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CIVIL RIGHTS

Legal Lens documentaries

Law and documentary film may seem far apart, but they actually share many connections. With the guidance of filmmaker and producer Joseph Tovares and support from the Hewlett Foundation, 12 Harvard Law School students from eight countries have worked since January on the Legal Lens project. You can view the films here on BostonGlobe.com.

Kimberly Atkins
After a brutal year, Garland must work to reform DOJ — and restore Black Americans’ trust
Federal civil rights enforcement is once again becoming a priority after years of being all but disregarded when it comes to the killing of unarmed Black Americans.

Marcela García
The Biden administration is deporting hundreds of Haitians to a country mired in political chaos
One of the new president’s first acts was to issue a 100-day moratorium on most deportations. Most, but not all.

Kimberly Atkins
The word ‘aliens’ has been weaponized against noncitizens for generations. It needs to go
President Biden’s directive to remove the vile term from the federal government serves as a reminder that words can be weaponized to deliver blunt force to their intended targets.

RENÉE GRAHAM
‘Stop the Steal’ fueled white fears about their country being stolen
The anxieties that drove the Jan. 6 assault go back more than 150 years.

John Shattuck and Daniel Estupinan
The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare a massive civil rights crisis
To address the public health crisis, assistance should be provided to those most in need.

IDEAS | AMANDA ALEXANDER
How Black women have built movements and cultivated joy
A letter to my young niece about staying true to your goals, deriving sustenance from nature, and other insights I’ve gleaned from activists.

EDITORIAL
Congressional Democrats look to end pot’s legal limbo
A 50-year-old failed drug policy that hurts communities of color cries for a remedy.

RENÉE GRAHAM
By denying its history, America denies accountability
Donald Trump will probably walk away without punishment for inciting the insurrection because this nation inoculates white supremacy from guilt.

MARCELA GARCÍA
Does Mass. need a new plan for a women’s prison — or a better plan to decarcerate them?
Research has shown that a large proportion of women in prison have experienced trauma. But women who have been incarcerated and researchers say it’s impossible to heal in a prison.

Gerly Adrien
As a Black woman in politics, I belong here
People told me I had to be like Michelle Obama, to keep my composure and stay calm. Yet no one ever questioned the behavior and antics of my colleagues.