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It is always a great sign when we sit to write our end of the year update at the Mass Defense Committee and cannot keep straight all the incredible things the MDC has done over the year. Activists and organizers around Massachusetts have been involved in bold and energetic actions, fighting against oppression, and for the liberation of of all … Read more>>

Being in the South for this year’s #Law4thePeople Convention was a fitting reflection point on how the NLG’s involvement in the Civil Rights Movement of the 60s still resonates with members and supporters alike.  However, it was clear from the convention’s beginning that the NLG as a national force and its regional offices are in a different landscape from that … Read more>>

Earlier this month, the National Lawyers Guild held the #Law4ThePeople Convention in Durham, North Carolina. This blog post is the first in regards to the convention, but will be followed with more event specific commentary. Until then, we wanted to give a brief look at some of the people and sights. Below is a gallery of selected photographs from NLG … Read more>>

NLG Legal Observers in action at “Straight Pride” Parade Protest

When “Straight Pride Is Hate Pride” reached out to the National Lawyers Guild (NLG), the NLG responded. This was one of the groups organizing protests of the so-called “Straight Pride” parade in Boston Saturday, August 31, organized by individuals with ties to white supremacist groups.

NLG legal observers are present … Read more>>

Under Arrest for Non-Violent Protest against ICE

On Thursday, after a march of several hundred mostly young Jewish activists from the Holocaust Memorial across the Longfellow Bridge, twelve of the demonstrators  were arrested for siting in the lobby of Amazon’s Cambridge Headquarters protesting Amazon’s complicity with ICE  for developing facial recognition software and other cloud based technology in aid of … Read more>>

SJC Justice rules in favor of Suffolk District Attorney Rollins in feud with Boston Municipal Court Judge

As reported by the Boston Globe, on Monday, September 9, 2019, a Supreme Judicial Court justice handed Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins a major victory, ruling that Boston Municipal Court Judge Richard Sinnott III had, “no authority,” to force Rollins to push ahead … Read more>>

Fighting for Free Speech in Critique: In Defense of Minority Union Workers

A local union consisting mostly of racial minorities was recommended for dissolution and transfer of its members into two other local unions because its officers (racial minorities) and members criticized the mostly white staff and officers of the intermediate labor organization to which the local belonged (AFSCME Joint … Read more>>

The Fight Against Climate Change: In Defense of “Extinction Rebellion”

On July 31st, Jeff Feuer of the Mass Defense Committee appeared in the central Boston Municipal Court to represent 10 members of the climate change activist group, Extinction Rebellion.  The activists were facing clerk-magistrate “show cause” hearings on charges of trespass and failure to disperse from a so-called “riot” stemming … Read more>>

Flowers v. All White Juries

Madison Levin

When selecting a jury, the attorneys for both sides have the opportunity to peremptorily challenge prospective jurors, striking them from the jury without needing to provide an explanation. These challenges, however, are not without limits. In 1986, in the seminal case Batson v. Kentucky, the Supreme Court ruled that a State may … Read more>>

The Citizenship Question

by Madison Levin

The Enumeration Clause of the Constitution specifies that the population be calculated by “adding to the whole Number of free Persons… three-fifths of all other Persons.” In light of the current census controversy, it is significant that racism was written into the United States Constitution and remains entrenched our democracy and our legal … Read more>>

On Saturday, July 13th, NLG-Mass Chapter members gathered at the Old Oak Dojo in Jamaica Plain to discuss the present state and future trajectory of the Chapter. In addition to Guild members, several community organizers also came and presented their goals and hopes in continuing to work with the Guild. Those included: Kayla Degala Paraiso of Matahari… Read more>>

For 50 years (since its re-establishment in 1969), the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild has worked tirelessly in pursuit of justice for the people. With so many hurdles overcome and still many ahead, we thought it would be nice to take a look back at the history which has helped shape who we are today. 

The following photographs … Read more>>

On Friday, May 17th, the NLG-Mass Chapter came together to honor long-time member, Lynn Weissberg, and to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Chapter.  Before the ceremony was officially underway, the dining hall was bustling with the sounds of music from the ‘60s and ‘70s (the time when the Chapter was re-created), conversations and the energy of our members. The … Read more>>

NLG-MASS CHAPTER CONDEMNS THE POLITICALLY-MOTIVATED FEDERAL PROSECUTION OF JUDGE SHELLEY RICHMOND JOSEPH

The Massachusetts Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild condemns the politically-motivated federal prosecution of Judge Shelley Richmond Joseph, a respected judge sitting in the district court division of the Massachusetts Trial Court, and trial court officer Wesley MacGregor.  The two have been indicted on charges of obstruction of justice … Read more>>