Association of American Law Schools
Section on Poverty Law
Annual Meeting Program
Friday, January 8, 2010
4:00 to 5:45 p.m. Prince of Wales, Third Floor, Hilton New Orleans Riverside
The New Anti-Poverty Advocacy: Constructs, Strategies and Tactics
Representing Families in Distress
Bernadette D’Souza, Managing Attorney, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services
Litigating to Break the School-to-Prison Pipeline
Ron Lospennato, Director of the School to Prison Reform Project, Southern Poverty Law Center
Building Power for Workers Across Boundaries of Race and Immigration Status: the Role of the Law and Community Lawyering
Jennifer J. Rosenbaum, Legal Director, New Orleans Worker Center for Racial Justice
Saket Soni, Executive Director, New Orleans Worker Center for Racial Justice
Professor William P. Quigley, Moderator and Discussant, Loyola University New Orleans and Legal Director, Center for Constitutional Rights
The recent pronounced shifts in American politics and economics intensify the need for sustained reflection, as we consider how to shape legal activism, scholarship, and policy-making against poverty. The re-emergence of the Democratic Party in national politics and the renewed support for government action simultaneously create openings for activists and advocates and invite caution. Similarly, the failures of the American banking system, massive government deficits, and the continued restructuring and globalization of the U.S. economy cause great misery for those at the bottom and present opportunities to press for fundamental and progressive reform. It remains unclear whether this period is one in which power will be redistributed downward and outward to poor and working people or whether the defining values and hierarchies of the political economy in the last thirty years – variously labeled neo-liberalism, neo-conservatism, or free market fundamentalism – will be reinforced.
This program will feature the work of five innovative advocates working in the crucible of post-Katrina New Orleans. Their legal strategies both stem from and transcend the particular conditions facing poor people in a former disaster zone. Professor Quigley will situate their approaches in the larger contexts of poverty law scholarship and the current complex political moment.
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Service Day in New Orleans
Where: New Orleans
Starts: January 7th, 2010 9:00 AM. Ends: January 7th, 2010 1:00 PM
On Thursday, January 7, SALT and the Poverty Law Teachers are co-sponsoring a Day of Service in New Orleans to coincide with the AALS Annual Meeting. The day begins at 9:00 A.M. with volunteer service coordinated by the Lower Ninth Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development, the New Orleans Group of the Sierra Club, and other local organizations. Immediately following will be a lunchtime session during which local providers and advocates will educate law school participants about needs in the Gulf Coast region and work with us to devise creative responses to the continuing calls for law-related assistance. Buses will be provided to transport participants to and from the Annual Meeting Hotel site.
Participation in the event is limited. Advance registration is required. The cost for the event is $60.00, which covers bus transportation to and from the hotel, lunch, and a contribution to the host service providers. Registration begins October 1.
Please note that the AALS has scheduled Saturday afternoon bus trips through affected areas of New Orleans, with host faculty from Louisiana law schools serving as guides. These bus tours are not directly connected with this service event. In addition, a separate field trip co-sponsored by AALS and the Environmental Law Section is scheduled for January 7. Registration for any AALS sponsored field trip must be done separately.
For more information about the service day program, contact Nancy Cook at nlcook@umn.edu or Lisa Martin at MartinL@law.cua.edu.
-Thanks to Sameer Asher for this information.
Poverty Law 