Widening the Lens of Justice: Unmasking the Layers of Racial and Social Inequality

Image - Law Review 2021 Symposium Widening the Lens of Justice

Friday, February 5, 2021

8:30 A.M. - 5:30 P.M.

7 Hours CLE 

Register Here

There is a large-scale call for change following the recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless others at the hands of police. Nothing exists in isolation, and these injustices are not simply limited to police brutality. In fact, structural racism is premised on the idea that systems work together, usually invisibly, and often without any overt discriminatory intent. These injustices, the on-going protests, and the devastation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have forced this country to confront the glaring and enduring systemic inequalities that pervades American law and society.  It is imperative that we, as a legal community, come together to understand and expose the ways in which race and racial oppression shape the world we inhabit. It is through their important work, members of the legal community in this country can promote change and help build a more equitable society.

The Southwestern Law Review is therefore inviting scholars, practitioners, and activists from around the country to join us as we engage with our racist past and present in an attempt to map out a better future. The symposium will widen the lens of racial and social injustice from police brutality to issues surrounding the environment, wealth and economics, criminal prosecution, and voting rights focusing both on a retrospective view of oppression as well as a progressive view for systemic change.

Panel Topics

  1. Welcome Address: Widening the Lens of Equality and Civil Rights
    Image - Welcome Address

     

    Speaker:

    • Adam Schiff, U.S. Representative, California's 28th Congressional District, and Chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

     

  2. Viewing Public Policy Reform Through the Lens of Environmental Justice

    Image - Environmental Justice

    This panel will address the unequal access to natural resources. From the ground to the air, communities of color are often forced to endure worse environmental conditions that have long term effects on public health. On the ground, this panel will highlight the role of race and socioeconomic class on access to food and coastal lands. In the air, climate change poses a greater threat to these communities as the globe continues to warm. This panel will also address the role of the government when confronting environmental justice issues.

    Moderator – Ronald Aronovsky, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Panelists:

    • Vanessa Galavíz, EJ Public Health Scientist, California Environmental Protection Agency
    • Carmen Gonzalez, Morris I. Leibman Professor of Law, Loyola University Chicago School of Law
    • Natalia Ospina, Natural Resources Defense Council Project Attorney, Environmental Justice
    • Stephanie Tai, Professor of Law, University of Wisconsin-Madison Law 

     

  3. Race & Economic (In)Justice—Past, Present, Future

    Image - Economic Inequities

    Race and economic injustice are inseparable, given that the American economy is constructed on the backs of Black, Brown, Red, Yellow, and, yes, White bodies. This panel will explore some of the ways in which issues of race and economic injustice are embedded and obscured in the American social fabric, from the mundane workings of contract law to the new gig economy to the ever-critical issue of housing. And, because "the arc of the moral universe . . . bends towards justice," the panel will also look to the future and the possibility of reparations as a necessary first step to redress some of the economic damage inflicted on the African American community in the United States.

    Moderator – Dov Waisman, Vice Dean and Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Panelists:

    • Kenya Covington, Lecturer SOE of Public Policy, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
    • Veena Dubal, Professor of Law, UC Hastings School of Law
    • Danielle Hart, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School
    • Robert St. Martin Westley, LOCHEF Professor of Legal Ethics & Professional Responsibility, Tulane School of Law

     

  4. Luncheon Keynote: Constitutionalizing Our Democratic Expectations

    Image - Luncheon Keynote

    Introduction by – Susan Westerberg Prager, Dean, President, and Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Keynote Speaker:

    • Franita Tolson, Vice Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs and Professor of Law, USC Gould School of Law

     

  5. Criminal Justice: Strides Towards Progressive Policing and Prosecution

    Image - Criminal Justice

    This panel will revisit certain practices in policing and prosecution that pose disproportional threats to communities of color. The discretionary decision to seek the death penalty and timing considerations of knock and announce warrants are exemplary of this real threat. This has created a wedge between some communities and the law enforcement officials meant to protect and serve them. This panel will consider ways to mend these relationships and offer a different approach to policing.

    Moderator – Rachel Vanlandingham, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Panelists:

    • Isabelle Gunning, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School
    • Michael Morse, Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office, and Adjunct Associate Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School
    • Njeri I. Mathis Rutledge, Professor of Law, South Texas College of Law Houston
    • Kenneth Williams, Professor of Law, South Texas College of Law Houston
  6. Voting Rights: The Fight for Access to the Ballot

    Image - Voter Rights

    This panel will address the right to vote and the structural limitations that disproportionally affect communities of color. It has been eight years since the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder, and the impact of that decision is abundantly clear. Communities of color across various states face a concerted effort to limit their access to the ballot. Redistricting and redlining can result in states effectively controlling the power and impact of minorities at the polls. Finally, this panel will discuss the ongoing effort across multiple states to re-enfranchise voters who have previously committed a felony.

    Moderator – Gowri Ramachandran, Voter Protection & Election Security Counsel,
    2019-2021 Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law, and Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Panelists:

    • Patrick Berry, Fellow and Counsel, Brennan Center for Justice Democracy Program
    • Christopher G. Hollins, Principal Attorney, Hollins Law Group PLLC and Former Harris County Clerk
    • Bertrall Ross, Chancellor’s Professor of Law, U.C. Berkeley School of Law

     

  7. Closing Address
    Image - Closing Address

    Introduction by – John Heilman, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School

    Speaker:

    • Holly J. Mitchell, Los Angeles County Supervisor, 2nd District

     

8:30 a.m. - 8:50 a.m.

Welcome Address: Widening the Lens of Equality and Civil Rights

Congressman Adam Schiff

 

8:50 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

Break

 

9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Panel 1

Viewing Public Policy Reform Through the Lens of Environmental Justice                                                        

10:30 a.m. - 10:40 a.m.                

Break
10:40 a.m. - 12:10 p.m.                                                                                

Panel 2

Race & Economic (In)Justice—Past, Present, Future 

12:10 p.m. - 12:30 p.m. 

Break

 

12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.                                                                            

Luncheon Keynote: Constitutionalizing Our Democratic Expectations

Introduction by Dean Susan Westerberg Prager

Keynote Speaker - Dean Franita Tolson

1:30 p.m. - 1:40 p.m.                                                          

Break
1:40 p.m. - 3:10 p.m.                                                                                 

Panel 3

Criminal Justice: Strides Towards Progressive Policing and Prosecution

3:10 p.m. - 3:20 p.m.                

Break

3:20 p.m. - 4:50 p.m.                

Panel 4

Voting Rights: The Fight for Access to the Ballot

4:50 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. 

Break

 

5:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Closing Address

Introduction by Professor John Heilman

Speaker - L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell

 

  

Image - Aronovsky

Ronald Aronovsky

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School   

Image - Berry

Patrick Berry

Fellow & Counsel,
Brennan Center for Justice Democracy Program

Image - Covington

Kenya Covington

Lecturer SOE of Public Policy,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs                                                                                                                                                

Image - Dubal

Veena Dubal

Professor of Law,
UC Hastings School of Law

Image - Galaviz

Vanessa Galavíz

EJ Public Health Scientist,
California Environmental Protection Agency

Image - Gonzalez

Carmen Gonzalez

Morris I. Leibman Professor of Law,
Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Image - Gunning

Isabelle Gunning

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

Image - Hart

Danielle K. Hart

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

Image - Heilman

John Heilman

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

Image - Hollins

Christopher G. Hollins

Principal Attorney,
Hollins Law Group PLLC and
Former Harris County Clerk

Image - Mitchell

Holly J. Mitchell

Los Angeles County Supervisor,
2nd District 

Image - Morse

Michael Morse

Assistant U.S. Attorney,
U.S. Assistant Attorney's Office and Adjunct Associate Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

Image - Ospina

Natalia Ospina

Natural Resources Defense Council Project Attorney,
            Environmental Justice 

Image - Prager

Susan Westerberg Prager

Dean, President,
and Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

                                                                                                                                                                      

Image - Ramachandran

Gowri Ramachandran

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School and
Voter Protection & Election Security Counsel,
2019-2021 Brennan Center for Justice,
NYU School of Law

Image - Ross

Bertrall Ross

Chancellor's Professor of Law,
Berkeley Law

Image - Rutledge

Njeri I. Mathis Rutledge

Professor of Law,
South Texas College of Law Houston 

Image - Schiff

Adam Schiff

U.S. Representative,
California's 28th Congressional District and Chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

Image - Tai

Stephanie Tai

Professor of Law,
University of Wisconsin-Madison Law

Image - Tolson

Franita Tolson

Vice Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs and Professor of Law,
USC Gould School of Law

Image - Vanlandingham

Rachel VanLandingham

Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

Image - Waisman

Dov Waisman

 Vice Dean and
Professor of Law,
Southwestern Law School

                                                                

Image - Westley

Robert St. Martin Westley

LOCHEF Professor of Legal Ethics & Professional Responsibility,
Tulane School of Law

Image - Williams

Kenneth Williams

Professor of Law,
South Texas College of Law Houston

 

Law Review Moderators

Image - Bran

Abraham (Abe) Bran

Special Projects Editor,
Southwestern Law Review

Image - Jansson

Erica Jansson

Editor-in-Chief,
Southwestern Law Review

Image - Rosa-Mata

Alejandro Rosa-Mata

Managing Editor,
Southwestern Law Review

 

Luncheon Keynote: Constitutionalizing Our Democratic Expectations

The Southwestern Law Review is a student-edited quarterly journal that publishes scholarly articles and commentary on the law contributed by prominent jurists, practitioners, law professors, and student members of the Law Review staff.