I am a lawyer committed to abolitionist and decolonial movement practice. I am involved in community organizing, protest movements, and in supporting incarcerated people at all times. You can read more about my organizing with incarcerated folks and support that work here! (Artwork below by Akeem Shakur)
I have been in the movement for black lives for almost a decade now. I have organized communities and planned actions around this work, environmental justice, and Indigenous sovereignty in several communities, including Coast Salish territory ("Victoria, BC"), Haudenosaunee territory ("Ithaca, NY") and on the Navajo Nation. Law school enabled me to hone my activist work with a legal perspective. Through the Protest and Civil Disobedience Clinic, I have worked with criminal cases defending protesters in the exercise of their First Amendment Rights.
I am deeply interested in civil rights work. In particular, I am really invested in working to dismantle the horrendous abuses inherent in the prison-industrial complex and the brutality of the death penalty. I have some experience working in this area already and would jump at an opportunity to do more work. Previously, I was employed by the Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project. While working there, I was engaged in federal constitutional litigation at all stages, from interviewing potential clients through the appeals process. I have researched claims, visited clients in prison, and written court filings. I have a strong background in administrative law, and am familiar with PRLA, PREA, and a variety of constitutional and statutory claims that apply in the prison context. In particular, I am experienced in litigating cases on behalf of LGBTQ+ inmates on issues such as access to gender-affirming medical care, and sexual violence in prison.
In my most recent work with Black & Pink National, I've been involved in advocacy and organizing on behalf of LGBTQIA2S+/HIV+ incarcerated folks across the country. As part of this, I have been involved in drafting youth re-sentencing legislation, assisting folks with pro se civil rights litigation, and researching and writing on various legal issues of interest to trans and queer incarcerated folks. I am comfortable presenting legislative projects to advocates, stakeholders, federal and state representatives, and administration and executive staff. I also operated a helpline for inside members. This role also included a public education component, including regular legal advice columns in the Black & Pink newsletter, and creating a "Policy Study Group," which you can view here.
I also produce grassroots educational content on my youtube channel!
I am a member of the End the Exception campaign, in collaboration with Worth Rises and JLUSA. I have been a member of the inside-outside organizing group for several months, and have maintained close relationships with incarcerated organizers for an extended period of time, as I believe that it the basis of abolitionist work.