Name of Report: Racial Justice Colloquium
Author: N/A
Date: May 11, 2004
Contact Info: Liz Tobin Tyler, Roger Williams University School of Law
10 Metacom Avenue Bristol, RI 02809
(401) 254-4634 Fax: (401) 254-4540
Pages: 9
Content Summary
This report primarily is a compilation of the notes taken by students during the Racial Justice Colloquium, which occurred on May 11, 2004. First and foremost, the report includes a copy of the official agenda for the colloquium. The next item included is a brief one- page summary that gives an overview of the entire colloquium. A segment listing the common themes covered during the round table discussion follows this section. These themes were divided into two major categories of problems and solutions. The bulk of the remainder of the information covered is divided into three major sections that coincide with the four major areas of interest: criminal justice, education, housing, and immigration. Each of these sub-sections offer a summary of why the issue is important, the most pressing problems in the category, and finally possible solutions and collaborations. The remainder of the report offers bullet points of the next steps of action for the summer and fall of 2004.
Major Findings
There were many interesting points brought up in the colloquium in terms of injustices related to criminal justice, education, housing, and immigration. It was agreed upon by those in attendance that Rhode Island lacks lawyers that are committed and carry out racial justice work and pro bono work. This is often a result of the minimal economic incentive that this work has for lawyers. Another major problem identified was the major distrust of the police by the community because of conflicts such as a lack of police accountability and police harassment. Another critical problem discussed is the issue of expungement of individuals past records. One interesting fact brought up during the colloquium in relation to education is that Rhode Island is the third state with the least percentage of its budget going directly to education. In terms of housing the major issue is that the cost of housing in low-income neighborhoods is steadily rising without the rise in income. Furthermore, homelessness in the state is a big problem. All these problems in addition with deportation struggles affect immigrant communities. It’s also important to consider that many immigrants do not feel comfortable asking for legal help because of the fear of their immigrant status.
Many suggestions were made during the racial justice colloquium. It was stated that better communication and coordination is needed between law enforcement, the legal community, and others in the community. There was also much emphasis placed on the belief that education of the community on legal affairs is critical in the development of racial justice in the state. It was also suggested that law schools and law students should have a more active role doing pro bono community work. It was also consensus that more incentive should be given to law students to do this work. A critical point made was that more observations should be made of other states that have began implementing ways of dealing with the same problems. Some of the possible structures that were recommended include more transitional services for inmates, more special education services for students in the public school system, utilization of the Volunteer Lawyer Program, and a lawyers committee for civil rights.
Unaddressed issues and/or concerns
As the result of the state having significant amounts of racial justice problems as an everyday reality, there is so much that needs to be changed. In these regards, multiple suggestions were made during the racial justice colloquium. The challenge comes in determining how to effectively deal with these problems and the order in which they should be addressed. The setup of the colloquium made it difficult to essentially design a set of concrete next steps. On the same note, the term community is referred to a lot in the report. It is important to reflect on exactly what individuals and groups are the target of the issues raised and then the question becomes are these people being represented in the discussion and if not how is effective outreach done to them. As mentioned also in the colloquium, it is important to think critically about how to move things outside of just being topics of discussion in meetings and more towards actions. In terms of lawyers working with clients from the community, it is essential that these lawyers always reflect on the larger group issues at stake, rather than just solely thinking about the case of the individual if the goal is to reach racial justice. There is still conflicting ideas about the previous point made, as Associate Professor Smith presents a different perspective in her article Burdening the Least of Us: “Race-Conscious” Ethics in Criminal Justice, “Lawyers should not forsake individual clients for any ‘larger’ cause” (1595).
Reference List
Smith, Abbe. “Burdening the Least of Us: “Race-Conscious” Ethics in Criminal Defense.” Texas Law Review 77 (1999): 1585-1602