Section News

• Fred Gray to Receive ABA 2004 Thurgood Marshall Award
• Section Fills Staff Positions
• ABA Files Section-sponsored Amicus Curiae brief in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld
• Section to Hold Spring Meeting in Washington, D. C.
• Thurgood Marshall Prints Now Available
  
  

Veteran civil rights lawyer Fred D. Gray of Tuskegee, Ala., will receive the 2004 Thurgood Marshall Award to be presented on Saturday, Aug. 7, at the 2004 Thurgood Marshall Award Dinner during the ABA Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Ga.

Mr. Gray is perhaps best known for representing Rosa Parks after she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery, Ala. in 1955, and for serving as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s first civil rights attorney. He also was involved in the landmark Tuskegee Syphilis Study case and in many other cases that have changed the social fabric of America regarding desegregation, integration, racial discrimination in voting, housing, and education.

The Thurgood Marshall Award recognizes long-term contributions to the advancement of civil rights, civil liberties, and human rights in the United States. For more information about the award, the dinner, or this year's recipient contact the Section office (tel.: 202/662-1030) or visit the Section's website at www.abanet.org/irr.

• Thurgood Marshall Award Home Page
  

The Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities has promoted two of its current staff members and welcomed two new members to its staff.

Tanya Terrell-Collier has been promoted to Section Director, following Penny Wakefield's retirement in January 2004. A graduate of the George Washington University Law School, Tanya has been with the Section since fall 2000, serving as Assistant Director and, more recently, as Interim Section Director. She also will oversee the work of the AIDS Coordination Project and the Death Penalty Moratorium Implementation Project.

Prior to joining the ABA, Tanya had established her own general law practice, worked for the Maryland General Assembly as legislative counsel to the Prince George's County Senate Delegation, and worked for a boutique law firm practicing complex civil litigation in the field of employment law.

Jeff Lubbers, who had been the Section's Staff Assistant since fall 2002, has been promoted to Section Administrator, replacing Omo Ghandi-Olaoye who left the ABA following the birth of twin daughters in Jan. 2004. Jeff is a graduate of Hope College (Michigan) where he received his degree in Sociology and Political Science.

Lindsay Glauner has joined the Death Penalty Moratorium Implementation Project as Project Attorney. She will help the Project conduct death penalty assessments in capital jurisdictions throughout the United States. A graduate of DePaul University College of Law where she participated in the Death Penalty Clinic, Lindsay most recently worked as an Attorney-Advisor for the Department of Justice at the Los Angeles Immigration Court.

Jason Johnson, a second-year student at George Mason University School of Law, is the new Project Assistant for the AIDS Coordination Project. He formerly worked for the Research and Evaluation Division of the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), U.S. Department of Justice.

The ABA has filed a Section-sponsored amicus curiae brief in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld with the U. S. Supreme Court in a case brought by Yaser Esam Hamdi, an American citizen who has been designated an "enemy combatant" and held incommunicado by the United States.

Consistent with ABA policy adopted in 2003 which urges that U. S. citizens who are detained as "enemy combatants" be given meaningful judicial review and access to counsel, the brief argues that federal courts must protect the individual liberties of U. S. citizens under the Constitution even in times of hostilities. It also argues that fundamental due process requires that U. S. citizens indefinately detained by the government have access to counsel and the opportunity to challenge purported bases for their detention.

Pro bono drafters of the brief were Barry Sullivan, Shelley Malinowski, Robert L. Schultz, and Erinn L. Wehrman of Jenner & Block in Chicago, Ill.

• ABA Amicus Curiae brief in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld

The Section will hold its Spring Council Meeting on Friday and Saturday, Apr. 23 and 24, 2004, at the ABA Offices in Washington, D. C., 740 15th St, N. W., Washington D. C.

Section and Committee leaders in the Washington area, particularly, are encouraged to attend. Note that the weekend will be particularly busy with multiple rallies and conferences bringing many people to the city, therefore we encourage you to make your hotel reservations soon if you plan to attend.

For more information about the meeting, contact the Section office (tel.: 202/662-1030).

Collectible prints of the late Justice Thurgood Marshall are now available for purchase through the Section office.

The limited edition print was commissioned by the ABA shortly before Justice Marshall's death in 1992. Each print measures 13.5" x 19" fully matted to 18" x 24" (outer dimensions), suitable for traditional framing. The highest quality paper, reproduction, and matting have been used.

These beautiful prints are available for $25 plus $5 for shipping and handling. Order forms are available by clicking on the link below and also from the Section's website at www.abanet.org/irr.

• Poster Order Form