Having attended Harvard Law School on a Fulbright, Alfredo Gutiérrez Ortiz Mena was invited back to HLS in Fall 2025 to teach “Constitutional Erosion and Democratic Backsliding,” as well as a course on human rights.

For the previous 12 years, he served on Mexico’s Supreme Court, issuing landmark decisions that advanced reproductive autonomy, LGBTQ+ equality, environmental protection, indigenous people’s rights, and gender-affirming healthcare access. He resigned from the court in protest against new legislation that would curb judicial independence. 

Gutiérrez Ortiz Mena is a forceful advocate for Ethnic Studies, writing that “diversity, equity, and inclusion–including racial diversity–are central to academic excellence and institutional legitimacy.” He also believes Harvard has gone too far in restraining alumni interview reports, noting that the US Supreme Court decision expressly allows applicants to explain how race has shaped their lives; he argues for new guidelines, training, and oversight.

Gutiérrez Ortiz Mena sees the role of Overseers as not “to comment on individual University decisions, but rather to safeguard Harvard’s long-term values — particularly access and diversity — within existing legal constraints.” “Harvard is not Harvard without its international community,” he told the Crimson. “Harvard is not Harvard if it’s not looking for a diverse student body.”