Foreword: International Law, Human Rights, And LatCrit Theory

This article discusses the LatCrit movement (which focuses on the Latino and Latina experience and borrows its analytical framework from Critical Race Theory) transnational identity and the declining role of state sovereignty in international law. LatCrit's theoretical perspectives are applied to international law, processes, relations, and institutions. A link is made between LatCrit theory and international law by emphasizing anti-subordination principles. The article posits that legal struggles against subordination are dependent upon building coalitions across racial, class, gender and geographical boundaries. Race and class-based essentialism are noted as impediments to the development of a cooperative political agenda. The foreword also notes the structural constraints inherent in domestic laws and international human rights instruments which inhibit the forging of alliances, to ameliorate human rights conditions. The author concludes that LatCrit theory may provide novel ways of interpreting the declining relevance of state sovereignty in international law. Although this article does not specifically refer to women's rights, the analysis of international law from a LatCrit perspective is a useful analysis to consider in relation to women's rights.