TORONTO, Feb. 21, 2013 – Cristina Rodríguez, a professor of law at Yale Law School who served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal Counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice for the past two years, will deliver the Pierre Genest Memorial Lecture at York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School on Monday, Feb. 25, 2013.

In her talk, titled “Immigration and the Civil Rights Agenda,” Rodríguez will explore the relationship between immigrant incorporation and the concept of “civil rights” often used to frame the immigration question in the United States. She will look at the distinction between what it means to be respected as a “person” (civil rights as a legal regime) and what it means to be incorporated into “the people” (civil rights as ongoing social struggle).

Rodríguez, who was on the faculty of NYU School of Law from 2004 to 2012 prior to joining Yale, has long been interested in the effects of immigration on society and culture, as well as in the legal and political strategies different societies adopt to absorb immigrant populations. Her most recent work has included a series of articles and essays exploring how constitutional, statutory, and administrative law mechanisms can be mobilized to manage the social change implicated by the large-scale movements of people across borders.

The Pierre Genest Memorial Fund was established to honour the memory of Pierre Genest, who died in 1989. Genest graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1954 and became one of the finest counsels in Canada, respected not only for his gifts as a lawyer and an advocate, but also for his honourable and generous personal qualities.

The Pierre Genest Memorial Fund brings distinguished legal scholars to Osgoode to deliver the Pierre Genest Memorial Lecture and lead reading groups, courses and research consultations in Osgoode’s Genest Global Curriculum, a program aimed at enhancing the research culture and providing Osgoode students with a unique teaching format on comparative and transnational perspectives.

During the 2012-13 academic year, Osgoode will welcome a total of three Genest Global Faculty to the Law School. Last October, Ngaire Naffine, Bonython Professor of Law at the University of Adelaide, was at Osgoode. Following Rodríguez, Victor Tadros, Professor of Criminal Law and Legal Theory at the University of Warwick, will be at Osgoode in March.

WHAT: Pierre Genest Memorial Lecture by Yale Law School Professor Cristina Rodríguez

WHERE: Room 2001, Ignat Kaneff Building, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University (building 32 on map)

WHEN: Monday, Feb. 25, 2013, 12:30 to 2pm

York University is helping to shape the global thinkers and thinking that will define tomorrow. York’s unwavering commitment to excellence reflects a rich diversity of perspectives and a strong sense of social responsibility that sets us apart. A York U degree empowers graduates to thrive in the world and achieve their life goals through a rigorous academic foundation balanced by real-world experiential education. As a globally recognized research centre, York is fully engaged in the critical discussions that lead to innovative solutions to the most pressing local and global social challenges. York’s 11 faculties and 28 research centres are thinking bigger, broader and more globally, partnering with 288 leading universities worldwide. York's community is strong − 55,000 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, and more than 250,000 alumni.

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Media Contact: Virginia Corner, Communications Manager, Osgoode Hall Law School of York University, 416-736-5820/ vcorner@osgoode.yorku.ca