Law School Celebrates MLK Week

2008 marks the 45th Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream Speech” and sadly, we are still fighting for social justice and equal rights for all people living in the United States.  In the spirit of Dr. King the law school has organized a series of events that pay tribute to his life and legacy at the same time as striving to teach and hopefully inspire action. 

The focus of this year’s celebration is Environmental Justice (EJ).  Students, faculty and staff were given the opportunity to learn and serve – beginning on Monday with a service project with Rhode Island’s Childhood Lead Action Project.  The photo shows a group getting ready to head out in freezing temperatures to spearhead a community outreach effort in the Providence neightborhood of Silver Lake where nearly half the the residents live below the poverty line and where lead poisoning continues to be a problem. 

Other events planned for the week include a keynote address entitled “Twenty Years of Environmental Success: A Tribute to the Work of Dr. King” by Samara Swanston.  Ms. Swanston is a long time environmental attorney and activist in New York City where she now works as the Environmental Protection Committee Counsel to the New York City Council

The final event for the week strives to engage students in a conversation about EJ after showing a segment of the Spike Lee documentary “When the Levees Broke”.  The discussion will be facilitated by Steve Fischbach from RI Legal Services and Marcus Jones, ’07.  Another example of our student organizations coming together – this event is sponsored by our Multicultural Law Students Association and our Environmental Law Students Association.