ONES TO WATCH only tackling individual cases for low-income populations, but also in working towards solving some of the systemic issues in our region involving access to justice for poor and marginalized communities and the negative and racially disparate effects some of our region’s money-hungry municipal courts have on our poorest populations. I was involved with the creation of the BAMSL group through my work with the Ferguson Commission.
Why is it important to you?
MARK TIMMERMAN Class of 2017 Hometown: West Lafayette, Indiana Undergrad: Illinois Wesleyan University; Religion, Philosophy and Music Performance
What extracurricular activities are you involved in? I am involved with activist groups that do grassroots work in and around Ferguson related to issues of poverty, access to justice, implementation of the consent decree between Ferguson and the Department of Justice, municipal courts reform and voting participation. In April I gave testimony in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri regarding the potential effectiveness of the Consent Decree for Ferguson residents. Along with several other students, and with the help of a few SLU LAW professors, I participated in an educational seminar at a lowincome community center this past semester on legal topics such as navigating the municipal courts, applying for unemployment benefits, and knowing what constitutional rights a person has during encounters with the police. There was a great turn out for the event, and we look forward to getting more students involved in these student-led community outreach efforts. This year the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis formed a task force dedicated to pro bono legal work efforts in the region. I was asked to provide recommendations to the group regarding how pro bono efforts could be better organized and effective in not
There are people my age all around the world who work harder, are smarter, are more gifted, are more generous, loving and kind than I am, and yet they live impoverished and tremendously unfair and difficult lives. I don’t know why I have been allowed to lead such a privileged life while others suffer, and I also don’t know why I have had tremendous access to opportunities while so many do not. But what I do know is I can choose to use my voice and some of my time and energy to try and help others who have it harder than I do, and that is important to me because I would want someone to advocate for me if I were the one who was without a voice in this world.
How has your time at SLU LAW helped shape your focus to give back to the community? I have exploding gratefulness for SLU LAW because of the tremendous legal education that it provides and for the opportunities I’ve been able to take advantage of through this school. The main reason for that gratefulness is because of the amazing people, including many SLU alumni, I have been able to connect with who so beautifully choose to use their power and influence in society to help those in need. Those people have taught me what it looks like to be a legal professional who is involved in the struggles of the community.
How do you envision your law degree and your role as a lawyer helping you continue your communityfocused passions? I see a law degree and the label of “lawyer” as tools of privilege and power that I can harness and use to further the work of marginalized communities as they work to become truly liberated and equal in the eyes of the law and society.
What is your "big idea"? If you could solve one problem, what would it be? It would be fantastic if humanity, all of us, could fully and completely (1) understand the complex ways in which we have created societies and communities that benefit some while marginalizing others and (2) commit to creating new societies and communities together where every person is treated equitably and has the opportunity to thrive.
For the first time, the opportunity to collaborate on an article in Saint Louis Brief was auctioned off at this year’s PILG Auction. Many thanks to Professor Sue McGraugh for her generous bid and help in curating this article. In keeping with the theme of the issue, it was her wish to highlight student-led initiatives that are making an impact in the community.
I CAN CHOOSE TO USE MY VOICE AND SOME OF MY TIME AND ENERGY TO TRY AND HELP OTHERS WHO HAVE IT HARDER THAN I DO...
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