Forget CRT; LA Instead, Thanksgiving 1966

WASHINGTON - Nov. 23, 2023 - PRLog -- This Thanksgiving, at a time when so much attention is focused on Critical Race Theory [CRT] which has never been proven, perhaps there should be more focus on Legal Activism [LA] which had its origins on Thanksgiving Day 1966.

Then, as recounted in detail in READER'S DIGEST INVOLVED AMERICANS - The Man Behind the Ban on Cigarette Commercials (http://banzhaf.net/about/ManBehindTheBanReaders%20Digest.pdf), a 26-year-old law school graduate was moved to write a 3-page letter which triggered a legal ruling which saved millions of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars, and led eventually to the total ban on cigarette commercials.

Although it's now widely taught and very forcefully argued and relied upon, CRT has never been proven.

The test on any new theory, legal or otherwise, is its ability to make accurate predictions, explains public interest law professor John Banzhaf, whose transformation from a wannabee rich patent attorney to a legal activist was recounted by Reader's Digest.

Any new theory can be twisted (or adjusted) to explain what has already happened, he says.

Therefore the validity and usefulness of any new theory can be proven only by its ability to predict beforehand what certain results would occur.  Thus Einstein's theory of relativity was proven only by predictions which he made actually occurred.

Unlike other legal theories such as Legal Formalism and Legal Realism, CRT has never been proven.  In other words, there has been no showing that if law students were taught CRT or CLS, they would be able to make better legal predictions.

The events triggered that Thanksgiving Day some 57 years ago show and help prove that Legal Activism can be a powerful tool or weapon against a major public health problem - as Banzhaf proved again and again with his subsequent legal actions.

Contrary to what students entering law school are told - that "'The Law" is nothing more or less than a mechanism for resolving existing or potential disputes between individual entities in which a lawyer represents a specific client - legal activists such as Banzhaf teach that it can also be a powerful tool or weapon for social good.

Used this way, there may be no specific client.  Indeed, in many situations the lawyer may search out for a client to provide the basis for a public interest legal action.  Instead of having a specific client, the Legal Activist seeks out and brings legal actions which can help attack a serious social problem.

He says that, like the stone which David used to slay Goliath, LA - an effective legal action - can overcome the advantages which powerful entitles possess.

http://banzhaf.net/   jbanzhaf3ATgmail.com   @profbanzhaf