Speakers and Sessions

Jan 20, 2024 | 09:30 AM – 10:00 AM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Sonja Diaz

Founding Executive Director,

UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Institute

Lucero Chávez Basilio

Director

Office of Immigrant and Refugee
Affairs for the County of San Diego

Jan 20, 2024 | 10:00 AM – 10:15 AM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Patricia Guerrero

Chief Justice California

Jan 20, 2024 | 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Cinthia Flores

President

Latina Lawyers Bar Association

In 2020, the Latino/x/e population reached 62.1 million, making it one of the largest ethnic groups in the nation. While the Latino/x/e community continues to grow nationally and in crucial states and jurisdictions, this has yet to translate to increased power at the voting booth. 

A combination of factors has made it harder for Latino/x/e to participate in elections, including legislative efforts that purge registration lists, limit early voting or vote by mail, and voter ID laws. With tremendous Latino/x/e growth, conversations about Latino/x/e voting rights are paramount. 

It is with great honor to invite you to join us for a panel focused on

(i) highlighting the current social and legal barriers Latino/x/e individuals face to voting
(ii) discussing why the barriers to voting matter, and 
(iii) finding creative solutions to expanding and amplifying the Latinx vote. 

Our exceptional panelists are Latina voting rights advocates and leaders who aim to empower the Latino/x/e community. We aim to facilitate engaging and thought-provoking conversations with our panelists and uplift the voices of the Latino/x/e community. Your presence makes a difference, and we hope to see you there as we enter the 2024 election cycle.

PANELIST

Teresa Cordova

Director and Professor

Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois Chicago

PANELIST

Miranda Galindo

Supervising Counsel, Voting Rights

LatinoJustice PRLDEF

PANELIST

Genny Castillo

Regional Engagement Director

The Southern Economic Advancement Project (SEAP)

PANELIST

Celina Avalos Jaramillo

Advocacy Campaign Strategist, Elections & Government Program,

Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law

Jan 20, 2024 | 12:00 PM – 01:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Rachel Moran

Professor of Law
Texas A&M University

This panel will tackle the subject of affirmative action in higher education and the implications of the Supreme Court decisions of 2023 that further narrow the ability of universities to take race into account in the admissions process. With a focus on law schools, the panel will explore the repercussions of this decision on Latino/a/x representation and participation in the legal profession, in both the near and long-term. This panel addresses strategies beyond affirmative action to ensure the ongoing inclusion of Latino students in the nation’s law schools, including its most premier schools.

PANELIST

David Hinojosa

Director, Educational Opportunities Project
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

PANELIST

Francisca Fajana

Director, Racial Justice Strategies
Latino Justice PRLDEF

PANELIST

Liliana M. Garces

Professor
University of Texas at Austin

Jan 20, 2024 | 12:00 PM – 01:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Patricia Campos Medina

Executive Director

The Worker Institute at the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought long-standing race and gender workforce inequities into sharper focus. Historically, Black and Brown communities have struggled to find jobs that offer fair wages, healthcare access, paid leave, and employment security. The past 3+ years of pandemic-related public health crises and economic shocks have only widened this gap. As we pivot our focus to the future of our economy, the strength of its recovery will be measured not only by how well Latina workers bounce back but also by how resilient they will be against the possibility of future uncertainty. This panel will uplift novel research highlighting pre-pandemic issues like equal pay and gender discrimination, while highlighting new findings about the benefits of unionization, paid family leave expansion, and flexibility in the workplace. Ultimately, this panel will identify the law and policy considerations to expanding the social safety net, enforcing workers’ rights, and promoting equal employment opportunities for Latinas and other similarly situated workers to improve social mobility.

PANELIST

Stacy Villalobos

Director

Racial Economic Justice Program at Legal Aid at Work

PANELIST

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher

Executive Secretary-Treasurer

California Labor Federation

PANELIST

Llezlie Green

Professor

The Georgetown University Law Center

Jan 20, 2024 | 12:00 PM – 01:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Lourdes M. Rosado

President and General Counsel,
LatinoJustice PRLDEF

This panel will discuss the problem and harms of over-policing and police abuse of the Latinx and other communities of color, as well as litigation, legislative, and advocacy efforts to end discriminatory and abusive policing practices. Topics to be explored include but are not limited to: driving/walking while Latinx; the misidentification of Latinx and other barriers to collecting high-quality data regarding police interactions with Latinx residents; the role of the war on drugs in driving the over-policing of Latinx, and how marijuana legalization may change the landscape among others.

PANELIST

Natalia Cornelio

Criminal District Court Judge Texas State Courts

PANELIST

Maritza Perez Medina

Director of Office of Federal Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

PANELIST

Christy E. Lopez

Professor from Practice
Georgetown Law

PANELIST

Jasmine Gonzales Rose

Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Equity, Justice & Engagement
Boston University

Jan 20, 2024 | 12:00 PM – 01:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Catherine Sandoval

Law Professor and Board Member,
Santa Clara University School of Law and U.S. Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigation Board

The proliferation of new digital tools, expansion of the information technology age, and recent mergers in the media and entertainment industry have significant racial/ethnic implications for Latinas in the U.S. This panel will explore the willful neglect of media representation for Latinas, examine media manipulation, disinformation, and misinformation in the 2020 presidential election and COVID-19 pandemic. As we approach the 2024 general elections, the weaponization of social media is considered, by many, a serious national security threat. In this conversation, panelists will explore today’s digital threats to democracy and what actions must be taken to protect freedom of the press, enforce civil rights, and reignite equal protection.

PANELIST

Gisela Pérez de Acha

Investigative Reporter

Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley

PANELIST

Fatima K. Espinoza

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky, School of Information Science

PANELIST

Nora Benavidez 

Senior Counsel and Director
Digital Justice and Civil Rights Free Press

PANELIST

Sonia Katyal

Faculty Development and Research Co-Director, Professor of Law
Berkeley Center for Law & Technology

Jan 20, 2024 |  02:15 PM – 03:15 PM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Nubia Willman

Attorney
Legal Aid Chicago

Immigration continues to be a topic of great importance to large segments of the Latino community. Centering the perspectives of Latina organizers, immigration practitioners, and scholars, this panel delves into the current state of U.S. immigration and how this system particularly fails Latina immigrant women caught in the net of the immigration system. 

PANELIST

Jennifer M. Chacón

Bruce Tyson Mitchell
Professor of Law

Stanford Law School

PANELIST

Tania N. Valdez

Associate Professor of Law
George Washington University Law School

PANELIST

Catalina Cruz

Assemblywoman
nY State Assembly 39th District

PANELIST

Maribel Hernández Rivera

Director, Policy & Government Affairs, Border & Immigration
American Civil Liberties Union

Jan 20, 2024 | 02:15 PM – 03:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Alicia Alvarez

Professor of Law
University of Illinois Chicago School of Law

Many Latina lawyers are the first in their families to attend law school. Therefore, we often receive requests for legal services from our personal networks, who may be unfamiliar with legal procedures and are not financially able to hire lawyers. This panel assembles a group that represents different aspects of the legal services delivery system that helps to facilitate access to law and justice in our communities. It engages participants in a discussion about their roles as facilitators of justice and challenges them to think about how we may re-envision the current legal service delivery model to better serve Latinx communities.

Many Latina lawyers are the first in their families to attend law school. We are therefore often the recipients of requests for legal services from our personal networks who may be unfamiliar with legal procedures and have a financial inability to hire lawyers. This panel assembles a group that represents different aspects of the legal services delivery system that helps to facilitate access to law and justice in our communities. It engages participants in a discussion about their roles as facilitators of justice and challenges them to think about how we may re-envision the current legal service delivery model to better serve Latinx communities.

PANELIST

Betty Balli Torres

Executive Director

Texas Access to

Justice Foundation

PANELIST

Luz E. Herrera

Professor of Law
Associate Dean for
Experiential Education
Texas A&M University
School of Law

PANELIST

Silvia R. Argueta

Executive Director 

Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles 

PANELIST

Alicia Sanchez Ramirez

Supervising Attorney, Criminal Defense Practice

The Bronx Defenders

Jan 20, 2024 | 02:15 PM – 03:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Evelyn Rangel-Medina

Assistant Professor of Law
Temple University James
E. Beasley School of Law

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, threatening the autonomy, rights, and citizenship of childbearing persons residing in the United States. As a growing demographic, Latinas are and will be particularly impacted by this court ruling and its forthcoming harmful consequences. Today, over half of Latinas are of childbearing age (defined as ages 18-44), and compared to non-Hispanic white women, a higher percentage of Latinas live in abortion-restrictive states. The Dobbs ruling has reopened the conversation surrounding reproductive health equity within the United States. This panel will bring together Latina scholars and advocates at the forefront of the reproductive justice movement to discuss how we got here and what the 2022 Midterm Election’s referendum on preserving reproductive justice in 6 states means for the future.

PANELIST

Rochelle M. Garza

President

Texas Civil Rights Project

PANELIST

Josefina Flores Morales

Propel Postdoctoral Scholar
Stanford University School of Medicine

PANELIST

Fabiola Carrión

Director of Reproductive
and Sexual Health
National Health Law Program

PANELIST

Eloisa Lopez

Executive Director
Pro-Choice Arizona and the Abortion Fund of Arizona

Jan 20, 2024 | 02:15 PM – 03:15 PM

COMING SOON

MODERATOR

Sylvia Puente

President & CEO
Latino Policy Forum

Latina students in K-12 public schools, and their families, face a range of challenges in their quest to obtain a high-quality education.

Anti-immigrant sentiment and policies are strong. School officials continue to enact obstacles to enrollment for immigrant and perceived immigrant children, and conservative activists—most notably Texas Governor Greg Abbott—are taking aim at the Supreme Court’s 1982 holding Plyler v. Doe, which allows undocumented children to attend public school.

English Learners (“Els”)– students who have not yet attained sufficient English proficiency such that they can stop participating in language instruction programs—are a large and growing share of the U.S. student body, and almost 78% of ELs are Latino. Despite federal protections and funding, ELs consistently lag behind their peers academically and have been long underserved in the nation’s schools.

Moreover, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled to sharply limit the race conscious admissions policies in higher education, and this ruling will likely create barriers to Black and Latina students in accessing gifted & talented programs and magnet schools in K-12.

Lastly, the movement to eliminate teaching about such topics as race and the legacy of slavery, racism and other forms of systemic discrimination—under the banners of Stop Woke and Anti-CRT—threaten the ability of Latinas and other children of color from receiving an authentic, empowering education.

This panel will explore these various obstacles and highlight work being done to face them head on by providing insights and actionable steps.

PANELIST

Ana Graciela Nájera Mendoza 

Staff Attorney
ACLU of Southern California Education Equity Team

PANELIST

Laura Chavez-Moreno

Assistant Professor, UCLA’s César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies

PANELIST

Maria Echaveste

President & CEO,
Opportunity Institute

PANELIST

Mia Bonta

Assemblywoman,
CA State Assembly 18th District

Jan 20, 2024 | 03:30 PM – 04:45 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Veronica Terriquez

Director
UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center

As a result of the SCOTUS decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, LGBTQ+ protections are limited, and the Hispanic LGBTQ community, in particular, is now experiencing even more compounding levels of discrimination. According to the Center for American Progress, Hispanic LGBTQ+ folks report experiencing discrimination at a rate 15 percentage points higher than their white LGBTQ+ counterparts. This plenary aims to shed light on the issues plaguing this historically underserved community, discuss the implications of recent anti-LGBTQ+ laws—both state and federal – and ideate on what leaders can do to serve this population of intersecting identities.

PANELIST

Bamby Salcedo

President & CEO

TransLatin@ Coalition

PANELIST

Omar Gonzalez-Pagan

Counsel and Health Care Strategist

Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc.

PANELIST

Mony Ruiz-Velasco

Deputy Director

Equality Illinois

PANELIST

Berta Esperanza Hernández-Truyol

Stephen C. O’Connell Chair & Professor

University of Florida Levin College of Law

PANELIST

Alejandra Caraballo

Clinical Instructor

Cyberlaw Clinic at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society

Community Reception with the
UCLA Chicanx-Latinx Law Review

Jan 20, 2024 | 04:45 PM – 05:30 PM

Jan 20, 2024 | 06:00 PM – 07:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This intimate fireside chat will spotlight two of the nation’s preeminent lawyers:

Janet Murguía, president and CEO of UnidosUS and Judge Mary Murguía, Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and cement that Latina history is American history. These two Latina giants will discuss their experience as twins from a family of seven children born to Mexican immigrants, who grew up in the Spanish-speaking Argentine neighborhood in the 1960’s at a time of great adversity. The elevation of United States Circuit Judge Mary H. Murguía of Phoenix, Arizona, to chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit represents the first Latina to serve as chief judge of a federal appellate court. Janet is at the helm of the nation’s largest Latino civil rights organization in the U.S., after having worked in the Clinton White House, U.S. Congress, and as executive vice chancellor for university relations at the University of Kansas. This intimate conversation weaves the lives of two Latina history-makers and trailblazers, who have had tremendous impact on issues of law and policy, while also sharing the same birthdate. Through this conversation, participants will be inspired by the insights from the Murguía sisters and their reflections about pursuing careers that are integral to a well-functioning democracy.

MODERATOR

Janet Murguía

President & CEO
UnidosUS

MODERATOR

Mary Murguía

Chief Judge
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

MODERATOR

Margaret Salazar-Porzio

Curator of Latinx History and Culture; Chair of the Division of Home and Community Life

Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History

Jan 21, 2024 | 09:30 AM – 09:45 AM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Veronica Terriquez

Director

UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center

Jan 21, 2024 | 09:45 AM – 11:00 AM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Laura Gómez

Rachel F. Moran Endowed Chair in Law

UCLA

The pandemic disproportionately affected Latinx families, and the pandemic legacy will no doubt continue to do so in the areas of access to healthcare (physical and mental), economic justice, schooling and higher education, to name just a few. Latina and other Women of Color lawmakers have been at the forefront of responding to these issues. This panel looks to the future, drawing upon their insights from the past four years of fighting the ever-changing enemy that is the pandemic.

PANELIST

Antoinette Sedillo-Lopez

Senator

New Mexico Senate

PANELIST

Maria Luisa Flores 

State Representative
State of Texas

PANELIST

María Elena Durazo

State Senator
California Senate District 26

PANELIST

Nanette Barragán

Congresswoman
California’s 44th Congressional District

Jan 21, 2024 | 11:15 AM – 12:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This intimate fireside chat will feature the insights of the Honorable Vilma Socorro Martínez, the first female head of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and first female ambassador to Argentina from 2009 to 2013 under President Barack Obama. Born in San Antonio, Texas, on Oct. 17, 1943, Vilma Martinez was the oldest of five children of Marina and Salvador Martinez, at a time when “…her ambition and determination were clear from an early age. So was the discouragement.” She started her civil rights career at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, where she helped on issues such as school desegregation, public accommodation, and affirmative action in employment (Griggs v. Duke Power). At 29, she became president of MALDEF where she worked to enact the 1975 Voting Rights Act and established legal precedent to ensure access to education for undocumented immigrants under Plyer v. Doe. Through this conversation, the Honorable Martínez will detail how she overcame the barriers that blocked opportunity for Mexican-Americans and women for far too long to go on to transform American jurisprudence to better meet the needs of a changing nation.

Moderator

Ambassador Vilma Martínez

Former President & General Counsel, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund

PANELIST

Luz Murillo

CLLR Co-Chief
Articles Editor
UCLA Law School,
Chicanx-Latinx Law Review

PANELIST

Evelyn Sanchez-Gonzalez

CLLR Editor in Chief
UCLA Law School
Chicanx-Latinx Law Review

Jan 21, 2024 | 12:30 PM – 12:40 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

A diverse legal profession plays a crucial role in promoting fairness and ensuring the effective administration of justice. It is a fundamental component of the State Bar of California’s mission to safeguard the public interest by advancing diversity, equity, and inclusivity within the legal field. One of the ways the State Bar advances this mission is by collecting and analyzing demographic data on California’s law school students, newly admitted attorneys, and the overall licensed attorney population. Dr. Lisa Chavez, Director of the State Bar’s Office of Research and Statistics, will present the most up-to-date data on Latina representation. She will draw upon the State Bar’s forthcoming Diversity Report Card and insights from a recent report on California’s law schools. Dr. Chavez will also discuss “Calls to Actions” tailored to different sectors outlined in the 2022 Diversity Report Card, offering guidance on how participants can utilize this information to drive positive change in places of work.

Jan 21, 2024 | 12:40 PM – 01:55 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This career pathway session is an opportunity for individuals to come together and discuss the barriers and opportunities in the Government and Public Interest legal subsector. The session will begin with a 15 minute flash fireside chat followed by a 30 minute World Cafe discussion.

Jan 21, 2024 | 12:40 PM – 01:55 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This career pathway session is an opportunity for individuals to come together and discuss the barriers and opportunities in the legal Academia subsector. The session will begin with a 15 minute flash fireside chat followed by a 30 minute World Cafe discussion.

Jan 21, 2024 | 12:40 PM – 01:55 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This career pathway session is an opportunity for individuals to come together and discuss the barriers and opportunities in the Corporate Law subsector. The session will begin with a 15 minute flash fireside chat followed by a 30 minute World Cafe discussion.

Jan 21, 2024 | 12:40 PM – 01:55 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

This career pathway session is an opportunity for individuals to come together and discuss the barriers and opportunities in the Judiciary subsector. The session will begin with a 15 minute flash fireside chat followed by a 30 minute World Cafe discussion.

Welcome

Jan 20 2024 | 09:30 AM – 10:00 AM

Keynote

Jan 20 2024 | 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Plenary I: Spotlight on Latina Lawmakers: Governance in the Pandemic Age

Jan 20 2024 | 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 12:15 PM – 01:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Rachel Moran

Professor of Law
Texas A&M University

This panel will tackle the subject of affirmative action in higher education and the implications of the Supreme Court decisions of 2023 that further narrow the ability of universities to take race into account in the admissions process. With a focus on law schools, the panel will explore the repercussions of this decision on Latino/a/x representation and participation in the legal profession, in the near-term and the long term. This panel addresses strategies beyond affirmative action to ensure ongoing inclusion of Latino students in the nation’s law schools, including its most premier schools.

PANELIST

David Hinojosa

Director, Educational Opportunities Project
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

PANELIST

Francisca Fajana

Director, Racial Justice Strategies
Latino Justice PRLDEF

PANELIST

Liliana M. Garces

Professor
University of Texas at Austin

Jan 20 2024 | 12:15 PM – 01:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Patricia Campos Medina

Executive Director

The Worker Institute at the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell University

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought long-standing race and gender workforce inequities into sharper focus. Historically, Black and Brown communities have struggled to find jobs that offer fair wages, healthcare access, paid leave, and employment security. The past 3+ years of pandemic-related public health crises and economic shocks have only widened this gap. As we pivot our focus to the future of our economy, the strength of its recovery will be measured not only by how well Latina workers bounce back but also by how resilient they will be against the possibility of future uncertainty. This panel will uplift novel research highlighting pre-pandemic issues like equal pay and gender discrimination, while lifting up new findings about the benefits of unionization, paid family leave expansion, and flexibility in the workplace. Ultimately, this panel will identify the law and policy considerations to expanding the social safety net, enforcing workers’ rights, and promoting equal employment opportunities for Latinas and other similarly situated workers to improve social mobility.

PANELIST

Stacy Villalobos

Director

Racial Economic Justice Program at Legal Aid at Work

PANELIST

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher

Executive Secretary-Treasurer

California Labor Federation

Jan 20 2024 | 12:15 PM – 01:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Lourdes M. Rosado

President and General Counsel,
LatinoJustice PRLDEF

This panel will discuss the problem and harms of over-policing and police abuse of the Latinx and other communities of color, as well as litigation, legislative, and advocacy efforts to end discriminatory and abusive policing practices. Topics to be explored include but are not limited to: driving/walking while Latinx; the misidentification of Latinx and other barriers to collecting high quality data regarding police interactions with Latinx residents; the role of the war on drugs in driving the over policing of Latinx, and how marijuana legalization may change the landscape among others.

PANELIST

Natalia Cornelio

Criminal District Court Judge Texas State Courts

PANELIST

Martiza Perez Medina

Director of Office of Federal Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

PANELIST

Christy E. Lopez

Professor from Practice
Georgetown Law

Jan 20 2024 | 12:15 PM – 01:15 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

COMING SOON

MODERATOR

Sonia Katyal

Professor UC Berkeley

The proliferation of new digital tools, expansion of the information technology age, and recent mergers in the media and entertainment industry have significant racial/ethnic implications for Latinas in the U.S. This panel will explore the willful neglect of media representation for Latinas, examine media manipulation, disinformation, and misinformation in the 2020 presidential election and COVID-19 pandemic. As we approach the 2024 general elections, the weaponization of social media is considered, by many, a serious national security threat. In this conversation, panelists will explore today’s digital threats to democracy and what actions must be taken to protect freedom of the press, enforce civil rights, and reignite equal protection.

PANELIST

Gisela Pérez de Acha

Investigative Reporter

Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley

PANELIST

Fatima K. Espinoza

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky, School of Information Science

PANELIST

Nora Benavidez 

Senior Counsel and Director
Digital Justice and Civil Rights Free Press

Jan 20 2024 |  02:45 PM – 03:45 PM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Nubia Willman

Attorney
Legal Aid Chicago

Immigration continues to be a topic of great importance to large segments of the Latino community. Centering the perspectives of Latina organizers, immigration practitioners, and scholars, this panel delves into the current state of U.S. immigration and how this system particularly fails Latina immigrant women caught in the net of the immigration system. 

PANELIST

Jennifer M. Chacón

Bruce Tyson Mitchell
Professor of Law

Stanford Law School

PANELIST

Tania N. Valdez

Associate Professor of Law
George Washington University Law School

Jan 20 2024 | 02:45 PM – 03:45 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

COMING SOON

MODERATOR

Alicia Alvarez

Professor of Law University of Illinois, Chicago

Many Latina lawyers are the first in their families to attend law school. We are therefore often the recipients of requests for legal services from our personal networks who may be unfamiliar with legal procedures and have a financial inability to hire lawyers. This panel assembles a group that represents different aspects of the legal services delivery system that helps to facilitate access to law and justice in our communities. It engages participants in a discussion about their roles as facilitators of justice and challenges them to think about how we may re-envision the current legal service delivery model to better serve Latinx communities.

PANELIST

Betty Balli Torres

Executive Director

Texas Access to

Justice Foundation

PANELIST

Luz E. Herrera

Professor of Law
Associate Dean for
Experiential Education
Texas A&M University
School of Law

PANELIST

Silvia R. Argueta

Executive Director 

Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles 

Jan 20 2024 | 02:45 PM – 03:45 PM

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Affirmative Action and its Aftermath

Jan 20 2024 | 9:00 AM – 10:45 AM

MODERATOR

Evelyn Rangel-Medina

Assistant Professor of Law
Temple University James
E. Beasley School of Law

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, threatening the autonomy, rights, and citizenship of childbearing persons residing in the United States. As a growing demographic, Latinas are and will be particularly impacted by this court ruling and its forthcoming harmful consequences. Today, over half of Latinas are of childbearing age (defined as ages 18-44), and compared to non-Hispanic white women, a higher percentage of Latinas live in abortion-restrictive states. The Dobbs ruling has reopened the conversation surrounding reproductive health equity within the United States. This panel will bring together Latina scholars and advocates at the forefront of the reproductive justice movement to discuss how we got here and what the 2022 Midterm Election’s referendum on preserving reproductive justice in 6 states means for the future.

PANELIST

Rochelle M. Garza

President

Texas Civil Rights Project

PANELIST

Josefina Flores Morales

Propel Postdoctoral Scholar
Stanford University School of Medicine

PANELIST

Fabiola Carrión

Director of Reproductive
and Sexual Health
National Health Law Program

PANELIST

Khiara M. Bridges

Professor
UC Berkeley School of Law

Meeting the Challenges
in K-12 Education for Latinas

Jan 20 2024 | 02:45 PM – 03:45 PM      

Plenary II: TBD

Jan 20 2024 | 04:00 PM – 05:00 PM

Fireside Chat: Double the Impact:
A Conversation with the Murguia Sisters on American Democracy

Jan 20 2024 | 06:00PM – 07:00PM

Welcome

Jan 21 2024 | 09:00 AM – 09:15 AM

Fireside Chat: Latina Oral History: The Life and Legacy of Honorable Vilma Martínez

Jan 21 2024 | 09:15 AM – 10:15 AM

Plenary III: A Look at LGBTQ+
Rights Through a Latinx Lens

Jan 21 2024 | 11:30AM – 12:30 PM

Career Pathway Session: Government & Public Interest Track

Jan 21 2024 | 12:45 PM – 1:45 PM

Career Pathway Session:
Academia Track

Jan 21 2024 | 12:45 PM – 1:45 PM

Career Pathway Session:
Big Law Track

Jan 21 2024 | 12:45 PM – 1:45 PM

Career Pathway Session:
Judiciary Track

Jan 21 2024 | 12:45 PM – 1:45 PM

REGISTER NOW

Schedule subject to change without notice.