Law is dominated by a select range of actors: the wealthy, the white, the male and the enabled. Their prevalence among those who appear before the courts, whether as litigants or legal representatives, and those who judge the cases is inescapable.

This is true in much academic discourse too. The privileged dominate the practice of law, the law reports and the legal academy. Diverse Voices is an attempt to engage with a wider range of voices and perspectives than are typically encountered within the legal academy and legal studies. What are the stories that are not told in traditional law courses? Whose values are permitted and who is ignored? Who is rendered visible and who is subjected to the legal gaze? Who is controlled and who is empowered by the law?

Inevitably this series will not capture all the voices that need to be heard. It cannot capture the depth of nuance that a deep intersectional analysis requires. What the series does do is to disrupt the dominant discourse and to highlight those marginalised, silenced or misrepresented by the law. It seeks to start a listening process and begin a journey. It is certainly not the last word or the final destination. It is a beginning.