Aoki Center

The Aoki Center for Critical Race and Nation Studies had an active year. Read our 2025-26 Aoki Center Annual Report to learn what we’ve been doing and how you can be involved: https://law.ucdavis.edu/aoki-center-annual-report-2026

Thanks to all in our community who supported communities, people in jeopardy, and the Aoki Center. We look forward to building community and raising awareness in the 2026-27 academic year.

King Hall Professor Jack Chin will speak on a panel at Voices of the Valley: A Community Movie Night at UC Davis, May 13, 5:30-8 p.m., 1002 Cruess Hall. Free admission; RSVP at 1882foundation.short.gy/Voices.

We often think of Chinatowns in cities like San Francisco or New York when we think about Chinese communities. But the Chinese were a key part of California's agricultural history. What can we learn about these Chinese communities in rural areas?

The panel will accompany three short Chinese American documentaries that capture these stories:

• “Chicago Cafe” follows the Fongs as they prepare to close their family's century-old restaurant in Woodland—a poignant reflection on legacy and what it means to walk away from a place that's been a fixture in the Woodland community.
• “Rising” documents multiple generations of the Wing family who preserved Hanford's China Alley, and the ramifications of a fire that destroyed its historic Taoist Temple Museum.
• “Voices — Women of the Delta” amplifies the often-overlooked stories of women from historic Locke, CA who struggled and thrived despite the hardships they faced in the 20th century.

Panelists include: Professor Jack Chin, Arianne Wing, Carol Lee, and Connie Chan Robison.

More information at https://law.ucdavis.edu/aoki-blog/professor-jack-chin-will-speak-voices-valley-community-movie-night-uc-davis-may-13.

Congratulations to Cesar A. Ledesma ’26 for winning the 2026 Angela Harris Prize for Critical Race Scholarship and to Ricardo Martinez ’27 for winning honorable mention. Cesar wrote “Conditional Belonging: Modern Immigration Enforcement in Public Institutions Is Leading to the ‘Social Death’ of U.S.-Citizen Children in Mixed-Status Families.” Ricardo wrote “Accountability Post Trumpism: A Constitutional Model for a Justice-First Truth Commission.” Professors Raquel Aldana and Kevin R. Johnson presented the awards at the Public Service Graduation.

A heartwarming post from our Harris Prize winner. Congratulations, Cesar!

Today, I had the honor of receiving this year’s Angela Harris Prize for Critical Race Scholarship. I am especially grateful to Professor Lisa Ikemoto for submitting the paper on my… | César Ledesma | 27 comments Today, I had the honor of receiving this year’s Angela Harris Prize for Critical Race Scholarship. I am especially grateful to Professor Lisa Ikemoto for submitting the paper on my behalf! Undoubtedly, the past three years of law school have been a wild rollercoaster of both successes and setbacks...

The Aoki Center co-sponsored the Immigration & Nationality Law Review Volume 46 Symposium, "Community Resistance: Immigration Law in the Face of Mass Deportation & Repression" at King Hall on April 17. Pictured: Soni Chaturvedi '25, Shaina Aber, Nancy Hormachea, Anusha Entezari '27, Sara Jahangiri '27, Chloe Dillon, Professor Kevin R. Johnson, Aidin Castillo Mazantini '11, and Raha Jorjani.

Professor Miroslava Chávez-García visited King Hall today to discuss “Architect of Hate: Garrett Hardin and the Rise of Eco-fascism in Modern America” as part of the Aoki Center’s Racial Justice Speaker Series.

Chávez-García is Professor of History at UC Santa Barbara, with affiliations in the Departments of Chicana/o Studies and Feminist Studies as well as Iberian and Latin American Studies. She holds a 2025-26 Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellowship at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University. Pictured with Aoki Center Director Kevin R. Johnson.

Watch the video: https://mediasite.ucdavis.edu/Mediasite/Play/c3da0d32e66a49a5ae2da9c021b850561d

For upcoming Aoki Center events, visit https://law.ucdavis.edu/academics/centers/critical-race/events.

The Aoki Center happily co-sponsored LaLSA’s culture week event, “Understanding Immigration Law: Authors Discuss the Fourth Edition” on April 2. King Hall Professors Raquel Aldana and Kevin R. Johnson talked about the edition they recently co-authored with Professors Bill Ong Hing, Leticia M. Saucedo, and Enid Trucios-Haynes. The book lays out the basics of U.S. immigration law in an accessible way to newcomers to the field. The Immigration Law Association also co-sponsored the event.

For upcoming Aoki Center events, visit https://law.ucdavis.edu/academics/centers/critical-race/events.

Professor Amy Motlagh visited King Hall today to discuss her new book, Colorblind: Racial Thinking and Cultural Production in Modern Iran and the Diaspora. Professor Motlagh teaches Comparative Literature and Middle East/South Asia Studies at UC Davis and is the inaugural Bita Daryabari Presidential Chair in Persian Language and Literature.

Read about her book: https://www.sup.org/books/middle-east-studies/colorblind

Find upcoming Aoki Center events: https://law.ucdavis.edu/academics/centers/critical-race/events