Albuquerque, NM –University of New Mexico School of Law Professor Emerita Margaret Montoya is an honoree in the Harvard Law School (HLS) 2nd Annual International Women’s Day Portrait Exhibit. The exhibit features inspiring women working in the fields of law and policy and is on display at HLS from March 2nd-14th.

The webpage honoring Montoya indicates she is an inspiration “as a teacher, activist, social justice advocate, critical race theorist, and joyful spirit.”

Montoya’s scholarship appears in law reviews, anthologies and casebooks and is used in many high school, undergraduate, graduate and law school courses throughout the United States. Her best-known article, Mascaras, Trenzas y Greñas: Un/Masking the Self While Un/Braiding Latina Stories and Legal Discourse, connects autobiographical narratives with legal analysis and focuses on resisting the cultural assimilation that often comes with higher education.

“Margaret Montoya’s presence in the legal academy cannot be overstated,” said UNM Law Professor Barbara Creel. “Her presence in the academy inspires us to trust that as people of color our lived experience matters. I am grateful for her and others work for racial justice. The law school and New Mexico benefit from her excellence in teaching and scholarship and her work in service of human in her home state. She brings honor to UNM locally and nationally and to women—especially women of color— globally.”

A luncheon recognizing honorees features keynote addresses by Ann Burroughs and Valerie Biden Owens at HLS on Tuesday, March 10th from 12 – 2 pm.