[Member Recap] The Moment You Have Been Waiting For!

Catch Up With NLG News: Member Recap, June 2024

Dear ,

Welcome to our sixth Member Recap of the year. The biggest announcement is that REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN for our 2024 #Law4ThePeople convention! We really hope to see a lot of y'all there, so that we may continue the work and fight for the liberation of ourselves, and our communities. Take a look below to see what else we all have been up to.

Convention Updates

2024 #Law4ThePeople Convention Registration is Live!

Our 2024 #Law4ThePeople convention registration is NOW OPEN!

Join us for groundbreaking discussions on movement law, and be a part of the legal arm of liberation movements! The NLG's 2024 #Law4ThePeople Convention will take place at the Hilton Birmingham Downtown at UAB, in Birmingham, AL on Wednesday, October 30 - Sunday, November 3, 2024!

Our first in-person convention in five years will take place where TUPOCC (The United People of Color Caucus) formed 20 years ago, creating the Alabama Manifesto.

Join hundreds of legal professionals, scholars, and activists for five days of interactive CLEs, workshops, and panels by members of the oldest and most progressive public-interest bar association in the country. Stay tuned for the convention schedule, programming, and awardee information!

You can also register for a discounted hotel group rate for the NLG!

We hope to see y'all there!

National Executive Committee Updates

NEC Meetings

The NEC held a hybrid quarterly meeting in New Orleans on April 20-21. The board approved the NLG's Strategic Plan and discussed convention planning, organizational communications, national committee work, fundraising, and mass defense updates. To see a summary of the April meeting, please check out the "NEC Meeting Notes" page in the Members-Only section of our website! The next NEC meeting will take place on July 20-21.

2024 Governance Information

As a democratic organization, the work and focus of the Guild is decided by our members. Each year, we hold plenaries in which members discuss programmatic priorities, often in the form of resolutions. We also update our governing documents, our Bylaws and Constitution, and elect new officers to serve on the NLG National Executive Committee. All 2024 governance information can now be found in the Members-Only section of the website: 2024 Resolutions, Amendments, and Elections.

National Announcements And Updates

Congratulations To Our Law School Chapter Members!

We want to take a moment to congratulate all of NLG law school chapter members who graduated this year! We are excited for the next generation of movement lawyers! Everyone at the National Office is proud of all the work you have done, and all of the amazing work you will continue to do.

Thanks to University of Oregon NLG, the Rutgers-Newark University NLG, William and Mary Law School NLG, and the St. John's NLG, for sending in photos.

Click on the images above to see the photos on our Instagram!

Support Our Haywood Burns Fellows!

Since 1973, the NLG has been funding the summer work of legal workers and law students seeking to build their progressive legal skills. The Haywood Burns Memorial Fellowships for Social and Economic Justice were named in 1997 for renowned social justice lawyer and beloved former Guild President Haywood Burns, who is remembered by students as an exceptional teacher and dedicated mentor.

We can't continue provide this critical support without your contributions, so we encourage those who can to give back!

Donate To Support The Fellows

Chapter And Committee Announcements

Appeal for Redress Campaign!

The Military Law Task Force is working on an Appeal for Redress, a campaign designed to allow military personnel to tell their Members of Congress to stop funding Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza. Along with a group of servicemembers, Veterans for Peace, About Face: Veterans Against the War and the Center on Conscience and War, the Task Force put together an on-line system that allows active-duty personnel, reservists and national guard members to sign and send one of several form letters directly to their representatives urging Congressional action, with relative safety from command retaliation.

You can find the press release announcing the Appeal on MLTF's website, at Press Release: Appeal for Redress V2 Campaign Launched - Military Law Task Force (nlgmltf.org), and a video of the press conference at VIDEO: Joint Press Conference to launch Appeal for Redress V2 for Gaza - Military Law Task Force (nlgmltf.org). Task Force steering committee member James Branum led off the press conference, which included statements from three active-duty airmen and soldiers. Past NLG president Marjorie Cohn has written a powerful article for Truthout about the Appeal, available at Active-Duty US Service Members Issue Appeal to Congress to Stop Funding Genocide | Truthout. We encourage you to share the Appeal with your networks, and particularly with military personnel.

MLTF is also providing legal support for the Appeal. GI’s interested in signing letters are encouraged to contact MLTF if they have questions about their rights or face any retaliation for signing or working on the Appeal. Several attorney members have volunteered to do pro bono phone or email consults, but The Task Force could use a few more attorneys as the campaign gets going. If you can help, please contact Kathy Gilberd at kathleengilberd@aol.com or 619-463-2369.

Detroit and Michigan NLG Chapter Legacy Dinner!

The Detroit and Michigan NLG Chapter celebrated their Legacy Dinner and over 150 community members and supporters. They honored heroes, past and present, and raised over $21,000 for their chapter.

They honored the TAHRIR Coalition, Detroit Eviction Defense, and law students, Trenten Ingell, Eman Naga, and Madison Murdoch. There was also a tribute to their own, Bill Goodman. The was also guest appearance U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib!

If you wish to support the Detroit and Michigan NLG chapter, you can do so here, or by clicking the button below!

Click Here To Donate To The Detroit Michigan Chapter!

San Francisco Bay-Area Chapter Highlighted By 8th Grade Class in Oakland, CA!

The students presented on the National Lawyers Guild work challenging police brutality. The students were tasked with answering two questions:

What responsibility does the government have to care for its citizens?
When the government fails its people, how do we take care of each other?

Our member from the San Francisco Bay-Area Chapter, Dee Mouton, was interviewed as part of the project, and shared with the students their insight, knowledge, and experience with the NLG, and its fight against police brutality. The students expressed that documenting police violence, like with our Legal Observer program, is one of the ways our communities keep us safe.

We are honored that the students picked the NLG, and shared our history and work with their peers and community.

Support the Chicago NLG During the DNC/RNC!

This year, the 2024 Republican and Democratic National Conventions are both set to take place in the Midwest: the RNC in July in Milwaukee, WI, and the DNC in August in Chicago, IL.

We at the National Office are reaching out to our members and supporters to help our local Midwest Chapters prepare for a much needed, strong legal support for for demonstrators.

It is more vital than ever that we have your support! Donate to our Chicago NLG chapter, so that we have Legal Observers on the ground, provide Know Your Risk presentations to protesters, and provide jail support to anyone who may get arrested exercising their First Amendment rights.

To learn more about these efforts, visit our website today!

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON WHERE TO DONATE AND HOW TO SUPPORT

NLG Resources

New Mass Defense and LO FAQ Web Pages!

The National Office is pleased to announce that we have revamped our Mass Defense Program website, as well as our Legal Observer FAQ page!

That’s right, two of our most requested and used resources have become easier to navigate and understand. We wanted to highlight all of the important questions that members and supporters may have involving our Legal Observer program, especially at a time where our Program is having such a high demand across the country.

NLG Member Orientation

Check out our NLG Member Orientation! This is for new, and newer members, so that y'all can learn about how the NLG is structured, how to reach out to other members, and ways that you can become involved with the NLG on a national level!

Click Here To Watch

Want to Get In Touch With Fellow NLG Members?

The NLG National Office Director of Membership, Lisa Drapkin, created this useful guide on the different email listservs that we use as the Guild. Use this document to help guide you through the process of signing up and engaging with members who share your same interests or region.

Click Here To Access The Listserv Guide

Did You Know The NLG Has A Members-only Job Board?

You can view current job openings at https://www.nlg.org/job-board/. If you are interested in posting a job, please email jobboard@nlg.org.

National Lawyers Guild
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New York, NY 10009-8941