CBA YLS Racial Justice Coalition

The Chicago Bar Association Young Lawyers’ Section unequivocally stands against racial discrimination and police brutality. We also reaffirm our commitment to serving as a voice and as an instrument of change in our communities and beyond. In solidarity with everyone who has felt--and continues to feel--the frustrations of ongoing systemic and institutional racism, we establish the CBA YLS Racial Justice Coalition. As attorneys and leaders in the legal profession, we have a duty to unite and use our resources and power to promote unity and progress. Together, we are stronger.

Mission Statement

The CBA YLS Racial Justice Coalition was formed for the purpose of collaborating with leading forces in the Chicagoland legal community to take action against racial injustice in the following ways:
Service
The Coalition will collaborate with other bar associations to identify and facilitate pro bono and community service opportunities that focus on combating racial disparities, addressing the concerns of minority groups, and building a bridge between the legal community and the clients that we serve.
Community Engagement
The Coalition will build and maintain relationships with community organizations and local government leaders that seek to promote social justice, uplift historically underprivileged voices, and impact collective action and legislation supporting the eradication of systemic racism.
Education
The Coalition will encourage all bar associations to collaborate with us in providing training, seminars, speaker series, and workshops dedicated to understanding and championing diversity and inclusion throughout our profession and within our communities.

Get Involved

Click here to receive our monthly RJC Newsletter.  Other inquiries or questions, please contact yls@chicagobar.org.

Upcoming CLE Seminars and Events  

• Stay tuned!

Past CLE Seminars and Events

• One Year Later: How Restorative Justice Ensures Accountability and Community (6/21/22)
• Serving Clients Who Have Experienced Civil Rights Violations: Best Practices and Practical Considerations (12/7/21)
• Illinois' Consent Misnomer: Litigating Racial Reality (10/28/21) 
• Common Immigration Concerns in Criminal Cases (10/22/21) 
• Preparing for Protest: The Role of Legal Observers in Preventing Police Misconduct and Protecting Free Speech (10/12/21)
• One Year Later: The Effects of Police Reform Plans in Chicago (9/14/21)
• Flipping the Script: How Law Firms Can Meaningfully Advance Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (6/4/21)
• Nuanced Injustice: Collateral Immigration Consequences from Convictions  (5/12/21)
• Restorative Justice: A Panel Discussion (3/9/21)
• Sexual Violence & Race, a Historical & Societal Perspective of Race-Based Sexual Violence (12/17/20)
• How Race Impacts Societal Perspectives on Domestic Violence (12/11/20)
• The Interplay and Impact of Race on Sex Trafficking (12/04/20)
• The Intersection of Prosecutorial Ethics and Race (11/16/20)
• Practice Basics: How To Develop Cultural Competency (10/21/20)
• Make Your Voice Heard: Legislative Advocacy for Young Lawyers (9/30/20)
• Police Reform in Chicago: CPAC or GAPA? (9/8/20)
• U.S. Senator Dick Durbin: The Justice in Policing Act of 2020 (7/17/20) 

Videos

CBA TV Interview: Introduction to the Racial Justice Coalition
Black History Month: Interview with Nyshana Sumner, President of the Cook County Bar Association
Black History Month: Interview with Mike Wilder, Chairman of the Black Men Lawyers' Association
Black History Month: Interview with CK Hoffler, President of the National Bar Association
Black History Month: Interview with Kenyatta Beverly, President of the Black Women Lawyers' Association

Coalition Members

The following bar associations and legal advocacy organizations who have joined the Coalition include:

• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
• Appellate Lawyers Association (ALA)
• Arab American Bar Association of Illinois (AABAR)
• Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago (AABA)
• Black Women Lawyers’ Association of Greater Chicago, Inc. (BWLA)
• Catholic Lawyers Guild
• Chicago Bar Association (CBA)
• Chicago Bar Association’s Alliance for Women
• Chicago Bar Association’s Lawyers In the Classroom Program
• Chicago Women in IP (ChiWIP)
• Chinese American Bar Association (CABA)
• Cook County Bar Association
• Decalogue Society of Lawyers
• Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois (HLAI)
• Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA)
• Illinois Association of Defense Counsel (IDC)
• Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission (IL ARDC)
• Illinois State Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (ISBA-YLD)
• Illinois State Bar Association Standing Committee on Racial & Ethnic Minorities and the Law
• Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism (2Civility)
• Intellectual Property Law Association of Chicago (IPLAC)
• Justinian Society of Lawyers (Justinians)
• Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago (LAGBAC)
• National Lawyers Guild (NLG)
• North Suburban Bar Association (NSBA)
• Serbian Bar Association
• South Asian Bar Association (SABA)
• South Suburban Bar Association (SSBA)
• Southwest Bar Association (SWBA)
• UIC John Marshall SBA
• Women’s Bar Association of Illinois (WBAI)
• Women’s Criminal Defense Bar Association (WCDBA)

RJC in the News

• CBA@theBar, "CBA Young Lawyers Section Honored with Five Awards from the American Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division" (8/18/21)

• Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism, "3 Ways Lawyers Can Promote DEI and More With the CBA Racial Justice Coalition" (3/16/21)

• RJC's Resolution urging the banning of no-knock warrants passed at the ABA Young Lawyers Division Assembly (2/19/21)

• American Bar Association, "Creating a Racial Justice Coalition for Systemic Change" (12/1/20)