Prof. dr. A.L. (Anita) Allen
Honorary supervisor Prof. E.J. Koops - 2019 – Tilburg Law School
Anita Lafrance Allen (Port Townsend, 1953) is an internationally renowned expert on privacy law and ethics, and is recognized for her contributions to legal philosophy, women's rights, and diversity in higher education. She is Professor of Law and Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania.
Allen grew up in poverty in Atlanta, Georgia at a time of strict segregation. Her uneducated parents made every effort to put their children through college. Anita Allen became a prominent philosopher and lawyer and is now a widely cited scholar in the field of privacy studies. She co-determines policy at the University of Pennsylvania. Barack Obama appointed her to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues.
Allen was honored by the Tilburg Law School in the eulogy of Professor Bert-Jaap Koops, who praised her first and foremost for her outstanding contribution to the study of law and philosophy, especially in the field of privacy studies in which she asks “uncomfortable questions about legal protection and personal responsibility, freedom, and paternalism, with special attention to the needs of women and racial and sexual minorities.” Also notable is her active participation in public debate and political development. Finally, she was praised because her work makes her “a role model for students and academics alike.”
Read her very personal word of thanks "Imagine an Unimaginable Future" at the 2019 Dies Natalis.
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