American Bar Association Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice
Operating as usual
Thank you to our 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration Benefactor sponsors, Jack Londen, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Morrison Foerster, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, and World Justice Project for supporting our webinars and resources that are free to our community of advocates nationwide!
TODAY @ 2:00 P.M. ET: Don't miss this week's Chair Chat, featuring ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas and ABA Coalition on Racial and Ethnic Justice Chair Twanda Turner-Hawkins as they discuss the ABA Coalition on Racial and Ethnic Justice's work to address the school-to-prison pipeline.
Tune in ➡️ bit.ly/3BGgQN7
: We hosted our Seventh Annual State of Voting Rights program last week! Read more ⬇️
Voting rights in the United States are in a precarious position, according to experts at the ABA webinar, “Seventh Annual State of Voting Rights.” The issue, which has become more contentious in recent years, has “some good, a lot of bad, unfortunate
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"The North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday knocked down a 2018 voter-identification law it said discriminated against Black voters and ordered a state Senate map be redrawn due to Republican partisan gerrymandering...
The court upheld a lower court’s 2021 ruling that a 2018 law requiring voters to present photo ID was unconstitutional. The majority opinion said that the lower court correctly found that the law “was motivated by a racially discriminatory purpose.”" via NBC News
Both cases were decided 4-3 along party lines, with all the high court’s Democratic justices voting in the majority and all Republicans dissenting.
: This week’s Chair Chat featured ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas in conversation with the American Bar Association Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Chair Daniel Woofter to discuss the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project and Escobar v. Texas.
Join us for this week's Chair Chat on Wednesday, December 14, at 2:00 p.m. ET, featuring Section Chair Juan R. Thomas and ABA Death Penalty Due Process Revie...
"A federal judge in Texas paused the Biden administration’s attempt to end the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” program, which requires some non-Mexican asylum seekers to be sent back to that country to await immigration proceedings.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk on Thursday issued a stay on the administration’s effort to terminate that policy while Texas and Missouri’s attempts to force the federal government to continue the program are considered in court. The Department of Homeland Security in August stopped enrolling new asylum seekers into the program, which had been halted and restarted for years due to legal challenges and a change in administrations." via Washington Post
A U.S. judge issued a stay order on the Biden administration’s effort to terminate the immigration policy while court challenges by Texas and Missouri continue.
Thank you to our Advocate Sponsor Goodwin for generously supporting the 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration. Your support allows our Section to keep our programming free for our nationwide community of advocates!
MARK YOUR CALENDARS: We're kicking off 2023 with a brand new CRSJ 101 on 1/9 at 3:00 p.m. ET! Make a resolution to come learn about the benefits of joining ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice and getting involved in our important advocacy work!
Register HERE ➡️ bit.ly/3uZ471K
"A Michigan man has pleaded guilty to hate crime charges after he intimidated supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement by leaving handwritten notes and nooses around his community, the Department of Justice said in a news release.
Kenneth Pilon, 61, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal district court to two charges of hate crimes. Pilon specifically pleaded guilty to "willfully intimidating and attempting to intimidate citizens from engaging in lawful speech and protests in support of the Black Lives Matter movement" dating back to June and July 2020, according to officials." via NPR
The case was investigated by the FBI, as the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case. The suspect, Kenneth Pilon, will be sentenced in March 2023.
HAPPENING NOW: American Bar Association Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Chair Daniel Woofter is joining ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas to discuss the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project and Escobar v. Texas.
Tune in ➡️ bit.ly/3FcRg37
"Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced plans Tuesday to commute the sentences of the 17 people on death row to life in prison without the possibility of parole, most likely using her executive clemency powers for the last time as governor...
Oregon is one of 27 states that permit the death penalty. Last year, Virginia became the most recent state to legislatively abolish the practice, opting instead for a sentence of life imprisonment with no possibility for parole, data from the National Conference of State Legislatures shows.
The death penalty was first legalized in Oregon in the 19th century, but it has been abolished and reinstated three times since then. It was most recently reinstated in 1984, with two executions taking place in since then, in September 1996 and May 1997." via NBC News
Brown criticized capital punishment, saying the death penalty “cannot be and never has been administered fairly and equitably.”
HAPPENING NOW: Don't miss our Seventh Annual State of Voting Rights program, featuring an esteemed panel consists of those who run elections, advocate for voters, and fight for the right to vote in the courts and in halls of Congress.
Watch the livestream ➡️ bit.ly/3UWi39U
"The Supreme Court says it won’t take the plunge into a dispute over Michigan State University’s decision to end its swimming-and-diving teams, a decision female athletes sued over.
The case was one of many the high court rejected Monday. As is typical, the justices didn’t comment in turning away the case.
The dispute the justices rejected stems from MSU’s decision to end its men’s and women’s swimming-and-diving teams after the 2021 season. The school cited cost as the reason, saying its swimming and diving facilities needed millions in upgrades.
Members of the women’s team sued saying the decision violated federal anti-discrimination law, commonly known as Title IX. A judge rejected a request to keep the women’s team alive while the lawsuit proceeded, saying she doubted the female swimmers would prevail at the end of the litigation. But a three-judge federal appeals court panel later ruled 2-1 that the judge should take another look at the case." via AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court says it won't take the plunge into a dispute over Michigan State University's decision to end its swimming-and-diving teams, a decision female athletes sued over.
Thank you to our 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration Mission Partner Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP for your generosity in helping to keep our programming free for our community of advocates nationwide!
WEDNESDAY @ 2:00 P.M. ET: ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas will be joined by the American Bar Association Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Chair Daniel Woofter to discuss the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project and Escobar v. Texas.
Tune in ➡️ bit.ly/3FcRg37
"The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a second bid to revive President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan, which will be heard in February alongside a case the justices have already agreed to hear.
In both the cases, lower courts blocked the plan, meaning the Supreme Court will have the final say on whether it ever goes into effect.
The case the court said Monday that it would take up involves two holders of student loan debt, Myra Brown and Alexander Taylor, who claimed the administration had failed to follow the correct procedure in announcing the plan. A federal judge in Texas invalided it nationwide, prompting the administration to turn to the Supreme Court." via NBC News
The challenge, brought by two borrowers, will be heard in February when the high court hears a similar challenge from states.
You're not going to want to miss our annual State of Voting Rights program TOMORROW at 2:00 p.m. ET! Our esteemed panel will feature those who run elections, advocate for voters, and fight for the right to vote in the courts and in halls of Congress.
Register HERE ➡️ bit.ly/3hMifuu
"A new lawsuit is seeking to block Manhattan state court officials from enforcing a state law permanently barring people with past felony convictions from serving on juries, saying the law discriminates against Black New Yorkers.
The complaint, filed in Manhattan federal court Thursday by public defender Daudi Justin alongside the non-profit Community Service Society of New York, says the ban violates both the U.S. Constitution's Sixth Amendment right to trial by jury and the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection." via Reuters
A new lawsuit is seeking to block Manhattan state court officials from enforcing a state law permanently barring people with past felony convictions from serving on juries, saying the law discriminates against Black New Yorkers.
: American Bar Association President Deborah-Enix Ross sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer urging support of S. 1486 (Pregnant Workers Fairness Act) before the 117th Congress adjourns.
TODAY @ 12:00 P.M. ET: Don’t miss our webinar from ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice and American Bar Association Commission on Immigration! Our panel of former House staffers will discuss whether it is possible to pass any meaningful immigration legislation in the 118th Congress.
Register HERE ➡️ bit.ly/3Oiggdk
: This week’s Chair Chat featured ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas in conversation with The Legal Accountability Project President and Co-Founder Aliza Shatzman to discuss judicial accountability and clerkships.
Join us for the fifteenth Chair Chat on Wednesday, December 7, at 2:00 p.m. ET, featuring Section Chair Juan R. Thomas and Aliza Shatzman (The Legal Accounta...
There's still time to register for our annual State of Voting Rights program on TUESDAY at 2:00 p.m. ET, featuring a conversation about threats to the franchise, redistricting, the Electoral Count Act and prospective policy changes on the federal and state level.
Register HERE ➡️ bit.ly/3hMifuu
We are proud to have worked with the American Bar Association Commission on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity on ABA Resolution 22A806 in support of the Respect for Marriage Act!
Learn MORE ➡️ bit.ly/3FCEtZi
The legislation, which would also ensure federal protections for in*******al marriages, has already passed the Senate. President Joe Biden is now expected to sign it into law.
"Brown University now explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of caste, joining a number of US colleges and universities in shoring up protections against an ill-understood, insidious form of oppression.
The university’s governing body voted this fall to add caste as a protected characteristic to its nondiscrimination policy, alongside categories such as race, religion, s*x and gender identity. It’s the first Ivy League institution to add such protections for the wider campus community, including students, faculty and staff, according to the advocacy organization Equality Labs." via CNN
The Ivy League university now explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of caste, joining a number of US colleges and universities in shoring up protections against an ill-understood, insidious form of oppression.
Thank you to our 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration Mission Partner Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP for your generosity in helping to keep our programming free for our community of advocates nationwide!
HAPPENING NOW: The Legal Accountability Project President and Co-Founder Aliza Shatzman is joining ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice Chair Juan R. Thomas to discuss judicial accountability and clerkships.
Tune in ➡️ bit.ly/3OOED2C
This week, heard arguments in 303 Creative v. Elenis. Read what former Solicitor General Donald Verrilli had to say about the case in Vol. 47, No. 3/4 of our Human Rights Magazine on the intersection of LGBTQ rights and religious freedom.
If the free expression claim in 303 Creative is upheld, the analogical pressure to extend that right of conscience to anyone who asserts it (for reasons of religious belief or freedom of association) will be exceedingly hard to resist.
Join us NEXT TUESDAY at 2:00 p.m. ET for the "Seventh Annual State of Voting Rights."
In this webinar, Adam Ambrogi – Senior Director for Voting and Elections, League of Women Voters of the US; Khyla D. Craine – Deputy Legal Director, Michigan Department of State; Abha Khanna – Partner, Elias Law Group; Leslie Proll – Senior Director, Voting Rights Program, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights; and Jason A. Abel – Partner, Steptoe & Johnson LLP; Co-Chair, Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity Committee, ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice, will discuss threats to the franchise, redistricting, the Electoral Count Act and prospective policy changes on the federal and state level.
Register HERE ➡️ bit.ly/3hMifuu
The ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice will honor Kay H. Hodge, a partner at the Boston law firm of Stoneman, Chandler & Miller LLP, with its 2023 Father Robert F. Drinan Award for Distinguished Service on 1/26 at 6:00 p.m. ET.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2022 — The American Bar Association Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice will honor Kay H. Hodge, a partner at the Boston law firm of Stoneman, Chandler & Miller LLP, with its 2023 Father Robert F. Drinan Award for Distingui
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Thank you to our 2022 Thurgood Thank you to our Mission Partner Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP for generously supporting the 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration and resources that CRSJ provides for our network of civil rights advocates!
We would like to thank our Mission Partner Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP for generously supporting the 2022 Thurgood Marshall Award Celebration and advancing CRSJ webinars and resources to all!
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