Deb Wilmer & Eden Williams, Co-Chairs of NLG-Mass

Right now, the need for the Guild is greater than ever.  Trump won, the right-wing has dominance in both houses of Congress and, of course, the Supreme Court.  Although media pundits claim the working class has gone to the right, this is not so.  Progressive ballot measures passed easily in several “red” states.  Abortion rights were passed in several states that went for Trump, and won a majority in Florida, missing their arbitrary requirement of 60 percent of the vote to pass.

Ruben Gallego, U.S. representative for Arizona’s 3rd congressional district since 2015, beat out a Trumper to be the first Latino senator from that state. There will be two African American women, Delaware’s Lisa Blunt Rochester and Maryland’s Angela Alsobrooks, serving at the same time in the Senate for the first time in the history of this country.  Private school vouchers were rejected, the minimum wage was raised, and employers will be required to provide paid sick leave in other “red” states.

So take heart, the majority of the people are with us, even if they don’t know it. And when people hit the streets, in the fight against the Republicans’ regressive policies, the NLG needs to be prepared and ready to be there, like it has been seen the 1960s when the Mass Defense Committee was formed.  The need will be greater than ever, as Trump has no qualms about using the military to shoot at protestors.  All the adults in the room from the first Trump administration are gone, and the stakes couldn’t be higher.  We need as many NLG members out there as possible –  lawyers, legal workers, law students, Legal Observers –  to  advise, represent, litigate, document and fight police brutality, and to train activists.  

Our Mass Defense Committee will need more attorneys for arraignments and representation at trials, as more and more repressive laws are passed to silence protestors.  Our Litigation Committee will need you to conduct impact litigation so unchecked power is checked.  Our Independent Organizing Network will need you to fight any attempt to crash the working class.  We are also creating a new Resistance Committee to be pro-active and start preparing for anticipated assaults on our liberties and lives.

More than ever, we need you to get involved with the Mass Chapter of the Guild in any and every way possible.  Get trained as a Legal Observer, or get trained to train new Legal Observers.  Volunteer for any work the Chapter will do.  It’s time to act before it’s too late!