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The Road Map for Creating Legal Change
There’s a poem I stumbled upon a few years ago called, I am the Lawyer that describes the values attorneys uphold and the virtue we strive for; my favorite line is: I am the conservative of the past, the liberal of the present, and the radical of the future. That line is so striking to me because it is so true (and btw this was written at least 50 years ago, so the ideals the author attaches to those terms aren’t as politicized as they are now, imo). Rather, what I think the author meant was that attorneys push for progress, but also uphold the law, which creates a dichotomy…
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Addressing Sexual Assault within the Latino Community through a Legal Perspective
One of the things that’s so powerful about having a J.D. is that we can become true agents of change. Of course, any individual with the vision and drive can create change in their community, but as attorneys, we are given a little extra ammunition by way of our legal abilities. My hope is that we always remember this and try our best to continue to improve everyone’s standard of living. Because April is Sexual Awareness Month, I think it’s vital to talk about what we can do as attorneys to help fight this problem. In the article I wrote for Being Latino, I mention that one in six Latinas…
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You Don’t Have to be Nice
I recently finished Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and aside from being super funny, one comment caught my attention right away. In the pilot, one of the Indiana Mole Women says that they followed the Rev to his car because she didn’t want to be rude. Matt Lauer casually comments that he’s always amazed at the lengths women will go through to not be seen as rude. I definitely laughed, but it was such a true statement. Too often, we are trained to be nice and polite above even our own comfort. Little girls are always told to be nice, to be polite, or to not make waves. We apologize for our opinions (prefacing almost all…
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Getting Comfortable with Self-Promotion
I recently read this article from Harvard Business Review on networking and why it doesn’t always work for women. It seems that for women, it’s less “who you know” and more “what kind of work you produce,” when it comes to being hired/promoted. In other words, men are being given the benefit of the doubt based on potential, while women have to show measurable accomplishments. We’ve previously discussed the importance of being able to promote yourself and to eschew the ever-valued Latino custom of humilidad. And we’ll keep pushing those ideas until studies show us that the tide has changed. Until then—what can you do to showcase your accomplishments, especially…
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Spring Forward: Favorite Links
How is this the last Friday of the month?! Isn’t that so cliché to say? But it’s true! March is always a favorite of mine because it’s my Bday month-Aries in the house! And I’m totally the kind that milks my birthday for all it’s worth even though I’m an adult. I mean, why not? How else am I going to get Sephora money? Anyway, aside from my bday celebration, March was great! We talked about: Violence against women Gave try-out tips for trial teams and moot court Discussed building your executive presence Our fave nail polishes for spring. Here are some interesting articles we found around the internet…
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Culture Conflict: Leaving the Home
A few weeks ago we discussed the dropout rates and the obstacles Latinas face in finishing high school. It is a real problem for our community, but thankfully it is improving because Latinas are starting to attend higher Ed at a rapidly growing pace. This fantastic news! However, even when Latinas are making strides in graduating from high school, they have an obstacle placed before them when it comes to earning their college degree. The obstacle being: Will my family be OK if I attend school away from home? Many young Latinas that have been accepted into four-year Universities feel pressured (consciously or subconsciously) to forgo an education at their preferred school…
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A Rock and Hard Place: Negotiating Salaries as Women
When I was a 2L, my Women’s Law Society brought in a group called WAGE to talk about salary negotiations. It was an eye-opening experience and I’m so grateful that WLS opened my eyes to the wage gap and helped us learn skills to push back and feel confident in negotiating our salaries. When I started my job and received my offer, I knew I didn’t have much wiggle room because our salaries were based on our Union contract, but I still made it a point to see the COO so that he could explain to me the reasoning behind the offer. Mostly, I just wanted to feel comfortable and…
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Violence Against Women, Religion, & Power
As we near International Women’s Day, I wanted to review Jimmy Carter’s latest book on violence and women called A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence and Power. First, regardless of your political opinion regarding the Carter administration, I really recommend reading this book because, if anything, it provides real statistics regarding the state of women in the world and the violence they encounter. That being said, I think everyone should read this because it presents complicated, ancient, and horrifying problems in simple terms with concrete examples of ways to improve said problems. It’s an easy read in that every chapter is concise and you’re not inundated with policy or…
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Executive Presence: Gaining Respect at Work
About a year ago, I started noticing an odd trend at work. People would ask for my advice on how to move ahead on a project; I would give them my advice; and then they would hurry off to get a second opinion, as if they didn’t trust what I had to say. Once I realize that this kept happening, I got a little annoyed. On the one hand, I see the value in getting a second opinion, but if you are constantly re-confirming what I’m telling you then stop wasting my time and just get your first opinion from someone else, you know? Obviously, that is not the right attitude…
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Ending the Latina Dropout Problem
I listen to the amazing Latinos USA podcast every week–it’s my absolute fave NPR program, second only to the late, great It’s All Politics, RIP :(. Last week’s story focused on Latinas and confidence–the first story pinpoints the problem with Latinas, confidence, and education (discussion starts at 3:3o). I think the producer identifies the problem incredibly well when she states that often Latinas struggle to feel empowered because we fear that we’re taking something from someone. This idea that if we feel too confident, too secure in ourselves and our goals, then we’re doing something wrong. I agree with her assessment and think this is a struggle many Latinas face when…