Black and Jewish Solidarity: From the Civil Rights Era Til Now-Wed., Feb. 2 from 5 to 6:30 p.m., Flynn Auditorium
This panel, cosponsored by BLSA with the Jewish Law Student Association, will explore the history of the African American and Jewish alliance in the United States with an emphasis on the Civil Rights era and the current state of the alliance. Speakers include Aron Karabel, an employment litigator with Waller in Nashville who has served on the Southeast Region Board of Directors for the Anti-Defamation League’s National Civil Rights Committee since 2016; Rabbi Saul Berman, a Brooklyn native and professor at Yeshiva University who teaches on the adjunct faculty of Columbia Law School; and Dr. André Churchwell, vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion at Vanderbilt.
The Two Percent: Exceptional Black Woman in the Legal Profession-Thurs., Feb. 3, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Hyatt Room
Samiyyah Ali ’15, an associate at Wilkinson Stekloff and former clerk for Justice Sonia Sotomayor of the U.S. Supreme Court, Judge Angelita Blackshear Dalton, Division II, Davidson County Criminal Court, and Joycelyn Stevenson ’01, executive director, Tennessee Bar Association, will discuss their legal careers with Professor Karla McKanders in a panel co-sponsored by BLSA and the Women Law Students Association.
Disability Rights and the Law: Toward Equitable Access to Justice-Wed., Feb. 9, 3-4 p.m., Covington Room
Jessica Bigby, associate, Hogan Lovells, Washington, D.C.; Jasmine E. Harris, a law and inequality legal scholar focusing on disability and antidiscrimination law at Penn Law; and Britney Wilson, director of the Civil Rights and Disability Justice Clinic at New York Law School, will discuss ableism, accessibility, the COVID-19 pandemic as a massive disabling event, the experiences of disabled lawyers in this panel discussion co-sponsored with the Law Students for Social Justice.
Making It Big: Black Lawyers in Sports & Entertainment-Mon., Feb. 14, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Bartholomew Room
This panel discussion features Alandis Brassel ’15, Assistant Professor of Music Business, University of Memphis, and counsel at Scale; Jaia Thomas, a Los Angeles-based sports and entertainment attorney, and Jared Bartie, co-chair of the sports entertainment group at O’Melveny & Myers in New York. Co-sponsored by BLSA and the Sports Entertainment Law Society. Panelists will discuss their career paths, current trends in the entertainment & sports law space, and how to break into and navigate this niche practice area.
Lifting as We Climb: “Black in the Law” Alumni Career Panel-Tues., Feb. 22, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Moore Room
This panel discussion features VLS grads Darrius Woods ’17, staff attorney, Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers; Quinton E. Thompson ’15, a personal injury litigation associate with Morgan & Morgan in Memphis; and Erin Shackelford ’15, an employment and litigation associate with Ogletree Deakins in Nashville. Panelists will discuss their career paths, which have combined public advocacy and private practice. Co-sponsored by BLSA with VLS Career Services and the VLS EDI Council.