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LPE Blog

Weekly Roundup: Jan 17

Amy Kapczynski on institutional neutrality rules, and Greg Baltz on tenant union organizing in the shadow of law. Plus, a changing of the guard on the LPE editorial board, a CFP on Carceral Political Economy, a lunch talk with Dean Spade, two political-economy focused post-doc positions, Jasmine Harris on conservatorships, Jonathan Harris on the FTC’s non-compete. . .

Organizing In The Shadow Of The Law

Tenant unions, unlike labor unions, operate without extensive federal, state, or local legislative schemes governing their form and behavior. This does not mean, however, that they are unaffected by the law. By looking at tenant unions at work in Kansas City, Chicago, and New York City, we can see the different ways in which law influences their form, tactics,. . .

Weekly Roundup: Dec. 20

Matthew Lawrence on the political influence of super groups, and Henry Tonks on The Quiet Coup. Plus, Katie Wells and Funda Ustek Spilda on Uber for Nursing, Kate Redburn on 303 Creative, David Stein on economic austerity and intersectional analysis, an interview with Thomas Ferguson on the 2024 US election, and an episode of the inequality podcast. . .

Presidents Are Strong, But Super-Groups Can Be Stronger

Is the power wielded by interests groups ultimately good or bad? To answer this question, we need to distinguish ordinary interest groups from super-groups, like the American Medical Association, whose legal empowerment makes them legitimate targets for democratic contestation and provides a principled basis on which to assess their political influence.

Weekly Roundup: Dec. 13

Beau Baumann and James Goodwin on the LPE of Congress, Shai Karp on landlords as petty tyrants, and a listicle of our favorite LPE posts on technology. Plus, Tara Raghuveer and Ruthy Gourevitch on tenant unions, Suzanne Kahn on feminist progressive populism, good news from the trenches of the EPA and FTC, Alvin Velazquez on bankrupt cities and federal disaster. . .

From the Vault: LPE & Tech

To accompany your new holiday gizmos and gadgets, we reach into the vault and highlight some of our favorite posts on technology, featuring Salomé Viljoen, Veena Dubal, Frank Pasquale, Yochai Benkler, Raúl Carrillo, Meredith Whittaker, Genevieve Lakier & Nelson Tebbe, Matthew Bodie, Elizabeth Joh, and Julie Cohen.

Rent Strikes as a Righteous Form of Resistance

Landlords wield significant power over tenants — including the power to set prices, surveil, neglect, harass, and evict — while legal processes offer little to tenants in terms of protection or means of redress when their rights are violated. Withholding rent in response to mistreatment is one righteous way of resisting such domination.

What Does LPE Have to Say About Congress?

In recent years, the LPE movement has generated compelling positions on the limits of the courts and the promise of the administrative state. Yet it is striking how little it has had to say about about legislative procedure and politics. By focusing on how power can be durably built in Congress, LPE scholars could help envision democratic alternatives to. . .

Weekly Roundup: Dec. 6

Alexander Hertel-Fernandez on workplace surveillance, Luke Herrine on midcentury meatpacking competition, Eamonn Coburn on abusive labor practices as unfair competition, Alex Gourevitch and Christopher Muller on race, labor exploitation, and incarceration, and the Critical Legal Collective on DEI Statements. Plus, Harvard LPE is looking for a new director, a. . .