How to Protect Democracy & The Rule of Law

There are two things every person who cares about democracy and the rule of law should be focused on right now: strengthening our democracy through voting rights, and healing our country from the scourge of white supremacy.

Here’s how you can get involved.

CIVIL RIGHTS/ Vanita Gupta & Kristen Clarke: The nominations of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke to the DOJ are historic for our nation. If we want to heal our country from the scourge of white supremacy, we need people who have devoted their lives to fighting injustice leading the way. More than 1,300 of you have joined our letter supporting their nominations, but we need each and every one of you to stand up in this moment.

ACTION 1: Join our letter supporting Gupta and Clarke and share with your family and friends.

ACTION 2: Join today’s Digital Day of Action to #ConfirmClarkeandGupta between 1-2pm ET. Click here to access the digital toolkit.

VOTING RIGHTS/ For the People Act: Right now, we have a real chance to rescue our democracy and reshape our country by passing the HR1, the For the People Act, the most sweeping democracy bill in a generation. If enacted, The For the People Act will:

1. Protect and strengthen our sacred right to vote, especially in Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities.

2. Combat corruption by passing pro-ethics measures to clean up our government.

3. End the dominance of big money in politics so the people's voice can be heard.

The For the People Act is likely to come to the House for a vote THIS WEEK.

ACTION 3: Call Your Member of Congress now at 1-888-246-5947 to urge them to pass the For the People Act today.

Thank you in advance for your collective work on these issues. I’m grateful to have you in this fight with me.

Traci

Traci Feit Love
President & Executive Director
Lawyers for Good Government

Help us Protect Civil Rights, Welcome Asylum Seekers, & Promote Environmental Justice

This week, you can: 1) help repair the damage of the Trump administration by joining our sign-on supporting two civil rights leaders nominated to serve in Biden’s DOJ; 2) welcome asylum seekers who have been stuck living in camping tents in Mexico for months or even years by supporting Project Corazon; and 3) volunteer to establish a right to water in Michigan or enforce treaty rights to natural resources in Wisconsin. Highlighted bullets indicate an action you can take now.

1. Support Civil Rights Nominees to the DOJ: Today, during Merrick Garland’s confirmation hearing, Senator Mike Lee made contemptible and disingenuous attacks against civil rights leaders Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke. We’ve seen these kinds of attacks on civil rights leaders during nominations fights before, and it’s why we are doubling down on our efforts to support the nominations of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke. More than 900 of you have already signed our support letter that we will send to the US Senate Judiciary Committee before their confirmation hearings. It’s imperative that our community indicate collective support for these civil rights leaders now.

   • Join our sign-on letter here. Please share with friends, colleagues, and family members as well.

   • Read a Twitter thread from Adam Fernandez, our VP of Policy, explaining the historical significance of these nominations and the importance of joining our sign-on letter.
     
     

2. Welcome Asylum Seekers: Friday was the first day of new registrations and processing for asylum seekers in the MPP program. Families who have been waiting months or even years, stuck living in camping tents after being abandoned on the streets of Mexican border cities like Matamoros and Tijuana, are finally getting a chance at safety. Our team is on the ground in Matamoros providing support for registering in the system and advocating for the most vulnerable asylum seekers, those with medical conditions or disabilities, for example, to be admitted as soon as possible.

   • Listen to Charlene D’Cruz on NPR’s Here and Now.

   • Watch a video update from the border.

   • Directly support our efforts by donating here.
     
     

3. Help Establish a Right to Water in Michigan and Enforce Tribal Treaty Rights in Wisconsin: L4GG is embarking on two new environmental justice efforts where we need pro bono volunteers.

   • First, we’re working with community groups in Michigan to help establish a right to water, and need attorneys (experienced FOIA attorneys and Michigan-licensed attorneys preferred) to conduct research into affordability of water in the metro Detroit area and implementation of the lead and copper rule throughout the state.

   • Second, we’re partnering with the Midwest Environmental Associates and the Ojibwe tribes in Wisconsin to help enforce treaty rights under the USSC Culverts case. We need pro bono support to conduct case law research and prepare a legal memorandum.

   • If you have the requisite experience and are interested in volunteering for either of these efforts, please email Jillian Blanchard, Director of L4GG’s Climate Change Program at climatechange@L4GG.org. Note: L4GG Foundation cannot provide malpractice insurance for these matters.

With gratitude,

Traci

Traci Feit Love
Founder & President
Lawyers for Good Government Foundation

Victory: CBP admitted our clients to safety

Deaf and unable to communicate in standard sign language, Andres arrived in Brownsville in March 2020 fleeing persecution in his home country of El Salvador. He had traveled to the U.S. with his sister Alessandra and his 1-year-old niece. With Andres’ disability, Alessandra is the only person in the world with whom he can converse.

Andres, Alessandra, and baby Maria* were detained by ICE for over a week before being placed into the “Migrant Protection Protocols” program and unceremoniously dumped onto the streets of Matamoros. They were not given any food, water, or services from the American or Mexican governments. They were simply told to wait until the US was ready to hear their asylum claim. So they joined the thousands of others waiting for months and even years in the refugee camp in Matamoros.

Click here to donate to help the thousands of asylum seekers waiting in Matamoros.

Fearing for his safety due to his disability, Andrews never left the Matamoros encampment. The past 11 months living in a tent with a toddler and only his sister to communicate with has been hard, to say the least.

Last week, L4GG’s Project Corazon filed a parole request for Andres and his family, advocating with Customs and Border Patrol for his immediate release into the US.

Late Friday night, our request was granted.

Project Corazon Director Charlene D’Cruz and coordinator Karla Rosario rushed to the border to receive Andres, Alessandra, and Maria and welcome them into the United States. They took them to HEB for a fresh meal and thanks to generous donors, we were able to put them in a hotel for the night and pay for their transportation. Andres, Alessandra, and Maria are now in Oklahoma with their family, where they’ll wait until their asylum claim is heard.

We are so thrilled at the outcome of Andres’ case, an outcome that couldn’t have happened without the help of our industrious volunteers and our generous donors.

We are currently working to request humanitarian parole for the most vulnerable of the asylum seekers in our system, and hope to have new success stories to share.

If you’d like to enable us to help future clients like Andres, please donate to support our programs directly. Hotels in Brownsville cost an average of $96 a night and flights an average of $305.

Can you donate $96 or $305 to us today?

Note, if you can’t support us financially, we also appreciate pledges of miles to our travel fund.

With gratitude,

Traci

Traci Feit Love

Founder & President
Lawyers for Good Government Foundation

*Pseudonyms used to protect the identities of our clients.

L4GG + 12,000 Supporters Call For Trump's Removal & Impeachment

On January 7, 2021, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) submitted an open letter, signed by more than 6,500 attorneys representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, to the offices of Vice President Mike Pence, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, calling on them to uphold their oaths of office, invoke the 25th Amendment, and remove Donald Trump from his presidency immediately.

In total, more than 12,000 lawyers and other supporters joined the letter calling for Trump and other complicit lawmakers to be held accountable for the violent insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

View the letter here.

The letter calls for protecting the rule of law and democracy, reminding those in power that a sitting president cannot be allowed to incite violence or interfere with the peaceful transition of power to a new administration. Elections have consequences, and the American people have spoken and voted President Donald J. Trump out of office. His refusal to acknowledge and respect the will of the people, and support of those who violently attacked the Capitol on January 6, is an unprecedented and unlawful authoritarian power grab. 

The letter demands:

• Vice President Pence must immediately convene the Cabinet and vote to declare Donald John Trump unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and assume the powers and duties of the office of Acting President, in order to allow for the peaceful transition of power.

• Members of Congress must put aside their partisanship and immediately impeach and remove Donald John Trump from office and disqualify him from ever again holding future office.

• In the weeks and months ahead, Congress and the Executive Branch must enact a truth commission to investigate the unlawful activities of any person who contributed to these profoundly damaging crimes and to make referrals to law enforcement where appropriate.

“The president’s words and actions are profoundly damaging and represent an immediate threat to our republic and the rule of law,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s president Traci Feit Love. “Those given the power to respond by our Constitution have a duty to take action immediately, using the full force of their office to protect the United States of America from a president who has incited a violent attack on the Capitol.”

To learn more about our work:

• Follow us on Twitter.

• Like our Facebook page.

• Text 404.382.9644 to join our rapid response text group.

Emergency at the Border: 200+ Volunteers Needed in the Next Two Weeks

One Asylum Seeker’s Story

Mary and her two children, ages 10 and 5, walked 1,200 miles from Guatemala to Matamoros in 2019 to seek asylum. Mary’s husband abused her so badly that he was sent to jail in Guatemala, which is uncommon for domestic disputes in that country. In jail, her husband was targeted by gang members and a prison guard for extortion, which extended to Mary and her children. Fleeing for their lives, they set out north in search of safety. 

Mary and her children have been languishing in the refugee camp in Matamoros for over a year without a roof over their heads. They experienced hope for the first time when President-Elect Biden won the election, as he’s campaigned on ending the dangerous Remain in Mexico program they have been placed into. Unfortunately, that hope has now been dashed, thanks to the outgoing Trump administration’s attempts to do as much damage as possible for asylum seekers on their way out the door. 

Draconian New Asylum Regulations

Last week, the Trump administration finalized draconian new asylum regulations that will be enacted on January 11, 2021. The new regulations remove pathways to asylum based on domestic violence, gender-based violence, and more. They also allow Immigration Judges to dismiss cases without a hearing, based solely on evidence provided in paper applications. In a nutshell, the new regulations will make it almost impossible for the vast majority of our clients to secure safety with their families. 

Additionally, even if Biden’s new immigration team decides to undo this damaging rule, it will take many months for replacement policies to come into effect. Mary’s case is scheduled for mid-February 2021, before Biden would have a chance to undo these harsh regulations. 

How You Can Help

We currently have 2 staff members and 1 full time volunteer at the border. We also have approximately 600 asylum seekers who need help preparing key documents in support of their asylum applications. To have a real chance at asylum, these 600 migrants, including Mary and her two children, need to file before January 11. The stakes are high and our resources are limited. We’ve put together an online training program and resource materials for pro bono attorneys, but we’re going to need a lot more volunteer lawyers to get this work done.

1. If you are an attorney and have the capacity to volunteer to take on one of these cases before the end of the year, we need you. Spanish speaking attorneys are very much preferred, or, attorneys that come with their own volunteer translators. You can learn more about what is required and sign-up here. Note: this opportunity is 100% remote.
   

2. If you are fluent in Spanish and able to serve as a volunteer translator for these cases, please sign up here. Note: this opportunity is 100% remote.
   

3. If you can’t volunteer, you can still help. Can you support the out of pocket costs to prepare just one application, which is $75? Or, can you donate $300 to cover the costs associated with overseeing an entire filing?
   

4. You can also help by sending this blog post to lawyers and Spanish speakers in your network. 

We need as many volunteers as possible if we are going to have a shot at meeting this need. This is one of those times when the only way we can succeed is through the power of our community. Thank you so much for doing what you can.

UPDATE from January 2021: We successfully provided pro bono lawyers to assist approximately 100 families - 130 adults and 86 children - and now have temporarily paused this phase of our work. See more about the current status of Project Corazon Matamoros here.

5,000+ Lawyers Sign Open Letter Opposing Amy Coney Barrett SCOTUS Nomination

Today, in partnership with Alliance for Justice, Lawyers for Good Government submitted an open letter, signed by more than 5,000 attorneys representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, to the United States Senate objecting to the Supreme Court nomination of Amy Coney Barrett. It is the largest known lawyer opposition letter to a Supreme Court nominee. 

VIEW THE LETTER HERE: L4GG.org/Oppose-Barrett

The letter calls for the Senate not to confirm Judge Barrett, arguing that the next Supreme Court Justice will rule on issues concerning the health and well-being of every American for decades. It implores every Senator — 53 of whom have law degrees —  to honor their oath to defend the United States Constitution and preserve the core tenets of our democracy from an illegitimate and sham process. The letter also highlights Barrett’s concerning record of jurisprudence, which threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of Americans.

The letter will be officially entered into the record of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing next week. Interested lawyers are invited to add their names to the letter here. 

“As lawyers, we've sworn an oath to ‘protect and defend’ the United States Constitution, and it is our duty to take a stand at this critical moment in our nation's history,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s president Traci Feit Love. “The fundamental rights of hundreds of millions of Americans are at stake. Rushing to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett will cause irreparable damage to the public’s faith in the Supreme Court, the rule of law, and our democracy.”

“It is virtually unprecedented for thousands of lawyers, from every state and a breadth of backgrounds, to unite in opposition to a Supreme Court nominee,” said Nan Aron, president, Alliance for Justice. “As people who have devoted their careers to the pursuit of justice and upholding our Constitution, they have made clear that a vote to confirm Amy Coney Barrett is a vote to strip away health care protections from millions, eviscerate protections for those with preexisting conditions, overturn Roe, and dismantle civil rights. The legal community is speaking out, and they are no doubt the tip of the iceberg.”

L4GG Announces Nationwide COVID Small Business Legal Clinic Project

30+ Law Firms Sign Up for New Program to Provide Pro Bono Assistance to Help Small Businesses Survive Economic Impact of COVID-19 

34 Law Firms in 30 Cities Across U.S. Will Offer Remote Legal Clinics to Advise Small Business Owners on Stimulus Bill Benefits and Coronavirus-Related Legal Issues

Today, Lawyers for Good Government Foundation (L4GG), a non-profit network of more than 125,000 legal advocates with lawyers in all 50 states, announced the launch of its Small Business Remote Legal Clinic, offering pro bono legal consultations for small business owners to help them understand and act upon the options available under the COVID-19 stimulus package and other grant and loan programs that may be available to them.

L4GG has put together a growing coalition presently comprised of 34 law firms in 30 cities across the U.S. to help staff the remote legal clinics, including Kirkland & Ellis; Willkie, Farr & Gallagher; Goodwin Procter; Covington & Burling; Katten Muchin Rosenman; Miller Canfield; Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft; Kramer Levin; Steptoe; and Cohen & Siegel, among others. Participating firms plan to provide guidance to small business owners regarding funding available through the recently-enacted stimulus bill, assistance in filing for grants and loans available through various federal, state, and local programs, and answers to legal questions in various areas most likely to arise as a result of the circumstances surrounding the COVID pandemic. 

The pilot program will launch in New York City early next week in partnership with the City Bar Justice Center, and will expand to additional cities across the country in the weeks ahead.

L4GG will partner with local non-profit and legal service organizations, and provide law firms with the resources and tools required to manage the program in each city. Qualifying small businesses with 25 or fewer employees will be offered free 45-minute consultations with pro bono attorneys who can help answer legal questions in certain areas and help small business owners determine the best path forward for their businesses. 

Interested small business owners can sign up here to be notified when a clinic becomes available in their city.

According to reports, the COVID-19 stimulus package passed by Congress will include $350 billion in aid to small businesses. This includes up to eight weeks of cash-flow assistance to qualifying companies. 

“Almost out of the blue, small businesses are suddenly struggling for their very survival. It is the professional duty of the legal community to come together to offer advice and guidance to them so that they can continue to provide incomes for their employees, and goods and services to their communities. We are grateful for the opportunity to be able to give back to these hardworking people by providing high-quality free legal advice and assistance,” said Jacqueline Haberfeld, Pro Bono Counsel at Kirkland & Ellis LLP. 

“Hundreds of thousands of small business owners, many of whom already operate on very narrow margins, are struggling with questions about how their businesses will survive the COVID-19 pandemic. This small business legal clinic can help them navigate this unanticipated economic crisis, and provide them with guidance they desperately need at this time,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s executive director Traci Feit Love. “Not only do these businesses provide necessary services in communities all over the country, they provide employment, job training, and other benefits to so many hard-working Americans. Their survival is essential to the strength of our economy and vital to our communities, and it is critical that we do whatever we can to help sustain these businesses and their employees until this crisis subsides.”

To support this important work, click here to donate.