Being a public defender – attorney, investigator, mitigation specialist, administrative staff, social worker, etc. - is hard under any circumstances. This past year has been especially difficult. The pandemic has only intensified the nation’s neglect of its most marginalized communities. It has shined a bright light on the reality that many lives do not matter. Nowhere is America’s indifference towards the humanity of society’s most vulnerable members more starkly reflected that in the criminal legal system. You bear witness to this every day. You fight to demand dignity in systems that are cruel and uncaring. In the midst of such injustice, we can feel like we are not making a difference. Our impact can be hard to feel when we are in the midst of the struggle. However, when we step back and observe the power of our collective effort, we can see that we are the only conscience the system has. Every day you help keep the system from becoming even more cruel; more uncaring; more punitive. You help inch us towards a better day. Without you the system would have no moral compass. In this session we will step back, consider our collective impact, and appreciate one another.
Jonathan Rapping is the author of Gideon’s Promise: A Public Defender Movement to Transform Criminal Justice, which centers public defenders in the broader struggle for justice. Rapping has long argued that transforming justice in America requires culture change and that public defenders are critical to that effort.Rapping is a nationally renowned criminal justice innovator who is the... Read More →
