuals of our time. Best known for coining the terms “intersectionality” and “critical race theory,” Crenshaw draws on moments from her own life to show how these concepts emerged—from early experiences of exclusion to pivotal national events, such as being escorted to back entrances or witnessing Anita Hill’s exile for testifying against Clarence Thomas. She explores how speaking up—what she calls “backtalking”—became a guiding practice throughout her life.

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ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Kimberlé W. Crenshaw is a pioneering scholar and writer on civil rights, Black feminist legal theory, race, racism, and the law. She was a founder and has been a leader in the intellectual movement called Critical Race Theory and is also known for introducing and developing the concept of intersectionality. She is a Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of California, Los Angeles, the Isidor and Seville Sulzbacher Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, and the cofounder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum. Crenshaw writes regularly for The New Republic, The Nation, and Ms., hosts the podcast Intersectionality Matters!, and has appeared as a commentator on media outlets including MSNBC and NPR.