Human Rights Advocacy Project

Students in the Human Rights Advocacy Project work directly with human rights non-governmental organizations on ongoing cases and projects. Examples of the projects include drafting a memorandum of law in opposition to a motion to dismiss in a case involving trafficking of child slaves; interviewing witnesses, conducting legal research, and drafting a petition to the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights on the right to safe drinking water; drafting a memorandum of law to the US Senate on a pending international treaty; writing a policy impact paper on torture in a foreign country; and petitioning the United Nations Special Rapporteur regarding the death penalty in Louisiana. In the process, students will learn the fundamental principles of international human rights law and develop critical lawyering and advocacy skills such as legal research and fact-finding methodologies; interviewing skills; legal drafting; legislative and policy analysis; project organization and time management; oral and written advocacy; collaborative project work; and professionalism. Students completing the course earn three experiential learning credits each semester, one skills credit, and satisfy the Law and Poverty Requirement.