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

Panel Topics

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

   

    

   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

   

   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

   

   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

   

   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

   

   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

   

   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

   

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

   Speaker:

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