{"id":27,"date":"2023-08-07T14:19:55","date_gmt":"2023-08-07T14:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/ts\/?page_id=27"},"modified":"2025-03-09T19:09:52","modified_gmt":"2025-03-09T23:09:52","slug":"about-first-last","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/","title":{"rendered":"About Kenneth Mack"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-225x300.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-154\" srcset=\"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/03\/IMG_1898-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Kenneth W. Mack is the inaugural Lawrence D. Biele Professor of Law and Affiliate Professor of History at Harvard University. He is the co-faculty leader of the&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.law.harvard.edu\/academics\/degrees\/jd\/pos\/law-and-history\/index.html\">Harvard Law School Program on Law and History<\/a>. From 2016 to 2017, he was a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.radcliffe.harvard.edu\/people\/kenneth-w-mack\">Radcliffe Fellow<\/a>&nbsp;at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. During the 2022-23 year, he served as co-faculty leader of the Workshop on Capitalism\u2019s Hardwiring: Money, Credit, and Finance in a Globalizing World, at the Charles Warren Center for Studies in American history. His research and teaching have focused on American legal and constitutional history with particular emphasis on race relations, politics and economic life. His 2012 book,&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.harvard.edu\/kennethmack\/representingtherace\">Representing the Race: The Creation of the Civil Rights Lawyer<\/a>&nbsp;(Harvard University Press), was a Washington Post Best Book of the Year, was a National Book Festival Selection, was awarded honorable mention for the J. Willard Hurst Award by the Law and Society Association, and was a finalist for the Julia Ward Howe Book Award. He is also the co-editor of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/in-between-and-across-9780197680995?cc=us&amp;lang=en&amp;\">In Between and Across: Legal History Without Boundaries<\/a>&nbsp;(Oxford University Press, 2024), and <a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.harvard.edu\/kennethmack\/thenewblack\">The New Black: What Has Changed \u2013 And What Has Not \u2013 With Race in America<\/a>&nbsp;(New Press, 2013).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He has taught at Harvard, Stanford, and Georgetown Universities, and the University of Hawai&#8217;i, and has served as a Senior Visiting Scholar at the&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.histecon.magd.cam.ac.uk\/\">Centre for History and Economics<\/a>&nbsp;at University of Cambridge. In 2020, he received the Harvard Law School Student Government Teaching and Advising Award. In 2007, he was named a Fletcher Fellow by the Fletcher Foundation. In 2016, President Obama appointed him to the Permanent Committee for the Oliver Wendell Holmes Devise, and he was elected as a member of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ali.org\/\">American Law Institute<\/a>. He also served as a Judge for the 100 &amp; Change $100 Million grant competition for the MacArthur Foundation. He has commented on history and politics on&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/video\/obamas-post-presidency-plans-40315512\">This Week With George Stephanopoulos<\/a>, the&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pbs.org\/newshour\/bb\/nation-july-dec13-scotus_07-04\/\">PBS News Hour<\/a>, the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=vv2Gt2Prr4U\">Diane Rehm Book Club<\/a>, and other media outlets, and has written&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/scholar.harvard.edu\/kennethmack\/opinion\">opinion pieces<\/a>&nbsp;for TIME, the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post, The Root, Baltimore Sun, and other general interest publications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He began his professional career as an electrical engineer at Bell Laboratories before turning to law and history. Before joining the faculty at Harvard Law School, he clerked for the Honorable Robert L. Carter, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and practiced law in the Washington, D.C. office of the firm Covington &amp; Burling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Connect to Kenneth W. Mack<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-social-links has-visible-labels has-icon-color has-icon-background-color is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-social-links-is-layout-a89b3969 wp-block-social-links-is-layout-flex\"><li style=\"color:var(--ast-global-color-5);background-color:var(--ast-global-color-3);\" class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-amazon has-ast-global-color-5-color has-ast-global-color-3-background-color wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/stores\/Kenneth-W.-Mack\/author\/B007JBQQUG?ref=ap_rdr&#038;store_ref=ap_rdr&#038;isDramIntegrated=true&#038;shoppingPortalEnabled=true\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M13.582,8.182C11.934,8.367,9.78,8.49,8.238,9.166c-1.781,0.769-3.03,2.337-3.03,4.644 c0,2.953,1.86,4.429,4.253,4.429c2.02,0,3.125-0.477,4.685-2.065c0.516,0.747,0.685,1.109,1.629,1.894 c0.212,0.114,0.483,0.103,0.672-0.066l0.006,0.006c0.567-0.505,1.599-1.401,2.18-1.888c0.231-0.188,0.19-0.496,0.009-0.754 c-0.52-0.718-1.072-1.303-1.072-2.634V8.305c0-1.876,0.133-3.599-1.249-4.891C15.23,2.369,13.422,2,12.04,2 C9.336,2,6.318,3.01,5.686,6.351C5.618,6.706,5.877,6.893,6.109,6.945l2.754,0.298C9.121,7.23,9.308,6.977,9.357,6.72 c0.236-1.151,1.2-1.706,2.284-1.706c0.584,0,1.249,0.215,1.595,0.738c0.398,0.584,0.346,1.384,0.346,2.061V8.182z M13.049,14.088 c-0.451,0.8-1.169,1.291-1.967,1.291c-1.09,0-1.728-0.83-1.728-2.061c0-2.42,2.171-2.86,4.227-2.86v0.615 C13.582,12.181,13.608,13.104,13.049,14.088z M20.683,19.339C18.329,21.076,14.917,22,11.979,22c-4.118,0-7.826-1.522-10.632-4.057 c-0.22-0.199-0.024-0.471,0.241-0.317c3.027,1.762,6.771,2.823,10.639,2.823c2.608,0,5.476-0.541,8.115-1.66 C20.739,18.62,21.072,19.051,20.683,19.339z M21.336,21.043c-0.194,0.163-0.379,0.076-0.293-0.139 c0.284-0.71,0.92-2.298,0.619-2.684c-0.301-0.386-1.99-0.183-2.749-0.092c-0.23,0.027-0.266-0.173-0.059-0.319 c1.348-0.946,3.555-0.673,3.811-0.356C22.925,17.773,22.599,19.986,21.336,21.043z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label\">Amazon<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li style=\"color:var(--ast-global-color-5);background-color:var(--ast-global-color-3);\" class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-wordpress has-ast-global-color-5-color has-ast-global-color-3-background-color wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/hls.harvard.edu\/faculty\/kenneth-w-mack\/\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M12.158,12.786L9.46,20.625c0.806,0.237,1.657,0.366,2.54,0.366c1.047,0,2.051-0.181,2.986-0.51 c-0.024-0.038-0.046-0.079-0.065-0.124L12.158,12.786z M3.009,12c0,3.559,2.068,6.634,5.067,8.092L3.788,8.341 C3.289,9.459,3.009,10.696,3.009,12z M18.069,11.546c0-1.112-0.399-1.881-0.741-2.48c-0.456-0.741-0.883-1.368-0.883-2.109 c0-0.826,0.627-1.596,1.51-1.596c0.04,0,0.078,0.005,0.116,0.007C16.472,3.904,14.34,3.009,12,3.009 c-3.141,0-5.904,1.612-7.512,4.052c0.211,0.007,0.41,0.011,0.579,0.011c0.94,0,2.396-0.114,2.396-0.114 C7.947,6.93,8.004,7.642,7.52,7.699c0,0-0.487,0.057-1.029,0.085l3.274,9.739l1.968-5.901l-1.401-3.838 C9.848,7.756,9.389,7.699,9.389,7.699C8.904,7.67,8.961,6.93,9.446,6.958c0,0,1.484,0.114,2.368,0.114 c0.94,0,2.397-0.114,2.397-0.114c0.485-0.028,0.542,0.684,0.057,0.741c0,0-0.488,0.057-1.029,0.085l3.249,9.665l0.897-2.996 C17.841,13.284,18.069,12.316,18.069,11.546z M19.889,7.686c0.039,0.286,0.06,0.593,0.06,0.924c0,0.912-0.171,1.938-0.684,3.22 l-2.746,7.94c2.673-1.558,4.47-4.454,4.47-7.771C20.991,10.436,20.591,8.967,19.889,7.686z M12,22C6.486,22,2,17.514,2,12 C2,6.486,6.486,2,12,2c5.514,0,10,4.486,10,10C22,17.514,17.514,22,12,22z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label\">Faculty Page<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li style=\"color:var(--ast-global-color-5);background-color:var(--ast-global-color-3);\" class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-chain has-ast-global-color-5-color has-ast-global-color-3-background-color wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kenneth_W._Mack\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M15.6,7.2H14v1.5h1.6c2,0,3.7,1.7,3.7,3.7s-1.7,3.7-3.7,3.7H14v1.5h1.6c2.8,0,5.2-2.3,5.2-5.2,0-2.9-2.3-5.2-5.2-5.2zM4.7,12.4c0-2,1.7-3.7,3.7-3.7H10V7.2H8.4c-2.9,0-5.2,2.3-5.2,5.2,0,2.9,2.3,5.2,5.2,5.2H10v-1.5H8.4c-2,0-3.7-1.7-3.7-3.7zm4.6.9h5.3v-1.5H9.3v1.5z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label\">Wikipedia<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n\n<li style=\"color:var(--ast-global-color-5);background-color:var(--ast-global-color-3);\" class=\"wp-social-link wp-social-link-facebook has-ast-global-color-5-color has-ast-global-color-3-background-color wp-block-social-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/kenneth.mack.58\" class=\"wp-block-social-link-anchor\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\"><path d=\"M12 2C6.5 2 2 6.5 2 12c0 5 3.7 9.1 8.4 9.9v-7H7.9V12h2.5V9.8c0-2.5 1.5-3.9 3.8-3.9 1.1 0 2.2.2 2.2.2v2.5h-1.3c-1.2 0-1.6.8-1.6 1.6V12h2.8l-.4 2.9h-2.3v7C18.3 21.1 22 17 22 12c0-5.5-4.5-10-10-10z\"><\/path><\/svg><span class=\"wp-block-social-link-label\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kenneth W. Mack is the inaugural Lawrence D. Biele Professor of Law and Affiliate Professor of History at Harvard University. He is the co-faculty leader of the&nbsp;Harvard Law School Program on Law and History. From 2016 to 2017, he was a&nbsp;Radcliffe Fellow&nbsp;at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. During the 2022-23 year, &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">About Kenneth Mack<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"left-sidebar","site-content-layout":"boxed-container","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-27","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/27","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/27\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.law.harvard.edu\/kenneth-mack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}