The Radical Real Estate Law School is (1) a community of learning and practice (2) building a comprehensive library of resources and tools (3) by implementing diverse models of real estate stewardship (4) then spreading a transformative vision for humanity’s relationship to land through advocacy and movement-building. 

Our vision is to decommodify land and housing so that all people can exercise their right to live, work, and gather together.

The problem is that the law legitimizes the practice of treating land and housing as commodities. The dominant model of real estate ownership and speculation drives inequality, the racial wealth gap, and ecosystem destruction. The solution is to challenge the deeply entrenched legal doctrines and cultural norms that make us believe that land justice and universal housing is impossible.

We need to put land into the hands of the people. We need to acknowledge and correct the harms caused by slavery and redlining. We need to focus on ecological and community health, and we need to value the careful and affectionate stewardship of land. In other words, we need to democratize, decolonize, and decarbonize land and housing.

In 2020, the Radical Real Estate Law School will assemble a team who will radically change how communities access, use, and shape the law. First, we need to make legal education and the legal profession more accessible and inclusive. 

Who’ll be on our Radical Real Estate Law School team? 

• 12-20 “faculty” who will share their skills, advise the program, and offer mentorship

• 4 legal apprentices becoming lawyers without going to law school (Read about our apprentices in The Oaklandside!)
  

• 4 law school students who will both learn and offer research support
  

• 20 lawyers who are building their skills to do radical real estate work
  

• 20-200 activists building legal knowledge to do transformative work
  

• 5-10 partner organizations

What do we mean by “radical?”

• The word “radical” means roots. We are getting to the root of deeply entrenched problems while nourishing the roots of a beautiful future.

• “Radical real estate” means recognizing that democratic and participatory land management are the roots that nourish decommodified land. 

• “Radical law” means protesting the racist/ classist/ sexist roots of our current legal system by making law and policy belong to everyone! Lawyers and non-lawyers alike deserve to access and navigate the law. 

• And finally, “radical school” means a non-hierarchical, nurturing model that views everyone involved as both learners and teachers. People learn best through practice and interaction. 

What will the team do together? 

• Host webinars and discussion groups

• Build a comprehensive curriculum and library of resources and tools

• Provide legal support to radical real estate projects

• Pilot and share promising models 

Ways to get involved: 

• Meet our Future Radical Real Estate Lawyers: Sign up here to get invited to events hosted by our new apprentices. 

• Radical Learning Community: Be part of our learning community! Sign up here to get updates, including invitations to workshops and webinars.

• Volunteer Faculty/Advisors: Do you have skills and knowledge to share? Email Tia Taruc-Myers ([email protected]) so we can keep you in mind as we craft our curriculum! 

• Sponsors: Email Janelle Orsi ([email protected]) to find out how you can help us fund this. We have $100,000 committed to this program, and need to raise $150,000 more to achieve the impact we’re aiming for in the first year. Can you connect us to funders and help us raise the rest?

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