Workshops & Conferences
The Center holds a variety of events to focus attention on important trends and developments in human rights and humanitarian law. Please find below the Center's Conference schedule for the 2007-2008 Academic Year.
THE ROLE OF THE LAW SCHOOL IN PROMOTING AND PROTECTING HUMAN RIGHTS
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
American University Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington, DC
WCL Room 603
9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Reception to Follow
Please join us on April 21-22 to discuss the Role of Law Schools in Promoting and Protecting Human Rights.This event will be the first national convening of law school Centers for Human Rights and will provide a forum for discussion, sharing of information and thinking about the challenges and successes of law schools engaged in human rights work.
The conference will open with a dinner on April 21 with a keynote address by Prof. Michael Tigar "Four Levels of Understanding in Clinical Human Rights Teaching." The day-long conference on April 22 will start with a discussion of various forms of teaching human rights in law schools to be followed by interactive facilitated roundtable discussions on specific aspects of research, training, advocacy and teaching. An afternoon panel will explore funding human rights in law schools and the day will conclude with a high level discussion of what law schools should be doing but are not. Confirmed speakers include Ken Roth (Human Rights Watch), David Weissbrodt (University of Minnesota), Doug Cassel (Notre Dame), and Dean Claudio Grossman (AU WCL).
AGENDA
Monday, April 21, 2008
7:00pm Welcome Dinner and Keynote Speech by Professor Emeritus Michael Tigar, “Four Levels of Understanding in Clinical Human Rights Teaching”
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Tuesday, April 22, 2008
8:30am – 9:00am Registration and Breakfast
9:00am – 9:15am Welcome and Introduction
9:15am – 10:45am Human Rights in the Law School Curriculum
- Formal Teaching - Prof. Doug Cassel, Notre Dame University
- Impact Litigation – Dean Claudio Grossman, AU WCL and Ali Beydoun, AU WCL UNROW Clinic
- Clinics – Prof. Peter Rosenblum, Columbia University (invited)
- HR Centers – Prof. David Weissbrodt, University of Minnesota
10:45am - 11:00am Coffee Break
11:00am – 12:30pm Facilitated Roundtable Discussions
- Specialized Programs/ Visitors and Specialized Fellowships
- Student Initiatives
- Clinics/Client Representation/Experiential Learning
- Documentation, Research and Technical Assistance/Training of Practitioners
12:30pm – 2:00pm Report Back and Lunch
2:00pm – 3:30pm International Approaches to Teaching Human Rights
- Prof. Nadeem Azam, University of Peshawar, Pakistan
- Prof. Teng Hongqing, South China University of Technology, China
- Prof. Laurence Sinopoli, University of Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense, France
- Jorge Contesse, Universidad Diego Portales, Chile (invited)
- Prof. Rick Wilson, American University Washington College of Law
3:30pm – 3:45pm Coffee Break
3:45pm – 5:00pm What Law Schools Should Be Doing But Aren’t
- Kenneth Roth, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
- Richard Goldstone, Former Justice, Constitutional Court of South Africa
- Elizabeth Anderson, Executive Director, American Society for International Law (invited)
- Jessica Farb, Graduating Student, American University Washington College of Law
5:00pm – 5:30pm Next Steps
5:30pm – 7:00pm Reception
To register or for additional information, please contact the Office of Special Events & Continuing Legal Education by email at secle@wcl.american.edu or by calling (202) 274-4075 or register online at www.wcl.american.edu/secle/cle_form.cfm.
INTERNATIONAL AND US PERSPECTIVES ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW UN DISABILITY RIGHTS CONVENTION
Monday, March 31, 2008
American University Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington, DC
WCL Room 603
12pm – 5:30pm, Reception to Follow
On March 31st, please join us for a panel discussion and strategy session to build support for United States ratification of the new UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). CRPD is expected to come into force as binding international law on March 31, 2008. To celebrate and think about ways to ensure rapid implementation, please join us for a discussion with experts from around the world.
LIVE WEBCAST - 12:00 PM EDT (Captions)
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12:00pm |
Lunch and Panel Discussion: International & US Implications of the CRPD |
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1:30pm |
Keynote Presentation: The Honorable Tony Coelho, former US Congressman (D-CA) and original author of the Americans with Disabilities Act |
2:00pm |
Working Session to Develop an Action Plan to Build US Support and Ratification of CRPD |
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5:30pm |
Reception |
Registration is required. To register or for additional information, please contact the Office of Special Events & Continuing Legal Education by email at secle@wcl.american.edu or by calling (202) 274-4075 or register online at www.wcl.american.edu/secle/registration.cfm.
Please indicate accommodations needed by emailing secle@wcl.american.edu.
Cosponsored by the American University Washington College of Law Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law, Mental Disability Rights International, US International Council on Disability (USICD), Ratify Now, American Association of Persons with Disabilities, National Organization on Disability, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), Human Rights Strategic Working Group
Landmine Survivors Network, Syracuse University – Burton Blatt Institute, and World Institute on Disability (WID).
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CANCELLED -- CHANGES ON THE HIGH COURT IN THE US AND ISRAEL: THE IMPACT OF PERSONS AND PERSONALITIES
2nd Annual Panel in Celebration of the US-Israel Civil Liberties Law Program
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
American University Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington, DC
WCL Room 603
5:00 pm - 7:00 pm, Reception to Follow
Over the past several years, the Chief Justices of the Supreme Courts in both the US and Israel have changed. How do these changes in personnel and personalities affect the workings and rulings of the courts? Please join us on March 19th as noted keynote speaker Prof. Michael Karayanni, Hebrew University (Jerusalem) and WCL Prof. Herman Schwartz discuss the impact of these changes on the courts. Welcome remarks will be given by Christine Haight-Farley, Associate Dean, AU Washington College of Law and Larry Garber, Executive Director, New Israel Fund. Hadar Harris, Executive Director, WCL Center for Human Rights, will moderate the panel. Sponsored by the American University Washington College of Law Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law and the New Israel Fund.
The New Israel Fund (NIF) and American University Washington College of Law (WCL) established the Israel-U.S. Civil Liberties Law Program in 1984 to develop a cadre of dedicated and well-trained lawyers to promote human rights and justice in Israel. Now in its 25th year, the program has become a mainstay of Israel's progressive legal and non-profit community, with graduates now working on diverse aspects of human rights advocacy. The program provides intensive exposure to both the theory and practice of human rights law. Participating attorneys spend one year in the United States, obtaining a Master's in Human Rights Law (LL.M.) from WCL and serving internships with American public interest groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union, the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc. They then return to Israel and spend their second year working full‑time with Israeli public interest organizations with a stipend funded by NIF. Recent Law Fellows have worked at a wide range of organizations, including: Adalah - the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights; ACRI - the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, IRAC - the Israel Religious Action Center, and others.
Registration is required. To register or for additional information, please contact the Office of Special Events & Continuing Legal Education by email at secle@wcl.american.edu or by calling (202) 274-4075 or register online at www.wcl.american.edu/secle/cle_form.cfm.
RIGHT TO IDENTITY IN THE AMERICAS: THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY
Friday, March 7, 2008
American University Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington, DC
WCL Room 603
9:30am - 1:30pm
Webcast
The issue of national identification and civil registration has been garnering increased attention in the Americas. There are a number of countries where citizens’ right to identity is being violated by the state, by omission or commission. The right to be officially recognized as a citizen by the state, and to have that state ensure the registration of one’s civil status from birth to death, are minimum guarantees which allow citizens to participate in democracy and claim their international human rights. International and regional organizations have seized on this reality and have taken steps to promote civil registration in Latin America and the Caribbean. However, much more needs to be done to understand the human rights implications related to national identification and civil registration, especially in countries where these rights are being violated.
Join us on March 7th as we discuss violations of the right to identity in the Americas, the response of the international community, and the role civil society in the protection of the right to identity. Speakers will include: Dean Claudio Grossman, WCL; Roxanna Altholz, University of California – Berkeley; Sonia Pierre, Director, Movement for Dominican Women of Haitian Descent (MUDHA); Colette Lespinasse, Coordinator, Groupe d’Appui aux Rapatriés et Réfugiés (GARR) (Support Group for Repatriates and Refugees); Sofia Macher, Instituto de Defensa Legal (IDL); and more. Cosponsored by Rights & Democracy, the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights, and American University Washington College of Law Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. Please send your RSVPs and/or questions to rsvp@rfkmemorial.org. For additional information, please contact the Center at 202-274-4180.
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