Law Students

back from D.C.

By Andrea

There is a LOT I want to say, and I also have a 9 month baby letter "due." So excuse the stream of consciousness.

D.C. was great. Not the conference itself - that was mostly mediocre panels, mediocre vegetarian options, freezing rooms, and me missing Dan and Becca a lot. But the people were phenomenal. Three full days of young, driven, idealistic lawyers - we had a lot of fun getting riled up about injustice in our region, yelling at the presidential debate, and trying to eat enough free appetizers at happy hour to constitute dinner. I met more than five people just doing immigration detention work alone, and I know we're going to be buddies and work together plenty.

We were also in mildly hostile territory, since we were sharing the hotel with a Department of Defense conference on wounded veterans or something, and the attendees seemed highly suspicious of all the lefty poverty lawyers running around. (In reality, several fellows' projects deal with elder care and abuse, and I did not actually run across any Communists.) One old man came up to a fellow, asked her what our conference was about, and when he heard half the answer, grunted, "Lawyers!" and stalked away. Also, there was a Republican National Committee "Straight Talk" bus in the parking lot the whole week.

Other people are suspicious of our work too. At the feel-good annual dinner, which is all about friendly networking, some firm guy listened to my roomie explain her immigration project and straight-up asked her disapprovingly if she "helped illegals." One fellow at an immigration organization told me police had just arrested a man who made bomb threats against the organization, which included racist and profane insults about, guess what, "helping illegals."

Yes, I help illegal immigrants. I help them become legal, keep their families together, or leave with dignity. I'm not used to thinking about our work as being the target of crazies the way Planned Parenthood is, but that's the climate we're living in. I answer to a higher power about this than the demands of people with that much hate in their hearts, but it's still scary to hear.

This week I've got court on Tuesday and a presentation at an advocates' meeting on Wednesday, but before the motivation dies I've got to make some calls about all my new ideas for involving law students and pro bono lawyers and getting new resource packets for this and that situation. At one panel on budget matters, we were instructed not to go sadly begging for handouts, but to say, in so many words, "We are badass," be proud of our work, and invite people to join the party. So I'm going to try that.

Full post as published by Peanut Butter Burrito on October 18, 2008 (boomark / email).