Podcasts about advocacy counsel

Explore how Lambda Legal is fighting for the civil rights of LGBTQ+ people here: https://lambdalegal.org/ Get the latest updates on LGBTQ+ legal battles, victories, and insights from the Lambda Legal Blog: Blog Posts Archive - Lambda Legal Learn more about the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association here: The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association | Attorneys & Lawyers Join thousands of legal professionals, students, and advocates at the 2025 Lavender Law Conference: The 2025 Lavender Law® Conference and Career Fair Follow the legal response to anti-LGBTQ+ executive orders with the LGBTQ+ Bar's EO Litigation Tracker: Trump Anti-LGBTQ+ Executive Order Litigation Tracker - The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association Read the LGBTQ+ Bar's Bench Guide here: LGBTQ+ Inclusion From the Bench: A Best Practices Guide for Judges - The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association Bios: Whit Washington, Esq. (They/Them) is the Eileen A. Ryan Senior Attorney for the Nonbinary and Transgender Rights Project at Lambda Legal. Prior to joining Lambda Legal, Whit advocated on behalf of incarcerated people in the United States with a particular focus on the needs of incarcerated trans people. Whit was able to prioritize the rights of transgender incarcerated people through their Equal Justice Works Fellowship, their time with the Prison and Reentry Legal Services at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, and as a staff attorney for the Miss Major and Alexander Lee TGIJP Black Trans Cultural Center. Since joining Lambda Legal in December 2024, Whit has co-authored two amicus briefs and has been active in Lambda Legal's state policy work. Whit's achievements have earned them recognition from the DC Mayor's Office of LGBTQ Affairs, which honored them with the "40 Under 40: Queer Women of Washington" award in 2019; and the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, which honored them as the 40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40 in 2025. Whit's work has been featured in the National LGBTQ Bar Association newsletter and Washington Lawyer Magazine, and their writing can be found on the Lambda Legal blog. In addition to their legal work, Whit is a board member of the National Trans Bar Association.Whit holds a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies from the Johnston Center for Integrated Studies at the University of Redlands, a Juris Doctor from the American University Washington College of Law, and a Master of Arts in International Affairs from the American University School of International Service. Their commitment to justice and equity continues to guide their impactful legal career at Lambda Legal. Mari Nemec (she/her) serves as Advocacy Counsel at the National LGBTQ+ Bar (LGBTQ+ Bar), where she monitors and responds to policy and judicial issues impacting the LGBTQ+ legal community and facilitates many of the Bar's programmatic initiatives, including the LGBTQ+ Bar's Law Student Congress and the Judicial Nominations and Executive Appointments Committee. As Advocacy Counsel, she works to make the legal profession and our legal systems more accessible and equitable for the LGBTQ+ community in all of its diversity.Mari most recently joined the LGBTQ+ Bar in the summer of 2023, but her history with the organization goes back nearly a decade. She first joined the staff in the summer of 2017 as an intern, before serving as Manager of Public Affairs. In 2019, she left the LGBTQ+ Bar to attend law school, but remained involved in the organization's work by serving in Law Student Congress first as Secretary and then for two years as Co-Chair. While in law school, she also clerked in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, worked at Step Up to Justice, a local legal-aid organization in Tucson, Arizona, and served as a Congressional Intern to Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick. After graduating in 2022, Mari served as a Dorot Fellow at Alliance for Justice, preparing reports on federal judicial nominees and monitoring the federal courts.Mari received her J.D. from the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law and her B.A. from the College of William and Mary. In her free time, Mari enjoys reading, hiking, trying new foods, and joyfully following the whims of her beloved blue heeler, Miss Matilda Fig. Laura J. Maechtlen is a member of Seyfarth Shaw's 7-member Executive Committee and the National Chair of the Labor and Employment Department.  She also led the Firm's global belonging and inclusion work for more than a decade.  Her practice is focused on counseling related to people analytics and EEO compliance, as well as employment litigation and includes the defense of class, collective and multi-plaintiff actions.  Laura is a national leader on issues related to law firm management and inclusion in the legal industry, and has held a variety of leadership positions through which she has advocated for systemic improvement in the legal industry.  She currently serves on the Board of the National Association for Women Lawyers, the Advisory Council for the Law Firm Anti-Racism Alliance, and the Board of the Center for Workplace Law.  She is a previous Latina Commissioner for the Hispanic National Bar Association, past President of the National LGBT Bar Association and the California Minority Counsel Program, and served as a Fellow for the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD), among service to other organizations.Laura speaks and publishes regularly on a variety of employment law and litigation topics, and issues regarding innovation, management and inclusion in the legal profession, and has been quoted on those topics by Harvard Business Review, San Francisco Chronicle, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Reuters, Vogue, The Daily Journal, Employment Law 360, and many others.     The views and opinions expressed in this episode of the NAWL Podcast may or may not reflect those of NAWL, the hosts, or participants. Unless otherwise indicated, the hosts and participants are speaking for themselves personally, and not for any firm, employer, or any other organization. This podcast is for educational purposes only, and does not constitute and should not be considered legal advice. 

The current state of LGBTQ+ rights and politics reflects both significant progress and mounting challenges, with ongoing debates over transgender rights, workplace protections, and marriage equality. Activism, rooted in the community's historic struggle for equality, continues to drive the Pride movement's call for visibility, justice, and protection against rising anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and rhetoric.In this episode, Mari Nemec, Advocacy Counsel for the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, joins us to discuss the evolving fight for LGBTQ+ rights, the vital role of legal advocacy in countering political threats, and how Pride remains a powerful reminder that activism, visibility, and community are essential to securing lasting equality.Related Episodes:Listen to Episode 06. Gay Panic DefenseListen to Episode 20. Don't Say GayListen to Episode 46. Obergefell v. Hodges and the Ongoing Fight for Marriage EqualityListen to Episode 67. 303 Creative LLC v. ElenisAdditional Resources:The LGBTQ+ Panic Defense: A Threat to Our Safety and EqualityThe Ripple Effects of the "Don't Say Gay" Bill on LGBTQ+ CommunitiesThe Fight for Marriage Equality Isn't Over: Obergefell & BeyondHow 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis Threatens LGBTQ+ Freedoms and Civil RightsLearn More About the National LGBTQ+ Bar AssociationFollow the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association on InstagramConnect with the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association on LinkedInFollow the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association on FacebookSubscribe to the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association on YouTubeFollow the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association on TwitterSupport the showGet Your Merch

Thanks for listening!!!! Here's what's happening in Episode 90: We chat with Elizabeth Brandler, Legal Advocacy Senior Council with the ASPCA. Find out what programs the ASPCA is involved with and how their legal advocacy operates. ASPCA If you have something you'd like us to discuss and want to send it over anonymously? We have a spot for that! ***Get your Humane Roundup Merch here!!*** Text or Leave Us a message at 916-241-3464 or email us @ humaneroundup@gmail.com Find us online @https://humaneroundup.com -Podcast (@humaneroundup Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram) -Your Host Daniel Ettinger (@animalprotectionofficerdaniel Facebook and @animalprotection_officerdaniel Instagram) -Your Co Ashley Bishop (@H.O. Bishop Facebook and H.O Bishop Instagram) --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/humaneroundup/message

Manar Waheed, Senior Legislative and Advocacy Counsel at the ACLU, joins us to discuss how a career first focused on domestic violence work led to a role at the White House working on immigration issues and then the ACLU. She also explains why quitting a job without another lined up was the best career decision she ever made.

Scott talks to Heather Brandon-Smith of the Friends Committee on National Legislation about the effort to repeal the 2002 Iraq Authorization for Use of Military Force. Although the 2002 AUMF has been less widely cited as grounds for America's ever-expanding wars in the Middle East than the 2001 version (which authorized the war in Afghanistan), it has been used to justify the war against ISIS in Iraq and the Trump administration's assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, among other operations. Brandon-Smith is hopeful that the Biden administration is serious about rolling back some aspects of the war on terrorism, and she and her colleagues at FCNL are working to push the anti-war momentum in the right direction. Discussed on the show: "The 2002 Iraq AUMF: What It Is and Why Congress Should Repeal It" (Friends Committee On National Legislation) "With 20th Anniversary of 9/11 Nearing, Biden Team Debates How to End War on Terror" (Foreign Policy) Heather Brandon-Smith is Legislative Director for Militarism and Human Rights at the Friends Committee on National Legislation. Prior to joining FCNL, Heather served as the Advocacy Counsel for National Security at Human Rights First. Follow her on Twitter @HBrandonSmith. This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods' Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Photo IQ; Green Mill Supercritical; Zippix Toothpicks; and Listen and Think Audio. Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gthJ7xwtjdo

Scott talks to Heather Brandon-Smith of the Friends Committee on National Legislation about the effort to repeal the 2002 Iraq Authorization for Use of Military Force. Although the 2002 AUMF has been less widely cited as grounds for America's ever-expanding wars in the Middle East than the 2001 version (which authorized the war in Afghanistan), it has been used to justify the war against ISIS in Iraq and the Trump administration's assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, among other operations. Brandon-Smith is hopeful that the Biden administration is serious about rolling back some aspects of the war on terrorism, and she and her colleagues at FCNL are working to push the anti-war momentum in the right direction. Discussed on the show: "The 2002 Iraq AUMF: What It Is and Why Congress Should Repeal It" (Friends Committee On National Legislation) "With 20th Anniversary of 9/11 Nearing, Biden Team Debates How to End War on Terror" (Foreign Policy) Heather Brandon-Smith is Legislative Director for Militarism and Human Rights at the Friends Committee on National Legislation. Prior to joining FCNL, Heather served as the Advocacy Counsel for National Security at Human Rights First. Follow her on Twitter @HBrandonSmith. This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods' Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Photo IQ; Green Mill Supercritical; Zippix Toothpicks; and Listen and Think Audio. Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gthJ7xwtjdo

Ismail Ali is Policy & Advocacy Counsel for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, otherwise known as MAPS. His job is advocating to eliminate barriers to psychedelic therapy and research by developing and implementing legal and policy strategy. In this interview, Ismail discusses the history of the war on drugs, the intrinsic differences between drug decriminalization and legalization, how MAPS has been able to achieve specific goals with the FDA under the Trump administration, Joe Biden’s "tough-on-crime-Democratic-Party" drug policy history, with respect to the R.A.V.E. act and the 1994 Crime Bill, how medical insurance will play in a landscape where psychedelics may become legalized or medicalized, how MAPS has become a thought leader with regards to social justice within the field of psychedelics, and whether Ismail believes psychedelics can bestow a knowledge of unity, oneness, and connectedness that can affect views and policy on racism and environmentalism.

Ben Weiner is the founder, president and CEO of Gold Mountain Coffee Growers, LLC, a direct trade social enterprise that connects coffee farmers in Nicaragua with roasters around the world. When he founded the company in 2007, Ben’s goal was to cut out the middleman thus increasing livelihoods for the farmers. He has also worked as an Advocacy Counsel for Human Rights First, as a Foreign Policy Legislative Assistant for Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and a Legal Consultant for the MIRA. The post 567: What It’s Like to Found a Specialty Coffee Farming Group With Ben Weiner, Gold Mountain Coffee Growers [Main T4C Episode] appeared first on Time4Coffee.

In this third episode of the Kentucky Environmental Leadership Institute, we continue our first season focus of providing information for those attorneys and soon-to-be-attorneys who want to practice environmental law. We interview Ben Carter, Senior Litigation & Advocacy Counsel at the Kentucky Equal Justice Center (KEJC) in Kentucky. Before coming to the KEJC, Ben worked in Legal Aid and private practice. With a wealth of experience in consumer law, Ben offers a unique perspective on what it is like to work with clients and help them pursue justice. Listen now to learn more about how Ben came to find himself as an attorney in the nonprofit sector, how taking the time to pursue your interests can broaden your horizons, and how a pandemic doesn't have to stop us from pursuing a fair and just Kentucky. MuckRock Community.Lawyer Together Lawyers Can "So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love" by Cal Newport "A is for Activist" by Innosanto Nagara "Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City" by Matthew Desmond "The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap" by Mehrsa Baradaran Kentucky Equal Justice Center Kentucky Resources Council

In 2011, Ben Carter, who is currently Senior Litigation and Advocacy Counsel at the Kentucky Equal Justice Center, wrote an imaginary commencement address. It was the kind of commencement address that graduating law students will never hear, but the kind of commencement address they need to hear. You can read the text of the original address here. In light of the Coronavirus pandemic, he recorded an audio version of the address, which is as relevant and timely as ever. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this episode, Ben Carter, Senior Litigation and Advocacy Counsel at the Kentucky Equal Justice Center, discusses his work litigating the right to healthcare, voting, and housing. Among other things, he discusses the history and purpose of the KEJC and some of its current litigation projects. He also reflects on how the pandemic will affect low-income people in Kentucky. You can listen to Carter's imaginary law school commencement address here. Carter is on Twitter at @notbencarter.This episode was hosted by Brian L. Frye, Spears-Gilbert Associate Professor of Law at the University of Kentucky College of Law. Frye is on Twitter at @brianlfrye. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ismail Ali, J.D. is Policy & Advocacy Counsel for MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies. He was also Chair and on the Board of Directors for Students for Sensible Drug Policy. https://maps.org/ https://ssdp.org/ Twitter ► https://twitter.com/sage_izzy ******* Simulation is rebirthing the public intellectual by hosting the greatest multidisciplinary minds of our time. Build the future. Architect the frameworks and resource flows to maximize human potential. http://simulationseries.com ******* SUBSCRIBE TO SIMULATION ► YOUTUBE: http://bit.ly/SimYoTu ITUNES: http://bit.ly/SimulationiTunes INSTAGRAM: http://bit.ly/SimulationIG TWITTER: http://bit.ly/SimulationTwitter ******* FACEBOOK: http://bit.ly/SimulationFB SOUNDCLOUD: http://bit.ly/SimulationSC LINKEDIN: http://bit.ly/SimulationLinkedIn PATREON: http://bit.ly/SimulationPatreon CRYPTO: http://bit.ly/SimCrypto ******* NUANCE-DRIVEN DISCOURSE ► http://bit.ly/SimulationTG WATCH ALLEN'S TEDx TALK ► http://bit.ly/AllenTEDx FOLLOW ALLEN ► INSTAGRAM: http://bit.ly/AllenIG TWITTER: http://bit.ly/AllenT ******* LIST OF THOUGHT-PROVOKING QUESTIONS ► http://simulationseries.com/the-list GET IN TOUCH ► simulationseries@gmail.com

Ismail is on the Policy and Advocacy Counsel at MAPS. We discuss drug use, the criminal justice system, contradictory barriers around drug policy, the importance of psychedelic education and much more (maps.org)!

Katie Shepherd is the National Advocacy Counsel for the Immigration Justice Campaign at the American Immigration Council, where she focuses on legal advocacy and policy related to the asylum-seeking women and children detained in family detention centers around the country. Before joining the Council in August 2016, Katie was the Managing Attorney of the CARA Pro Bono Project in Dilley, Texas, where she managed a team of lawyers, advocates, and volunteers which provides legal services to asylum-seeking women and children detained in Dilley, Texas. 

MANAR WAHEED has spent her adult life fighting for the most vulnerable among us – survivors of violence, immigrants, Muslims, undocumented Americans, and now she’s fighting for ALL of us. As Legislative & Advocacy Counsel of ACLU National, Manar is literally on the front lines of challenging Donald Trump’s ongoing destruction of our federal government,...

Chase Thomas, Policy and Advocacy Counsel for the Progressive watchdog group Alliance for a Better Utah tells us about his organization's success in pushing to balance Utah politics and hold our elected officials accountable to the people, and about what it's like to come out as gay while a law student at BYU (not as bad as you'd probably think!). In our panel discussion, we consider whether Orrin Hatch can really care about "the poor people" and still support the GOP tax plan, as he claims. We also discuss the progress and potential pitfalls of the #metoo movement. Plus: Donald Trump is coming to Salt Lake City. Wendover's calling!

Join me as I talk to our journalist and activist experts who have now confirmed that 100 gay men have been removed to a camp where they are tortured to reveal the names of more LGBT people, and 5 are confirmed dead. How did this come about, and what can we do to stop this atrocity? Listen and find out. My guests include: Brody Levesque:  Chief Political Correspondent for The New Civil Rights Movement. A longtime, seasoned journalist and reporter since 1980, working on politics, public policy, and international issues, he most recently served as the Washington D. C. bureau chief for LGBTQ Nation magazine. Slava Bortnik, a Belarusian American human rights defender and LGBT activist. He is the country specialist for Belarus and the Chair of the Eurasia Coordination Group at Amnesty International USA. He also serves in numerous leadership positions within Belarus Diaspora. Before moving to the US, Slava was a president of Amnesty International Belarus and one of the founding leaders of Belarusian LGBT movement. Shawn Gaylord is Advocacy Counsel for Human Rights First, where he leads the organization's LGBT Campaign.   Human Rights First's focuses on engaging U.S. leadership to take appropriate action to promote human rights, including the rights of LGBT people, across the globe.  Prior to coming to Human Rights First, Shawn spent nine years working for GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network including as the organization's Director of Public Policy.       

Join me as I talk to our journalist and activist experts who have now confirmed that 100 gay men have been removed to a camp where they are tortured to reveal the names of more LGBT people, and 5 are confirmed dead. How did this come about, and what can we do to stop this atrocity? Listen and find out. My guests include: Brody Levesque:  Chief Political Correspondent for The New Civil Rights Movement. A longtime, seasoned journalist and reporter since 1980, working on politics, public policy, and international issues, he most recently served as the Washington D. C. bureau chief for LGBTQ Nation magazine. Slava Bortnik, a Belarusian American human rights defender and LGBT activist. He is the country specialist for Belarus and the Chair of the Eurasia Coordination Group at Amnesty International USA. He also serves in numerous leadership positions within Belarus Diaspora. Before moving to the US, Slava was a president of Amnesty International Belarus and one of the founding leaders of Belarusian LGBT movement. Shawn Gaylord is Advocacy Counsel for Human Rights First, where he leads the organization’s LGBT Campaign.   Human Rights First’s focuses on engaging U.S. leadership to take appropriate action to promote human rights, including the rights of LGBT people, across the globe.  Prior to coming to Human Rights First, Shawn spent nine years working for GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network including as the organization’s Director of Public Policy.