[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 27 (Monday, March 13, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E283-E284]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


PROFESSOR HELLE PORSDAM: A DISTINCTIVE INSIGHT ON AMERICAN CULTURE AND 
                                THE LAW

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 13, 2000

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to urge my colleagues to take 
notice of the work of a talented Danish scholar, Professor Helle

[[Page E284]]

Porsdam of Denmark's Odense University. Dr. Porsdam's book, Legally 
Speaking: Contemporary American Culture and the Law, which was recently 
published by the University of Massachusetts Press, offers evidence of 
her extraordinary perceptiveness in her analysis of American culture.
  In Legally Speaking, Dr. Porsdam discusses the social impact of the 
law in the United States. Whereas many European and Asian nations find 
symbols of their national identity in royalty or an established church, 
Americans look to an institution far more consistent with our 
egalitarian roots: our system of justice. Despite our frequent 
frustrations with the legal profession--ambulance-chasing lawyers, 
legal ``sharks,'' frivolous lawsuits, the O.J. Simpson trial--the law 
epitomizes our most cherished civil ideals of fairness and equality. 
When a citizen is wronged, we look to the courts to make things right. 
When a crime is committed, the courts offer our sole vehicle for 
judgment and punishment. When our rights are violated, our courts can 
restore them. For this reason, Dr. Porsdam contends, the law serves 
more than just a functional purpose for the American people: it is a 
``civil religion'' in which we place a particular kind of faith. The 
courts arbitrate more than just lawsuits and criminal cases; they pass 
judgment on our hopes and dreams as well.
  Dr. Porsdam's book analyzes America's moral investment in the legal 
system, and it further demonstrates how this facet of our national 
identity has permeated our culture. From The People's Court to L.A. 
Law, from Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities to Scott Turow's Presumed 
Innocent, the evidence of our society's attraction to judicial 
institutions is overwhelming. Dr. Porsdam carefully and thoughtfully 
explores the connections between the allure of the law and our faith in 
it.
  The perceptiveness of Dr. Porsdam in Legally Speaking has earned the 
endorsement of scholars across our country. Lewis D. Sargentich of 
Harvard Law School noted that the book is ``full of valuable insight.'' 
Her ``emphasis on the symbolic, unifying, aspirational side of law in 
American life, and her showing of this aspect of law through a close 
look at a series of contemporary `cultural texts,' combine to produce a 
unique scholarly contribution.'' Maxwell H. Bloomfield, the author of 
American Lawyers in a Changing Society, was equally effusive, praising 
Dr. Porsdam's work as ``an innovative and engaging study exploring the 
pervasive influence of law in the shaping of contemporary American 
culture. It is a strikingly original piece of work for which no 
comparable models exist.''
  Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more with these distinguished 
scholars. I urge my colleagues to join me in reading Legally Speaking 
and in appreciating the brilliant observations of Dr. Helle Porsdam.

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