Cable Networks canceled reality television shows on law enforcement after George Floyd's murder, but they have made a comeback in recent years. Paul Kaplan and I spoke with CNN about the appeal of these shows and the harm they cause. www.cnn.com/2026/07/25/u...

50 years ago, executions resumed in the USA after a 10-year moratorioum. I'll be in discussion with Terrica Redfield Ganzy and Jason Fabrikant on July 7th about the significance of that historical moment. This conversation is free and open to all; registration details are below.

I gave a virtual talk to my alma mater's alumni association answering the question, "Is America's Death Penalty Dying?" Linking to the video here if anyone is interested! www.carleton.edu/alumni/regio...

I'm grateful and excited to be in residency at Emory's Center for Ethics this fall. Looking forward to cross-disciplinary conversations--and some much-needed time away from teaching to finish my second solo-authored book on capital punishment in the United States. ethics.emory.edu/programs/are...

Arete Ethics Research Scholars | Emory University | Atlanta GA

ethics.emory.edu

Good. I hope they win. Emory's administration acted disgracefully that day and faculty morale and trust has not recovered.

Emory professors take on their own university after arrests at 2024 Israel-Hamas war

Three professors at Atlanta's Emory University filed a lawsuit Thursday over their arrests during a 2024 campus protest over the Israel-Hamas war, saying the university broke its own free speech polic...

wabe.org

My book on capital punishment in the United States periodically goes on Amazon's digital remainder table. Today, you can get the Kindle version of my book for the low, low price of $0.50--two quarters! www.amazon.com/Executing-Fr...

Executing Freedom: The Cultural Life of Capital Punishment in the United States

Executing Freedom: The Cultural Life of Capital Punishment in the United States - Kindle edition by LaChance, Daniel. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Executing Freedom: The Cultural Life of Capital Punishment in the United States.

amazon.com

Daniel LaChance@dwlachance.bsky.social · 2y ago

Interested in the past and present of the American death penalty? My first book, "Executing Freedom: The Cultural Life of Capital Punishment," is once again on Amazon's digital remains table for $0.75. www.amazon.com/Executing-Fr...

My former colleague Kylie Smith in the NYT: “I really, really resented the idea that you should change the words [in grant applications] so that you could get [federal] funding,” she said, adding, “To me, that is compliance with fascism, and I’m not going to do it.” www.nytimes.com/2026/03/16/u...

Professors Are Changing What They Teach, Even Far from Trump’s Gaze

nytimes.com

"Oh my gosh, it was so nice to see you! Have a lovely day, fuck ICE!" "Oh you too hon! Stay safe in that traffic, fuck ICE!' - two older Minnesota ladies, bidding farewell after the protest

#ICEOUT produced protests in all 50 states with just 2 days notice! In the sun, the rain, & the snow! For Nicole Good & all those ICE is harming. People came out in large cities, small towns; and in 🔴 & 🩵 states. Catch up quickly! Here's my montage of 40 different cities in 2 videos. 🎵 🧵👆🏻

The worst thing to happen to academia was the emergence of a nomadic administrative class like the one in corporations who just move from institution to institution setting fires and walking away. Say what you will about the flaws of faculty governance, but at least they believe in the mission.

this is like that scene in office space where the consultants end up loving peter

What a great day celebrating Austin Sarat’s FIFTY years of teaching at Amherst College.I got to speak on this panel in the morning and then again in the afternoon about how influential his scholarship and mentorship has been to me.

Married!

Cowardice.

Summer reading

Emory has “de-promoted” President Greg Fenves, removing him as president and creating a chancellorship position for him to occupy, presumably at a high salary, as budgets are being slashed 30% across all units and a pay and hiring freeze are in effect. www.chronicle.com/article/emor...

The deluge of flimsy white folding chairs has flooded the quad—graduation is nigh…

The Hurst Summer Institute in Legal History has announced its 2025 Fellows! I was glad to be able to participate on the selection committee for this incredible cohort of scholars. www.law.wisc.edu/hurst-instit...

2025 Hurst Fellows | University of Wisconsin Law SchoolSite iconsUniversity logo that links to main university websitefacebooktwitterxyoutubelinkedininstagramUW CrestBluesky

law.wisc.edu

Today, Emory University @emoryuniversity.bsky.social faculty marched today to protest the erosion of shared governance at our institution and to urge President Greg Fenves to join the 200 college & university presidents who signed the AAUC’s statement of commitment to academic freedom.

Last week, I spoke at a conference on capital punishment & religion at the University of Texas Law School. Best of all was meeting a hero of mine, Sister Helen Prejean, author of "Dead Man Walking"-- kind, down-to-earth, funny, and still doing the work at 85. We should all be so lucky!

So thrilled for my advisee, Emilyn Hazelbrook, who defended her incredible honors thesis on battered woman syndrom, "Premeditated But Not Guilty: The Rise and Fall of the Battered Woman Legal Defense." Her committee awarded her highest honors!

Our Bronze Star Award Arrived!!! SILVER, we’re coming for you! Let me know if you need any pointers, @elizwilsonemory.bsky.social

Daniel LaChance@dwlachance.bsky.social · 2y ago

Our undergrad program, which I lead, was awarded a "Bronze Star Award" for the soul-sucking, bureaucratic self-assessment report we have to file. We have been encouraged to "show off" our certificate to others. I haven't been this excited since I won a certificate for "Most Polite" in Grade 5!

🔥 Rep. Al Green is not new to standing up

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has an article today on the low morale of many faculty at Emory. I joined my colleagues (I'm the one in red) in protest of the erosion of shared governance at Emory. www.ajc.com/education/em...

The President of Wesleyan is consistently the only University leader who stands up for the academic mission! @wesleyanuniversity.bsky.social #Academicsky slate.com/life/2025/02...

Dear Fellow College Presidents: We Need to Do More Than Wait This One Out

Why civil society needs university leaders to speak up.

slate.com

Emory Pres. Greg Fenves, who unleashed police violence on peaceful protestors last April, has signed an agreement with the US Dept of Eductation to enact reforms to protect students against anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian Discrimination. The DOE rightly characterized the violence as "gratuitous."

This is a fantastic article that gives much needed scholarly attention to the 2019 film “Clemency” with Alfre Woodard and its portrayal of the psychic toll executions place on those who carry them out.

Jisha Menon@profmenon.bsky.social · 2y ago

My new article "Dignity and the Drama of the Death Penalty" considers competing invocations of dignity in punishment, and how that impinges on conceptions of personhood. Thanks to work of @dwlachance.bsky.social @lch-law-cult-hum.bsky.social among others: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Moon over Emory

New Year, New Novel, Same Cuddly Cat

Back when I started teaching at Emory, President Carter would have lunch monthly with 4 faculty members. I was lucky enough to meet him this way. He showed courage and leadership calling for an end to the death penalty in the United States. His moral vision is needed now more than ever.