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Lakisha Belizaire

Lady of the Last Chance: Lawyer Makes Her Mark Getting Convicts off Death Row

In what seems her natural state, Christina Swarns is as sweetly plainspoken and easygoing as a kindergarten teacher, which, decidedly, she is not. Seated across a conference table in a corner-view meeting room on the 16th floor of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund offices in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood, Swarns brightens another 100 watts […]

La. sued for disenfranchising minority and low-income voters

Louisiana is being sued for alleged non-compliance with the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Inc. (LDF), Project Vote and several private persons. The lawsuit, filed on April 19, alleges Louisiana has failed to give ample opportunity for low-income and minority voters to register by failing to follow the required […]

LA Times: Rights group takes a step-by-step approach on gay marriage

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, or GLAD, is arguing that it is unconstitutional to discriminate against gay couples who are already legally married. It hopes its incremental approach will lead to a broader ruling by the Supreme Court. Two years ago, a small and little-known civil rights group in Boston launched a legal attack […]

LA Times: Consumers’ right to file class actions is in danger

It hasn't gotten a lot of press, but a case involving AT&T that goes before the U.S. Supreme Court next week has sweeping ramifications for potentially millions of consumers. If a majority of the nine justices vote the telecom giant's way, any business that issues a contract to customers — such as for credit cards, […]

Kyle Barry: Sessions Unchanged: Hoastility to Civil Rights Advocacy Hallmark of Career

With Senator Jeff Sessions’s Attorney General nomination set for a confirmation hearing next month, he and President-elect Trump’s transition team have tried to rebrand his image into one of civil rights hero, asserting, without evidence, that Sessions has a “strong civil rights record.” Yet throughout his entire career, Sessions has been openly hostile to civil rights […]

Kristina Roth

Krissy Roth is Senior Policy Associate leading LDF’s criminal legal system  policy portfolio, including supporting LDF’s Justice in Public Safety Project. She brings more than a dozen years of policy experience to her work, which includes collaborating with partners to prevent the expansion of the federal death penalty, advocating for its abolition, and supporting clemency […]

Kristen Clarke on WBAI’s “Wake Up Call”

Hear Kristen Clarke, Co-Director of LDF’s Political Participation Group, discuss the importance of Section 5 of the VRA with Mimi Rosenberg on “Wake Up Call.” Listen here. (Interview begins at 25:00)

Kristen Clarke discusses the significance of Section 5 on WBAI’s “Wake Up Call”

On December 15, 2010, Kristen Clarke, Co-Director of LDF’s Political Participation Group, discussed the importance of Section 5 of the VRA with Mimi Rosenberg on WBAI’s “Wake Up Call” program. Ms. Clarke emphasized the continued need for voting check-points, as provided by Section 5, in many states and jurisdictions with histories of voter discrimination throughout […]

Kristen A. Johnson

Kristen A. Johnson serves as Assistant Counsel. Kristen’s practice is primarily focused on litigation in all of LDF’s practice areas, though she also uses other advocacy strategies to advance racial justice. Kristen represents 4 Black and Latina girls in middle school who were illegally strip-searched by school officials (I.S., et al. v. Binghamton City School […]