Khiara M. Bridges is a professor of law at UC Berkeley School of Law. She has written many articles concerning race, class, reproductive rights, and the intersection of the three. Her scholarship has appeared in the Harvard Law Review, Stanford Law Review, the Columbia Law Review, the California Law Review, the NYU Law Review, and the Virginia Law Review, among others. She is also the author of three books: Reproducing Race: An Ethnography of Pregnancy as a Site of Racialization (2011), The Poverty of Privacy Rights (2017), and Critical Race Theory: A Primer (2019). She is a coeditor of a reproductive justice book series that is published under the imprint of the University of California Press.
She graduated as valedictorian from Spelman College, receiving her degree in three years. She received her J.D. from Columbia Law School and her Ph.D., with distinction, from Columbia University’s Department of Anthropology. While in law school, she was a teaching assistant for the former dean, David Leebron (Torts), as well as for the late E. Allan Farnsworth (Contracts). She was a member of the Columbia Law Review and a Kent Scholar. She speaks fluent Spanish and basic Arabic, and she is a classically trained ballet dancer.
Education
B.A., summa cum laude, Spelman College
J.D., Columbia Law School
Ph.D., with distinction, Columbia University
Khiara M Bridges is not teaching any Law courses in Spring 2026.
The Push to Cancel Critical Race Theory: Scholars Explain Factors Driving the Backlash
A panel of Berkeley Law and UCLA professors describe what the theory entails, misinformation surrounding it, why it has become a target.
Meet the Quirky Plaintiffs Suing Under the Texas Abortion Law
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says TX SB8 was designed to cause chaos, and the plaintiffs are just participating in the chaos
Behind the Texas Abortion Law, a Persevering Conservative Lawyer
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says the Texas abortion law was only successful because it had a receptive audience in the Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit and was designed to evade judicial review
Texas Abortion Law Creates Ethical Quandary for Doctors
Professor Khiara M. Bridges discusses the new Texas abortion law and says it makes it ill-advised for physicians to counsel their patients about their constitutional rights
How Critical Race Theory Became A Topic At School Board Meetings
Professor Khiara M. Bridges dispels the myth is that critical race theory is being taught in K-12 classrooms across the country
Podcast: How the Texas Abortion Ban Impacts California
Professor Khiara M. Bridges appears on the SF Chronicle’s Fifth & Mission podcast to discuss the new law in Texas that outlaws abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and the impact it will have on California
KNX In Depth: the Texas Abortion Restriction
Professor Khiara M. Bridges discusses the landmark decision by the Supreme Court NOT to put the Texas abortion restriction law on hold
Podcast: The Folk Devil Made Me Do It
Professor Khiara M. Bridges appears on NPR’s Code Switch podcast to explain what moral panics reveal about the ongoing freakout over critical race theory in schools
Texas wants its citizens to enforce a new abortion ban, and we should all be concerned
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says Texas Senate Bill 8, which prohibits abortion after the detection of a fetal heartbeat, is bigger than abortion – it is a terrifying precedent to set for any person who cares about constitutional rights
Khiara M. Bridges: The Hidden Agenda in GOP Attacks on Critical Race Theory
Berkeley Law scholar describes the campaign as a ‘dangerous’ move against equality, democracy.
What is critical race theory?
Professor Khiara M. Bridges explains the origins and framework of Critical Race Theory and her scholarship concerning it
Critical Race Theory in the USA : Take care of the whites
Professor Khiara M. Bridges discusses Critical Race Theory and debunks myths and misinformation
Britney Spears says conservatorship won’t let her remove her IUD. Is that even legal?
Professor Khiara M. Bridges, faculty director of the Center on Reproductive Rights and Justice, discusses the legal implications of Britney Spears’ testimony and how it connects to a larger history of reproductive-rights violations
How GOP Senate resolution condemning critical race theory distorts the facts
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says critical race theory seeks to make real the promises of the 1964 Civil Rights Act
Some lawmakers want to ban critical race theory in schools. So, what is it?
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says bans on critical race theory in public schools are an “intentional misrepresentation”
What is critical race theory, and why do Republicans want to ban it in schools?
Professor Khiara M. Bridges discusses the history of and misunderstandings around Critical Race Theory
What Is Critical Race Theory and Why Are Some People So Mad at It?
Professor Khiara M. Bridges separates facts from fiction regarding Critical Race Theory
Amend: the Fight for America
Professor Khiara M. Bridges is featured in the Netflix documentary Amend: the Fight for America, particularly in episode 4, which examines the fight for women’s voting rights
How religious conservatives learned to love anti-discrimination laws
Professor Khiara M. Bridges discusses conservative states’ introducing bills banning abortion on the grounds of race, sex or the diagnosis of a fetal abnormality, with the aim to push a case before the Supreme Court
‘African Gene Theory’ Is a Myth, and It’s Harming Black Men’s Heart Health
Professor Khiara M. Bridges says the myth of a salt-retention gene causing hypertension in Black people has been perpetuated by researchers not looking at factors such as environmental injustices and inaccessibility of health care














