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Summer Series: The Right Mindset to Conquer The Bar
Summer Series 2019 continues! Today we have Karen Martinez, a repeat (and beloved) guest writer to this series. We have seen Karen conquer her 1L summer, master networking to nab a great second summer internship, and now she gives us a peek into her Bar Prep. She has the right mindset and animo that we should all hope to capture when studying for this beast of an exam! One month into Bar prep has felt a lot more stressful than the last three years of law school. I have also realized that it is only more stressful because it is 3 years of law school condensed into 2…
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Summer Series: Success is What You Make Of It
It is time for Summer Series 2019. Truly my favorite time of the year! We are so lucky to kick it off with Gaby, a rising 2L at Yale, who shares her summer plans with us. But more than her summer plans (a summer in New Haven!) she shares the struggles that happen to many of us during 1L year and the courage it takes to pick your own path when law school pushes us to pick proximity to power over better options. When I was preparing to start my 1L year at Yale, I was incredibly confident. I was sure that I would not be the one to end…
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LOGO REVEAL!
The day is here! I’m so excited to finally reveal the new logo for Latinas Uprising!! You can tell how excited I am because this post is littered with exclamation points–my b! Four years ago, I picked the one picture taken of me at my swear-in and thought, this will do. And it has served me well, but it didn’t truly encompass the spirit of the community or what it has become. Through Latinas Uprising, I have seen a swell of dedicated, passionate, intelligent, educated women who are empowered to use their skills and knowledge to advance our communities. I am so honored to be a part of this group,…
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Drawing the Line: Pushing Back Against Problematic Standards in the Law
Of the million and one things that were incredibly wrong with the Kavanaugh confirmations, one of the stories that jumped out at me was a story involving Amy Chua. Chua, of Tiger Mom fame, is a Yale Law School Professor and is um, well, somewhat problematic, to say the least. The story that made the rounds detailed how Chua allegedly instructed women law students on how to dress and style themselves to please Kavanaugh because he liked his clerks to look “a certain way.” She denies this, but many people have heard similar advice in their own school settings. And so this type of advice does happens to various extents–that…
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American Like Me: A Book Review
On one of my first days of school in the U.S. a young boy approached me and asked: What color are you? I had never been asked this before and remember showing him my arm, confused that this poor boy didn’t know his colors and answered: I’m tan. Later when I told my mom what happened, she laughed and said if someone asks you that again just say you’re Mexican. Easy enough. However, as I grew up, I realized the complexities of race in the U.S. I grappled with my own cultural identity and picking the right “label.” It’s all so complicated and made more so by the fact that…
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Everyone Has Help: Why Kavanaugh’s Denials are a Detriment to our Profession
I got into Yale Law School. That’s the number one law school in the country. I had no connections there. I got there by busting my tail in college. You’ve probably heard that re-play of Kavanaugh’s hearing in his attempt to become a Justice. There are so many things that were a sloppy mess in this hearing, but for me, this was such an eye-opening statement. This is a man that comes from wealth, working and living with DC-elite, is a legacy student (aka White Affirmative Action) and yet he sat there and screeched he did this all on his own. He ignores every leg-up, privilege, assistance given to him…
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A Spark: Books that Empower Latinas
So, the sad truth is there are many Latina authors, but they are not supported and very rarely get the same backing as other authors. That’s why it feels rare to read a book by Latinas. I’ve mentioned before that I’ve edited my social media followings to include mostly & primarily women of color. When I think about it, I realize it stems from my reading habits. Like most of you, I love reading and when I was little, the library was our refuge. My mom would take me to the local library and it would provide solace and peace away from homes that were, at times, tumultuous. I was…
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SideBar: Four Years In {Anniversary Post}
Four years ago, Latinas Uprising went live! I never, ever dreamed of how this community would unfold and how passionate I would become about diversity in the legal field. This site is a labor of love, and it brings me so much joy to work on it, little by little, everyday. Mil, mil, mil, mil gracias! I want to share four questions I had to think about during these past four years: One. Is there a need? The biggest question I had when I started this was whether or not there was an audience. I knew I had struggled in law school and even when I did my research, I…
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Summer Series: Your Experience is Your Strength
Our Summer Series winds down, and what an amazing summer tho! This series highlights different Latina students and law grads as they embark in their summer jobs and/or bar prep all across the country. This series provides a variety of work experiences, options for a healthy work-life balance, and general motivation through different guest contributors to help you to take charge of your summer and professional goals! Today we also hear from Noelia, a rising 3L who is leaving her career as a teacher behind to commit, full-steam ahead, to becoming an attorney. She shares her summer experience, the lessons learned, and the expertise she brings to our profession as an educator and advocate…
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Summer Series: What Matters is the Student
Our Summer Series continues! This series highlights different Latina students and law grads as they embark in their summer jobs and/or bar prep all across the country. We hope to provide a variety of work experiences, options for a healthy work-life balance, and general motivation through different guest contributors to help you to take charge of your summer and professional goals! Today we also hear from Lizette, incoming 1L law student who does such a great job describing the struggle, commitment, and triumph so many of us endure to reach our goals! For me law school was a dream; a vision that I wanted. After almost 15 years of wishing and working I…