Convention 2004 news

Eric and Jennie and I are back from the NLG Convention
in Birmingham, and what an amazing convention it was!

A few of the highlights:

Congressman John Lewis, who marched in Birmingham with
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave us an impromptu tour
of the Civil Rights Institute. Later, he gave a
stirring speech at the 16th Street Baptist Church,
where four girls were killed when the church was
bombed forty years ago. Lewis encouraged us to keep
the faith and never give up, even in the face of
formidable opposition.

Jennie, Eric, and couple of their colleagues gave an
informative and interesting seminar on North Korea,
which was well attended and well received by the
audience. They discussed the history of Korea,
explained how its position between Japan and China has
led to its need for a strong defense, and dispelled
many of the myths perpetuated by the US government and
the American press about North Korea and its leader.
A delegation of lawyers visiting from Japan attended.
One of the highlights of the seminar occurred when a
Japanese lawyer stood up and expressed his support for
the work Eric and Jennie are doing to build peace in
Korea. Several law students expressed an interest in
working on the Korean Peace Project, and possibly
traveling to Korea with the project next spring.

I also attended seminars on the situations in Cuba and
Haiti. I was impressed by the courage and
perseverance of the lawyers who are working for
justice under such dangerous conditions.

I attended 2 seminars on police accountability and
met several lawyers from around the country who are
working on cases similar to our NLG/ACLU case against
APD for using excessive force and violating the free
speech rights of war protesters. I received
invaluable advice, sample documents and moral support
from these attorneys. I believe the contacts I made
in this area alone made the trip to the convention
worthwhile.

In summary, the convention was inspiring, uplifting
and informative. It was wonderful to be around so
many courageous, idealistic and hardworking lawyers.
It made me proud to be a member of the National
Lawyers Guild.

FYI: Its our turn to host the regional conference in
March. We will need everyone who can to pitch in and
make the conference a success. Birmingham will be a
tough act to follow. Lets put our best foot forward!