Coalitions at the Crossroads :: Mission Statement
		The complexity of the 21st century demands a new approach to social issues facing underrepresented and marginalized communities. Legal issues cross boundaries of geography and identity, challenging and affecting disparate group interests. Labor, environmental, and international interests are intertwined in questions of race, gender, and sexual preference. Just as the social problems posed by the new century have become increasingly complex, the social solutions are more difficult to locate. Complex problems require complex solutions. No longer can we rely on our individual strengths to defend our individual interests. Coalitions represent the best hope for the successful marshaling of resources and group interests. Where legal issues cross boundaries of geography and identity, problem-solving in our diverse society requires the creation of coalitions. Coalitions form, disband and unite under social pressures. The student journals and organizations at the Boalt Hall School of Law, UC Berkeley, have come together to address, celebrate, explore, and criticize coalition building. The community-wide conference, Coalitions at the Crossroads, will examine the benefits, strategies and limitations of coalition-building. The issues that will be addressed, while often invisible in mainstream legal and political analysis, are nonetheless critical to the success of our community as a whole for: Where our individual voices are not heard, our collective voice is a source of power.