Big Law Embraces Juneteenth with Programs, Days Off for Workers
“Big Law is stepping up efforts to recognize Juneteenth, which falls on Saturday, after last year’s protests and firms own diversity shortcomings put a spotlight on racial inequities in the U.S. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld is hosting a Pulitzer Prize-winning author Friday for a talk, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius is helping to distribute food to the needy and Squire Patton Boggs is hosting what it describes as candid exchanges on race in offices globally. Those are just some of the activities firms have planned,” reports Elizabeth Olson in Bloomberg Law.
“Juneteenth, which commemorates the effective end of slavery in the U.S., is getting particular interest from firms after the killing of George Floyd while in police custody last year spurred protests throughout the U.S. Law firms stepped up their activism in response, providing legal help and donating to equal justice projects. There was a moral reckoning last year, said Tony Pierce, the partner in charge of Akin Gump’s Washington office. We are in a service business where our job is to look forward and figure things out.”
