Entitled “Nuestro Deber: Our Duty to Empower Our
Communities,” the Seventh Annual National Latina/o Law
Conference made history by marking the birth of a national
association for Latina/o law students.
Representatives from 20 law schools across the country were
present at the conference, which was hosted by the UCLA School of
Law’s La Raza Law Student Association and The Chicano –
Latino Law Review.
The purpose of the National Latina/o Law Students Association is
to promote Latino academic success and emphasize progress and
prosperity within the Latino community.
The association will serve as a platform for the Latino law
students’ voices across the nation, and is the first national
association of its kind, said Anthony Solana, co-chairman of the
conference.
The association’s first board members were elected Sunday,
and representatives at the conference got a chance to review a
draft of the NLLSA’s constitution as well as make appropriate
changes before its approval.
All 35 members of UCLA’s La Raza Law Student Association
are now members of the NLLSA.
Solana described the NLLSA as a progressive organization with
the goal of bringing about positive change within the community and
within the members’ schools.
He also said the organization supports affirmative action and
will work to better the quality of primary education for Latino
children.
As part of an ongoing effort to give back to their community,
members of the NLLSA work at clinics, immigration services and
other places where their expertise is needed.
“This association is going to establish a collective voice
of law students nationwide and give them a strong network,”
said Irma Hernandez, co-chairwoman of the conference.
Linda Carranza, a third-year law student from New York
University, believes it is easy for Latino law students to feel
overwhelmed by the fact that “we are definitely a minority in
this profession.”
Most members of the national association are also members of
local groups with similar concerns.
“A lot of good ideas were discussed (at the conference),
and I know that the energy from this weekend will go back to the
group,” Carranza said, in regard to a Latino law student
group at her university.
The annual conference gives students a place to have serious
conversations about their respective communities and the issues
with which those communities are faced, Solana said.
“The priority and goal (of the conference) is to create a
safe space for Latino students to focus on their studies and to
empower their communities,” Solana said.