2019 AALL Annual Meeting: Washington, DC
The Search Committee: An Effective Approach to Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity in Library Recruiting
Have you noticed that every pool of job candidates that comes to interview with your organization fits a certain mold or
type? Are you looking for ways to think differently about how to encourage a diverse pool of candidates to apply for your
open position? Then this session is for you. Library administrators, hiring managers, librarians, and diversity and inclusion
coordinators who have served on search committees will discuss methods and strategies for assembling a diverse and
inclusive search committee. Learn how to develop and execute committee goals that emphasize recruitment and retention
of new hires from diverse groups to your organization and the law library profession.
Speakers: Lisa Goodman, Christopher Bloodworth, Dr. Michele A.L. Villagran
Coordinator/Moderator: Dawn Smith
Storytelling for Empowerment and Change
Our current national climate is seeing a rise in the open support of racism, sexism, extremist nationalism, and several
other forms of discrimination. We want our patrons and colleagues to feel our libraries are safe, comfortable, and
accepting working environments. Broad empathy and understanding of our diverse populations leads to increased
professionalism, encourages respectful discourse, nurtures mindful interactions, sheds light on our explicit and implicit
biases, promotes cultural exchange, and stimulates more positive, diverse, and welcoming surroundings to be enjoyed by
all. These are goals we aim for in our law libraries, and in every working space. Discussing how to accommodate, critically
think about, and embrace these shared stories is critical for our professional growth.
Speakers: Lacey Schwartz Delgado
Moderator: Tarica LaBossiere
Coordinators: Eileen Santos, Kristina J. Alayan
2018 AALL Annual Meeting: Baltimore
2017 AALL Annual Meeting: Austin
No BCAALL programs selected.
2016 AALL Annual Meeting: Chicago
No BCAALL programs selected.
2015 AALL Annual Meeting: Philadelphia
No BCAALL programs selected.
2014 AALL Annual Meeting: San Antonio
ARE YOU "LICENSED" TO VOTE? EMERGING VOTER ID LAWS AND THE RIGHT TO VOTE
The right to vote is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, and the 1965 Voting Rights Act is a time-tested legislative measure to protect that right. In June 2013, however, the U.S. Supreme Court held a key component of this law unconstitutional. In Shelby County v. Holder, the Court lifted requirements that states and some municipalities receive federal pre-clearance prior to changing state election laws. No longer subject to federal approval, some states almost immediately began to enact voter identification laws. This program will review the Shelby decision, highlight recently enacted voter ID laws and election protection efforts, as well as discuss the most useful resources for researching voter ID laws.
Speakers: Aaron Pena; Josh Douglas; Natasha Korgaonkar
Moderators: Michelle Cosby; Rhea Ballard-Thrower
Coordinator: Allen Moye
2013 AALL Annual Meeting: Seattle
No BCAALL programs selected.
2012 AALL Annual Meeting: Boston
HOW FAIR IS IT? UNDERSTANDING THE FAIR SENTENCING ACT OF 2010
Since the late 1980's, more severe sentencing has been applied to possession or distribution of crack cocaine, which is more often associated with low-income African-American communities. However, while African-American defendants account for roughly 80% of those arrested and jailed for crack-related offenses, public health data has found that two-thirds of crack cocaine users are more likely to be white or Hispanic. For a first-time trafficking offense involving five (5) grams or more of crack cocaine, or 500 grams or more of powder cocaine, the statutory penalty range was 5 to 40 years of imprisonment The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 set out to reduce the racial disparity in sentencing for crack vs. powder cocaine.
Attendees will discover the motivation behind the original legislation that created the sentencing disparity and the implications of the new legislation for low income African-American communities.
2011 AALL Annual Meeting: Philadelphia
JUDICIAL DIVERSITY IN ARTICLE III COURTS: IS IT TIME FOR A NEW DEAL?
2010 marked the anniversary of the appointment of Judge William H. Hastie, the first African American to serve as a federal judge, to the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia. Sixty years later, judicial diversity still has not been achieved; minority groups and women remain underrepresented on Article III Courts.
A noted scholar on judicial diversity will discuss the continued need for a diverse court and an attorney who has served on several judicial nominating committees will explain the vetting process and discuss the effects the process has on the level of diversity in federal courts. Finally, the Honorable Theodore A. McKee, Chief Judge of the same court on which Judge Hastie served, will talk about living through the vetting process and the impact of the courts' composition on his work on the bench.
Speakers: Tobey Daluz, Deanna Dawson, and Judge Theodore A. McKee.
Read the selected bibliography.
THE REAL "PHILADELPHIA" STORY: FROM CAIN v. HYATT TO 21st CENTURY HIV/AIDS DISCRIMINATION CASE LAW
Clarence B. Cain was a standout student at the University of Virginia Law School in the 1970s. He is credited with touching the lives of hundreds of students by serving as a mentor before mentorship was popular. After graduation, Cain rose in the ranks at Hyatt Legal Services to a regional directorship until he was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and fired. Though successful in a law suit against his employer, Cain did not live to see the verdict or the movie, Philadelphia, largely based on his life.
Professor Burris, noted scholar on HIV/AIDS issues and a consultant on the movie, will talk about the Cain case and bring the issues still faced based on HIV/AIDS status to the present with Ronda B. Goldfein, Executive Director of the AIDS Law Project of Philadelphia.
Speakers: Scott Burris and Ronda B. Goldfein.
Read the selected bibliography.
2010 AALL Annual Meeting: Denver
MAKING SENSE OF THE FEDERAL CENSUS: FINDING AND USING INFORMATION COLLECTED IN THE DECENNIAL CENSUS
With nearly 310 million people in the United States, counting every person is one of the largest, most expensive undertakings of the federal government. What is the history behind this $12 billion dollar project? What is the importance of the detailed information collected, and how is it utilized?
A representative of the U.S. Census Bureau spoke about the policy and process behind this gargantuan task and the need to collect certain data in order to map out the changing identity and character of the nation’s inhabitants. To present a practical application of this data, an experienced government documents researcher described the process resulting from his research on ethnic classification in Colorado, 1860-2005.
Speakers: Gerald O'Donnell and Frank Wilmot.
Read the selected bibliography.
Purchase a recording of this program.
2009 AALL Annual Meeting: Washington
THE THURGOOD MARSHALL PAPERS: A CASE STUDY IN ACQUIRING SIGNIFICANT ARCHIVAL DONATIONS... JOURNEY THROUGH THE LEGACY OF A CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEER
Thurgood Marshall was a larger than life figure in the civil rights movement in America. His illustrious legal career spanned decades and culminated with his appointment to the United States Supreme Court. His work, over the years, generated thousands of documents. Nearly 174,000 of those documents make up the Thurgood Marshall Papers. Today, this collection is housed in the Library of Congress’ Manuscript Division.
This program focused on Thurgood Marshall’s donation of his papers to the Library of Congress upon his death in 1993. Participants learned about the content of the collection of Thurgood Marshall Papers, its importance to researchers, and the controversy that arose surrounding the timing of the donation and the release of the papers.
Speakers: Joan Biskupic, James Hutson and Mark Tushnet.
Read the selected bibliography.
2007 AALL Annual Meeting: New Orleans
AND STILL I RISE: RESURRECTING THE LEGAL SYSTEM IN NEW ORLEANS...TALES FROM THE TRENCHES
The crisis following Hurricane Katrina spawned the collapse of the legal infrastructure in New Orleans, an iconic American city. The crisis continues to impact all aspects of the lives of citizens of New Orleans: the ability of residents to pursue legal remedies to reclaim and rebuild their homes and lives; the safety of citizens and visitors to the city compromised by a chaotic criminal justice system; the ability of law schools to fulfill their mission to provide legal education; and the courts’ ability to provide fair and expedient justice. The challenges of rebuilding hold valuable lessons about building resilience into legal systems.
A panel of members from New Orleans’ legal community discussed the challenges and responses to the collapse of the New Orleans justice and legal education infrastructures. In addition, they examined the barriers to recovery, lessons learned, present and future initiatives, and the nation-wide implications.
Speakers: Dean Brian Bromberger, Judge Edwin A. Lombard, and Judge Laurie A. White.
Read the selected bibliography.
2006 AALL Annual Meeting: St. Louis DRED SCOTT IN ST. LOUIS: FREEDOM PIONEER In 1846, Dred Scott was a slave who sued in the St. Louis federal court for his freedom on the basis of his travels with his owner, and the differing state laws regarding slavery.
During this program, a noted author spoke about the legal background of the Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision and a descendant of Dred Scott shared the circumstances of her family.
Speakers: Paul Finkelman and Lynne Jackson.