Civil Rights Series

The Civil Rights Series are panel events, open to the public, that highlight civil rights issues featuring notable individuals and organizations at the forefront of today’s civil rights movement.

 

Guantanamo: Ending 20 Years of Injustice
November 1, 2023

Brig. Gen John Baker, USMC (Ret.), who is the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of North Carolina and formerly the Chief Defense Counsel for the Military Commissions at Guantanamo Bay, joined us for a powerful discussion, moderated by partner Anne Tompkins, about his time at Guantanamo Bay representing detainees.

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Battling Hate State by State
September 21, 2023

Jennifer Levi, the Senior Director of Transgender and Queer Rights for GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), and Scott McCoy, the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Interim Deputy Legal Director for Inclusion and Anti-Extremism Litigation joined us for an eye-opening and informative discussion on the strategy of challenging anti-transgender laws.

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A Safe Place
June 6, 2023

Adam Heintz, Director of Pro Bono Services at Legal Services NYC, and Joy Wefum, Board Member at Legal Services NYC, joined us to discuss Legal Services NYC’s work fighting poverty and pursuing asylum for LGBTQ+ clients.

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Joyce Vance – Democracy 2023: Keeping the Republic
April 18, 2023

Joyce Vance, MSNBC legal analyst who co-hosts the Café Insider with Preet Bharara and Sisters-in-Law podcasts, joined us for a conversation on the state of our democracy.

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The Morning After: The Post-Dobbs Legal Landscape
Wednesday, September 28

Melissa Murray, Frederick I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law, NYU Law School, joined us to discuss the Dobbs decision, its importance and its implications for a broad range of civil rights.

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Queeroes: The People who Made LGBTQ History
June 8, 2022

Kevin Jennings, the CEO of Lambda Legal, joined us to discuss both familiar and hidden stories from the LGBTQ community that paved the way for the freedoms we all-too-often take for granted.

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Closing Rikers, Saving Lives
April 26, 2022

Stanley Richards, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of The Fortune Society, and Zachary Katznelson, Executive Director of The Independent Commission on New York City Criminal Justice and Incarceration Reform, joined us to discuss the history of Riker’s Island, the formation and role of the Lippman Commission, and what’s next for Rikers and beyond.

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Civil Rights in the Crucible of COVID
February 2, 2022

Hayley Gorenberg, Legal Director for the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, and Natalie M. Chin, Associate Professor of Law at the CUNY School of Law, joined us to discuss the COVID pandemic’s illumination of myriad civil rights challenges implicating race, disability, gender and the environment.

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Stopping the Hate:  Can We Unite Our States?
October 12, 2021

Amy Feinman and Christopher Magyarics of the Anti-Defamation League joined us to discuss the continuing rise of hate crimes in the U.S. and how we can work together to combat hatred and discrimination.

     
 

Pride 2021: He/Him/Swim
June 10, 2021
Schuyler Bailar, the first transgender NCAA Men’s Division 1 athlete, joined us to discuss his experience as a #transgender athlete, #LGBTQ advocacy, and more.

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In the Room Where It Happened
March 3, 2021
Saikrishna Prakash, a James Monroe Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Virginia School of Law, joined us for a scholarly discussion of the constitution’s executive powers, the electoral college and more.

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  Securing Elections in Insecure Times
October 14, 2020

Our Civil Rights Series continued with a discussion on Securing Elections in Insecure Times. Guest speakers included Leigh Chapman, Director, Voting Rights Program, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and Sophia Lin Lakin, Deputy Director, Voting Rights Project at the ACLU.

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  The Reasonable Officer
August 5, 2020

Our Civil Rights Series continues with a discussion of Graham v. Connor, the Supreme Court case that sets the standard for a “reasonable officer” in police brutality cases. Guest speakers will include Woody Connette, the attorney who represented Graham in his initial court case; Karol Mason, President of John Jay College of Criminal Justice; and Ed Chung, Vice President for Criminal Justice Reform at American Progress.

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  LGBTQ Rights and COVID-19: Lessons from the Past, Opportunities for the Future
June 23, 2020

In celebration of Pride Month, the Cadwalader Center for Diversity & Inclusion (CCDI) hosted a Civil Rights Series webinar titled "Pride With GLAD - LGBTQ Rights and COVID-19: Lessons from the Past, Opportunities for the Future." Guest speakers Janson Wu and Bennett Klein of GLAD, a civil rights organization focused on LGBT communities, discussed the parallels between the COVID-19 pandemic and the HIV/AIDS crisis.

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  Harvard: Affirmative Action Battleground
February 25, 2020

Guest speakers Jin Hee Lee, Senior Deputy Director of Litigation at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, and Jeannie Park, President of the Harvard Asian American Alumni Alliance and co-founder of the Coalition for a Diverse Harvard, lead a discussion of the recent decision in the Harvard Affirmative Action case.

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  Can the Right to Bear Arms Coexist with Gun Control?
November 6, 2019

Adam Skaggs, Chief Counsel & Policy Director of Giffords Law Center, and David Chipman, Retired ATF Special Agent and Senior Policy Advisor at Giffords, joined us to discuss the right to bear arms and gun control.

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  Bearing Witness – One Survivor’s Account of the Holocaust
September 19, 2019

Our 2019 Civil Rights Series continued with guest speaker Bronia Brandman, who shared her story as a Holocaust survivor.

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  The Children Shall Lead Us
June 12, 2019

In celebration of Pride Month, Cadwalader’s Civil Rights Series featured M. Currey Cook of Lambda Legal, a civil rights organization focused on LGBT communities. The program was followed by the 2nd Annual Fabulous Party.

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  #MeToo #YearTwo
February 6, 2019

Our 2019 Civil Rights Series opened with guest speakers Carmelyn Malalis, Chair and Commissioner of the New York City Commission on Human Rights, and Suzanne Goldberg, Herbert and Doris Wechsler Clinical Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, joining us for a discussion of the #MeToo Movement.

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  One Person, One Vote?
September 26, 2018

Guest speakers Natasha Merle, Senior Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; Deuel Ross, Assistant Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; and Wendy Weiser, Director of the Democracy Program at Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law, joined us for a discussion about voting rights, political gerrymandering and voter suppression.

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To learn more about how to register to vote in the State of NY please visit the Board of Election Site: http://www.vote.nyc.ny.us/html/voters/register.shtml

     
  Reports from the Trenches
July 25, 2018

Vanita Gupta, President and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and Rachel Tiven, CEO of Lambda Legal, joined us to review the most pressing civil rights issues of 2018.

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  Closing the Borders
March 8, 2018

Our Civil Rights Series continued on March 8 with "Closing the Borders." Anthony Romero, Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), joined us to discuss DACA, the border wall, due process and citizenship.

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  Still Marching Into Selma
January 31, 2018

Our 2018 Civil Rights Series opened with Richard Cohen, President of the Southern Poverty Law Center, discussing the organization's plans for 2018.

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  Rock Paper Scissors: Religious Freedom or Equal Rights?
November 1, 2017

Janson Wu, Executive Director with GLAD, and Suzanne Goldberg, Herbert and Doris Wechsler Clinical Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, discussed religious freedom and civil rights.

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  Fanning the Flames: The Rise in Hate Crimes in America
September 13, 2017

Kenneth Jacobson, Deputy National Director and Christopher Magyarics, Senior Investigative Researcher and Training Coordinator, of the Anti-Defamation League discussed the rise in hate crimes in America.

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  Marching for Justice: A Discussion with Women’s March Founders
July 19, 2017

Three founders and organizers of the historic Women’s March - Mrinalini Chakraborty, Emma Collum and Breanne Butler - discussed the history of social activism, the genesis of the Women’s March and future plans.

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  The Domino Effect: If Abortion Rights Fall, LGBT Rights Are Next
June 20, 2017

Nancy Northup, President & CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, and Rachel Tiven, CEO of Lambda Legal, led an open discussion of LGBT rights, reproductive rights and the intersectionality of each group’s civil rights.
 
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  Civil Rights in 2017
May 10, 2017

Vanita Gupta, former head of the Civil Rights division at the U.S. Department of Justice and current President and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, discussed civil rights law in the Obama Administration.

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