Bainbridge Publishes His "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" Statement at UCLA

Noted professor Stephen Bainbridge has published his "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" Statement as part of the process for receiving a merit raise at UCLA (tip to Zero Hedge).  It begins with a discussion of some of my work:

Although I am aware and respectful of the many dimensions within which a university properly seeks a diverse faculty and student body, I have long been particularly concerned with the lack of intellectual diversity at the law school. A survey of U.S. law professors in general found that white Democratic professors (both male and female), Jewish professors, and nonreligious professors "account for most (or all) of the overrepresentation among racial, gender, religious, and ideological groups in law teaching."[1] The groups that "account for most of the underrepresentation among racial, gender, religious, and ideological groups in law teaching" are Republicans (both male and female), Protestants, and Catholics.[2] This disparity persists even though "religious and political diversity are probably more important for viewpoint diversity than gender diversity and roughly as important as racial diversity."[3]

Bainbridge goes on to describe his commitment to diversity:

Because conservative students and students of faith often feel alienated and estranged in an environment that is so relentlessly liberal and secular, I have made particular efforts to reach out to and support such students. I have served as a mentor for leaders of The Federalist Society and Christian Law Students Association. I have given talks to both organizations. I taught a Perspectives on law and Lawyering seminar devoted to Catholic Social Thought and the Law, which gave students—whether Catholic or not—an opportunity to consider how their faith (or lack thereof) related to the law and an opportunity to learn about a coherent body of Christian scholarship that might inform their lives as lawyers.

My 2015 paper on the most underrepresented and overrepresented groups in law teaching is at SSRN.

My more recent paper showing which groups of law teachers feel least free to express their views at work is here.