As states enact laws limiting gender-affirming care for transgender youth, a Fordham Law symposium brought together advocates to discuss strategies to defend the legal rights of LGBTQ+ clients. The symposium, “The Next Generation: Tracing the Rights of LGBTQ+ Youth and Laying the Foundation for the Future,” explored pressing issues facing LGBTQ+ youth today. The event was organized by Fordham Law’s two LGBTQ+ student affinity groups, Fordham OUTLaws and Fordham Advocates for Trans* Law Students (ATLS). Moderating the second panel, “Under Attack: LGBTQ+ Rights on the Ground,” about what it’s like for advocates working with LGBTQ+ families in this challenging political…
Author: Sejla Rizvic
In celebration of Women’s History Month, Fordham Law is honoring trailblazing graduates who broke barriers and changed the legal profession. Eunice Carter ’32 was the first Black woman assistant district attorney in the state of New York and part of the team that convicted Lucky Luciano, one of New York’s most notorious mobsters. She was also chief of the Special Sessions Bureau for the New York County criminal justice system, chair of the United Nations’ International Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations, and member of the U.S. National Committee for the U.N. Economic and Social Council. Fordham Law’s annual Eunice Carter Lecture,…
Emilia McManus ’25 is completing a J.D. at Fordham Law School with hopes of pursuing a career in public defense or impact litigation when she graduates. She says she was drawn to Fordham’s dedication to addressing issues of inequality through student advocacy initiatives, clinic work, and pro bono opportunities. What is your hometown? Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Where did you study before Fordham Law? University of Notre Dame. Why did you choose Fordham Law? I chose Fordham because of its commitment to fostering a community of public interest-driven students and promoting social change through the legal field. Recognizing the pivotal…
In celebration of Women’s History Month, Fordham Law is honoring trailblazing graduates who broke barriers and changed the legal profession. Frances Berko ’44 was a pioneer in disability rights who served as state advocate in the New York Office of the Disabled, fought for legislation to protect the disabled against discrimination, and helped found United Cerebral Palsy. Learn more about this pathbreaking Fordham Law alumna below. Frances Berko was an early trailblazer in disability rights. Born with ataxic cerebral palsy, she earned several advanced degrees, drafted crucial disability rights legislation, and remained a lifelong advocate for people with disabilities. Berko left her…
Fordham Law Associate Professor Atinuke Adediran has been selected for a prestigious Visiting Scholar position by the Russell Sage Foundation, where she will be spending a year in residence working on her first book, exploring the rhetoric of racial equality in the business marketplace. Adediran said she was “honored and humbled” to be selected for the program. “The fellowship is one of the premiere scholarly opportunities in the social sciences, and provides a vibrant interdisciplinary environment to foster the exchange of ideas,” Adediran said. “To be around brilliant scholars from a wide range of fields in law, sociology, economics, political…
Acclaimed civil rights lawyer and scholar Michelle Alexander is best known for her groundbreaking book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, which upended existing ideas around criminal justice reform when it was released in 2010. Alexander’s bestselling book has been widely read by students and legal scholars alike. “[It] is one of the iconic texts of our time,” said Dean Matthew Diller in his introduction of Alexander. “It is one of the few books that I can think of that really changed the conversation in our country.” Alexander released a 10th anniversary edition of the…
Afrika Owes ’24 is a native New Yorker who says she is passionate about using her legal education to be a catalyst for change. At Fordham Law, she has emerged as a campus leader—both as president of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) from 2022-2023 and in her current role as director of diversity for the Student Bar Association. During her tenure as BLSA president, the organization celebrated its 50th anniversary, an event that Owes describes as “deeply moving.” After graduating, she is looking forward to starting her career as a tax attorney at a New York City firm while…
As president of the Black Law Student Association (BLSA) at Fordham Law, Raissa Ebeh ’25 has been active in leading the organization’s programing this year. This includes BLSA’s upcoming Alumni Trailblazer Celebration, a celebration of Fordham BLSA alumni “who have made tremendous contributions to the legal community and paved the way for future black lawyers,” said Ebeh. She hopes to pursue tax law after graduation and will be working as a summer associate at Andersen Tax Services starting this May. What is your hometown? I was born and raised in the city of Yaoundé in Cameroon and emigrated to the…
Tanecia Vasquez ’23 and Ronald Britt II ’23 Married on January 20, 2024 Tanecia and Ronald met in Central Park during a Black Law Students Association event in their first month at Fordham Law. From then on, they spent a lot of time studying together in the Maloney Library and exploring New York City. “Ron always found ways to make me laugh and smile, whether we were studying for our respective classes or walking home from class—we’d always have the best time together,” said Tanecia. Ron says it was Tanecia’s “beautiful smile” that first drew him to her. “It warmed…
Solicitor General of the United States Elizabeth Barchas Prelogar, the fourth-ranking person at the Department of Justice, discussed her professional journey and offered career advice to a packed audience of Fordham Law students and faculty as a part of the Robert L. Levine Distinguished Lecture Series. “The first piece of advice I would give you is to work with people you respect and who you think you have something to learn from, and then be open and receptive to learning,” said Prelogar. “I feel like being a lawyer is a lifelong learning exercise. I am still learning, day in and…