About Us | FAQ

The Humboldt Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild trains and organizes Legal Observers® (LOs) for the Humboldt County region at large. We are a small, volunteer-run chapter that formed to address the need for greater activist legal support in the local area.

We deploy LOs to demonstrations and direct actions aligned with NLG values: We believe that policing, prisons, and legal systems uphold unjust systems rooted in white supremacy, exploitation, patriarchy, and violence. These systems must be abolished. 

FAQ

What is the National Lawyers Guild?

The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) was founded in 1937 as the country’s first racially integrated bar association of progressive lawyers and jurists who believed in reconstructing legal values to emphasize human rights over property rights. The Guild is the oldest and most extensive network of public interest and human rights activists working within the legal system.

The NLG’s mission is to use law for the people, uniting lawyers, law students, legal workers, and jailhouse lawyers to function as an effective force in the service of the people by valuing human rights and the rights of ecosystems over property interests.

More information about the NLG and its history can be found here.

What is the Legal Observer Program?

The Legal Observer Program is part of the NLG’s Mass Defense Program and is an essential activist support service. Legal Observers® are volunteers trained by the National Lawyers Guild who show up at protests, marches or other actions to:

  • Monitor, observe, and document government conduct against First Amendment-protected activity.
  • Provide arrest support for protesters on the ground and help support teams track and help arrested folks.
  • Empower activists and serve as a deterrent to unconstitutional behavior by law enforcement.

Legal Observers are a piece of a larger system of legal support infrastructure working to provide activists with the tools and confidence they need to make their voices heard. Official programs provide their LOs with neon-green, trademarked hats, which have become widely recognized as a symbol of legal support for progressive movements.

History of Legal Observing

The idea of community members watching law enforcement officers through organized patrols originates from the Black Power Movement. The practice was started by the Black Panther Party in 1966. The Black Panthers conducted armed citizens’ patrols in order to monitor the behavior of law enforcement officers in the Oakland Police Department. This practice later became known as copwatch. Many local activist organizations continue to copwatch today. 

The National Lawyers Guild took components from this practice and developed its Legal Observer® Program in 1968 in New York City in response to protests at Columbia University and city-wide antiwar and racial justice demonstrations. Read more about NLG’s history in mass defense work here. 

Today, legal observing is a distinct practice from copwatch. Legal Observers’ notes and documentation are protected and may be used in legal proceedings to defend activists. It is a form of protester legal support, connecting activists to a larger legal support infrastructure.

Who are Legal Observers?

Legal Observers are independent, third-party volunteers who observe and document potentially unlawful or unjustified interference with demonstrators’ rights by law enforcement. Legal Observers are often legal workers, but anyone can be a Legal Observer regardless of legal background! Many LOs are organizers, activists, and community members.

What do Legal Observers do?

Legal Observers are like copwatchers, but their notes are protected and only used in preparation for potential litigation (criminal and civil). Legal Observers:

  • Monitor and document law enforcement
  • Record arrests and coordinate with Jail Support
  • Maintain independence and confidentiality 

Please note that Legal Observers do NOT: 

  • Direct or influence organizers or demonstrators’ tactics
  • Document actions of demonstrators 
  • Publicly share notes, photos, or videos
  • Act as police liaisons 
  • Provide legal advice
  • Legal Observe at actions or demonstrations we were not requested to be at
Can I request Legal Observers for my action or demonstration?

As long as the action is in alignment with our values, requests may be submitted through our submission page. Please submit your request as far in advance as possible and be prepared to include details about the action (information is confidential).
Request Legal Observers®

Can I sign up to become a Legal Observer?


All people aligned with liberation and solidarity are invited to volunteer with our Legal Observer program, regardless of legal background.

If you’re interested in becoming trained as an LO, please fill out our Contact Form or email us at humcolos@riseup.net. An application will be sent to you for you to fill out. Please note that not everyone that applies may be selected to become an LO.
Once approved, new applicants must attend Legal Observer Training. Due to the small scale of the Humboldt Chapter, trainings are hosted once a cohort of trainees is gathered. After completing the training, new Legal Observers are ready to start volunteering!