By Shana-Tara O’Toole | Due Process Institute | President
So… I like poetry. Some of you know that I came to the legal profession only after first chasing the dream dabbling at being “a writer.” While I never managed to write a poem I’d want any living person to read, one of my life’s highlights was being enrolled in writing workshops with Mary Oliver during the years she served as a writer-in-residence at Sweet Briar College.
You might not know Mary Oliver. She was as unassuming as the insects and other humble natural objects that featured in her work. But her deceptively simple observations could always illuminate my most complicated concerns: the longing I feel, the pain I hide from, the perennial philosophical quandaries of a human’s existence among 7+ billion other humans. But she wasn’t just my personal poet laureate; she was awarded a National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize and was widely viewed as a bit of a miracle. She died earlier this year and, while her poems have been important to me at many points in my life, her words have welled up in my memory much more frequently since her passing in January.
So it was no surprise to me that, as I sat down to write a blog post for Thanksgiving, a phrase from one of her poems came to mind. I was struggling to try to capture how profoundly grateful I am for the presence of so many good people and organizations who work with us to try to repair the criminal legal system. The amount of work there is to do is crushing. The obstacles against us are often relentless and unmoving. If it weren’t for the collaboration of diligent like-minded souls, the mission would feel insurmountable. But how do I say all that in a meaningful way? I struggled with trying to describe the collective value of their work and of their partnerships with us. I wondered how to eloquently capture a “thank you” to our many allies for their collaborations without seeming like either a sycophant or a Hallmark card. And then I heard it: I don’t know exactly what a prayer is. I do know how to pay attention….
“I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?”
(Looking for a profound Thanksgiving moment? Hear Mary Oliver herself read this poem: The Summer Day)
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry most days when I’m working with other criminal justice reform advocates on whatever issue is on our plates that day. I don’t know what prayer to give or what words to write to honor their work, but I do know how to pay attention. Therefore, with this post, I honor the hard-working staff at the following organizations (in no particular order) for joining Due Process Institute advocacy letters, amicus briefs, or lobbying campaigns: I’ve paid attention to your work.
Texas Public Policy Foundation and Right on Crime
Federal Public and Community Defenders
Heritage Action and Heritage Foundation
Justice Action Network and Coalition for Public Safety
National Legal Aid and Defender Association
The Project on Government Oversight
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
Federal Bar Association Civil Rights Section
Law Enforcement Action Partnership
(Oh, no! I’ve just realized that I have at least 50 more organizations to honor. So…if I keep adding the names of those who have played a partnership role in any of our shared advocacy or litigation efforts this year, you’ll never get to the end of this blog and back to the kitchen in time to grab your second third piece of pie. So, Friends–please know that the Due Process Institute is deeply grateful to the efforts of all #CriminalJusticeWarriors—whether you’re on this list or not, you are in our thoughts.)
Thankfully, the list of specific individuals to thank for supporting our amicus efforts is shorter. Did you know that the term “amicus” is Latin for “friend”? In the spirit of giving thanks, we acknowledge those lawyers (and their supporting law firms) who have helped us write and file our amicus briefs. These incredibly skilled lawyers provide their expertise and valuable time (mostly pro bono) to help us illuminate the most important due process issues facing courts today.
THANK YOU TO:
Stephen A. Miller, Barry Boss, + Kara L. Kapp of Cozen O’Connor for their work on Turner v. US
John Cline of the Law Office of John D. Cline for his work on Beltran Leyva v. US, Aposhian v. Barr, + Guedes v. BATFE
Tim O’Toole + Sarah Dowd [current judicial clerk] of Miller & Chevalier LLP for their work on Cabrera-Rangel v. US
David T. Goldberg of Donahue, Goldberg, Weaver & Littleton LLP for his work on US v. Haymond
Cynthia Orr of Goldstein, Goldstein, Hilley, & Orr for her work on Serrano v. USCBP
Erin E. Murphy + Alyssa Kalisky of Kirkland & Ellis LLP for their work on Sanchez v. US
Jonathan Marcus + Michael McIntosh of the DC office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP for their work on US v. Gozes-Wagner
Donnie Murrell of L.D. Murrell, P.A. for his work on Florida v. Kraft.
Jessie Ring Amunson + her team at Jenner & Block LLP for their work on Timbs v. Indiana + Mitchell v. Wisconsin.
Catherine Stetson + her team at Hogan Lovells US LLP for their work on Baxter v. Bracey, I.B. v. Woodard + Petitioner v. Milling.
David Weiner+ his team at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP for their work on Hopkins v. Hosemann.
Martin Bloor + others at Cozen O’Connor for their work on Hillman v. Nueces County
And finally, a #GratitudePost wouldn’t be complete without thanking our incredible Board Members or our talented bipartisan staff or our office dogs [the eldest of whom is pictured above] who have supported the Due Process Institute’s work this year. But I do a pretty good job of thanking them on a regular basis–not just once a year. So instead of naming them, I will just wish each of them a peaceful Thanksgiving with their loved ones.
Our work with these talented individuals and organizations from all across the political and ideological spectrum is undeniable proof that #BipartisanWorks. We are all made better for working with each other rather than against each other, despite our many differences. Thank you. And here’s looking forward to all the work together to come!