View the live webcast and download conference materials.

To register to attend in-person, visit https://www.wcl.american.edu/secle/registration. Registration for this event is free and includes lunch and a reception.

Presented by the American University Washington College of Law (AU/WCL) Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law, the Columbia Law School Human Rights Institute, and the Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy at Northeastern University School of Law

This day-long conference will focus on the growing use of human rights law in local and state advocacy by legal aid attorneys and juvenile public defenders in the U.S. Panels will range from clients and advocates sharing their experiences of fighting for human rights protections in the U.S., to a discussion of how to spread and strengthen the movement to use human rights law in local advocacy.

Draft Agenda

10:00am-10:15am Welcome & Agenda Overview

Hadar Harris, Executive Director, Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law at American University Washington College of Law

10:15am-10:30am Opening Remarks

Professor Martha F. Davis, Northeastern University School of Law

10:30am-12:00pm Session 1 – The Local Human Rights Lawyering Project

An introduction to the Project, including an overview of local human rights resources and trainings available to legal aid attorneys and public defenders.

Lauren Bartlett, Local Human Rights Lawyering Project Director, Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law at American University Washington College of Law

Wilhelm Joseph, Executive Director, Maryland Legal Aid

Nelson Mock, Human Rights Coordinator, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid

Reena Shah, Human Rights Project Director, Maryland Legal Aid

Moderator: Hadar Harris, Executive Director, Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law at American University Washington College of Law

12:00pm-12:15pm Break/Lunch Served

12:15pm-1:45pm Session 2 – Stories from the Ground Floor: Fighting for Human Rights Protections in the U.S.

Clients and attorneys share experiences with human rights at the local level.

Ella Broadway, Client, Maryland Legal Aid

Tim Curry, Managing Attorney, National Juvenile Defender Center

Nathaniel Norton, Human Rights Project Director, Maryland Legal Aid

Eric Tars, Director of Human Rights and Children’s Rights Programs,
National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty

Moderator: Professor Richard Wilson, Human Rights Clinic Director, American University Washington College of Law

1:45pm-2:00pm Break

2:00pm-3:30pm Session 3 – Where do we go from here?

Group discussion focused on how to spread and strengthen the movement to use human rights law in local advocacy in the U.S.

Kevin Cremin, Director of Litigation for Disability and Aging Rights, MFY Legal Services, Inc.

Maha Jweied, Senior Counsel, DOJ Access to Justice Initiative

Risa Kaufman, Executive Director, Human Rights Institute, Columbia Law School

Nelson Mock, Human Rights Coordinator, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid

Reena Shah, Human Rights Project Director, Maryland Legal Aid

Moderator: Lauren Bartlett, Local Human Rights Lawyering Project Director, Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law at American University Washington College of Law

3:30pm-5:00pm Networking Tea

5:00-7:00pm Reception for the Human Rights Brief, at the WCL Residence