Faegre Baker Daniels sponsors a variety of education and awareness events throughout the year to which all lawyers, consultants and professional staff are invited - including annual MLK events and LGBT Pride programming. Several of our offices also participate in CLE programs including the popular, "Law, Literature & Bias," during which our professionals engage in a facilitated dialogue around short stories that delve into the timeless themes of belong, race relations, difficult choices, political conflict, gender differences and the search for meaning.
LGBT Pride Celebrations
In recognition of Pride Month, Faegre Baker Daniels and FaegreBD Consulting personnel gather across offices for our annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Celebration each June.
In 2015, we viewed clips from the award-winning documentary Brother Outsider, the story of Bayard Rustin, and heard from Bayard's partner Walter Naegle as well as acclaimed documentarian and director Bennett Singer. Bayard Rustin was a disciple of Gandhi, mentor to Martin Luther King, Jr. and chief organizer of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. He dared to live as an openly gay man during the fiercely homophobic 1940s-60s.
In 2014, Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady graciously joined us to address the importance of judicial independence. In 2010, voters ousted three Iowa Supreme Court justices who participated in the unanimous Varnum v. Brien decision legalizing marriage for same-sex couples under the state's constitution. Chief Justice Cady explained how the Iowa Supreme Court changed its approach to public outreach after 2010 and what we all can do to advocate for fair and impartial courts.
In 2013, four FaegreBD attorneys gave an overview of the 2013 Supreme Court decisions related to DOMA and Proposition 8 and a history of the marriage equality movement. Speakers traced progress advancing the rights of same-sex couples from the 1980s-90s Guardianship of Sharon Kowalski ruling, in which Faegre & Benson (now Faegre Baker Daniels) helped a lesbian woman receive guardianship over her injured partner, to the federal tax and health care benefits many same-sex couples received following the 2013 U.S. v. Windsor ruling.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Remembrance Events
Each year, Faegre Baker Daniels and FaegreBD Consulting dedicate the week of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a special time to celebrate and focus on the civil rights movement, equality, and diversity and inclusion.
Our 2016 event featured Doris L. Pryor, the National Security Unit Chief for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana. With a unique vantage point as our communities and country have struggled with racial tensions and civil rights, Pryor shared a powerful message on the new and heightened relevance of Dr. King's vision against a backdrop of 21st century realities. View the presentation.
In 2015, we were joined by Michele Norris, an Emmy Award-winning journalist and the first African-American female host for NPR. Using her memoir, The Grace of Silence, as a catalyst for conversation, Norris discussed her family's racial legacy, how America talks about race in the wake of Barack Obama's presidential election and "The Race Card Project," a tool for encouraging discussions about the history of race relations in the U.S.
In 2014, we welcomed Carlotta Walls LaNier, the youngest member of the Little Rock Nine, the group of students who integrated Central High School in 1957. Confronted by a hostile crowd and escorted by the Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne, the Little Rock Nine shouldered the burden of integrating a then-segregated public school system and tested the strength of the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision. Ms. LaNier shared her inspiring story and spoke about the importance of equal education and fostering an inclusive environment.
In 2013, we were pleased to host a live conversation with the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. Rev. Jackson shared memories of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s leadership, reinforced the ideals Dr. King advocated and encouraged personnel to become involved in the cause of equality. We also shared videos firmwide each day of the week emphasizing leadership in diversity and inclusion by our professionals.
A montage of our 2013 MLK week videos and Rev. Jackson's interview is provided below.