ST. THOMAS UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES INITIATIVE TO TRAIN BLACK LAWYERS HONORING BEN CRUMP
On Thursday, St. Thomas University College of Law honored renowned civil rights attorney Ben Crump with the announcement of an initiative to train Black lawyers to lead the fight for justice.
The Truist Financial Corporation has funded the Benjamin L. Crump Centre for Social Justice at the St. Thomas University College of Law with a $1 million grant through its charitable fund. This fund will provide innovative training programs for the upcoming Black lawyers.
Another big announcement made on the same day is the start of a $35 million campaign by the College of Law. The funds gathered through this campaign will support the developmental efforts made for law students from traditionally marginalized communities. This will create a great impact on the diversification of the legal profession.
According to St. Thomas University College of Law, Black students are the least in number among the law students in all law schools. The center currently supports new lawyers to establish themselves in this field through an incubator program. It also provides need-based scholarships for law students.
Mr. Ben Crump is renowned for being a leader in civil rights litigation. He represents the families of Trayvon Martin, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor, testifying in the United States Congress and at the United Nations. He also received accolades on the global stage from Times magazine. His career history is full of efforts to defend the rights of Black people and other minorities. He has consistently advocated for equal access to justice for every American irrespective of class, race, color, or economic status.
He said,
“I believe America can be a country that lives up to its ideals if we work for it. Lawyers can be the social engineers using the tools found in the constitution to expose the nature and depth of injustices — and to eliminate these injustices through education and advocacy. This center will serve as a pipeline for historically marginalized students to get their law degrees and give back to society, following the legacy of my personal hero, Thurgood Marshall.”
The President of St. Thomas University College of Law, Mr. David A. Armstrong, J.D., said,
“St. Thomas University and its College of Law are honored to house the Benjamin L. Crump Center for Social Justice on our campus. The Center will create opportunities for students who might have felt the legal profession was beyond their reach. We will all benefit from the impact they will have.”
