Legal Divas of Color: Cheryl Mills

On February 14, 2016 By Melba V. PearsonIn Good Vibes, Legal News1 Comment

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The second Legal Diva of Color to be featured in this month’s series is Cheryl Mills. Ms. Mills set the world on fire with her impassioned defense of then President Bill Clinton during his impeachment hearings in 1999. In doing so, she became the first African American to address the Senate at such a hearing.

Cheryl Mills was born to a military family. Her father was a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army. As a result, she moved quite a bit as a child. She received her Bachelors at the University of Virginia, graduating as part of Phi Beta Kappa (exclusively for those who have high grades and good moral standing). Ms. Mills went on to Stanford Law School, where she was selected to join Stanford Law Review. Again, this is an honor saved for the most gifted in the law school class.

Upon graduation, she worked at the Washington D.C. power broker firm Hogan and Hartson. In 1993, Ms. Mills became the Associate Counsel to President Clinton. Her role was quiet until Ken Starr, the independent prosecutor, filed charges of obstruction and perjury against President Clinton, in part for the handling of his affairs with Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky. It was the second day of the hearings in January of 1998 that brought Cheryl Mills to center stage. She presented President Clinton as a flawed human being, but not a criminal. She is often remembered for stating:

“I stand here before you today because President Bill Clinton believed I could stand here for him … I’m not worried about civil rights, because this President’s record on civil rights, on women’s rights, on all of our rights is unimpeachable.

Obviously, what she said worked, because the Senate voted not to impeach President Clinton.

Her path continued with a break from the practice of law to become the Senior Vice President for Corporate Policy and Public Programming at Oxygen Media. Ms. Mills then went to work at (my alma mater) New York University, handling labor related matters. DC kept calling — she returned to Washington to serve as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Counselor and Chief of Staff in 2009. She was called to a Senate hearing yet again as part of the Benghazi inquiry.

Currently, she is the founder and CEO of the BlackIvy Group, which builds businesses in Africa. Her philanthropic endeavors also include sitting on a number of boards in the Washington DC area.

Thank you Cheryl Mills for being a Legal Diva of Color!

Legal Divas of Color: Jewel Lafontant- Mankarious

On February 8, 2016February 8, 2016 By Melba V. PearsonIn Good Vibes, Legal News6 Comments

Every February, in honor of Black History Month, I feature a series called “Legal Divas of Color“. These are African-American female attorneys who blazed the trail on which I am honored to follow, as well as acknowledging those who are doing big things today. Feel free to browse past features and share your comments!

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This year’s first Legal Diva of Color is Jewel Lafontant- Mankarious.

Ms. Lafontant- Mankarious was born April 22, 1928 in Chicago, IL. It was as if her path was predetermined; her father Francis Stafford was an attorney who practiced before the United States Supreme Court, and was a co-founder of the National Bar Association, which is a voluntary bar association for African-Americans. In 1946, Ms. Lafontant- Mankarious became the first African American woman to graduate from the University of Chicago Law School.

In the early years of her practice, she partnered with her husband in a family law firm, and also worked at the Chicago Legal Aid Society. However her work did not go unnoticed. She made history again when she was appointed as an Assistant US Attorney in the Northern District of Illinois by President Eisenhower in 1955 — the first African American in that office. She held that post until 1958, when she returned to private practice. 1963 brought Ms. Lafontant- Mankarious another historic moment — being the first African American woman to argue a case before the US Supreme Court. The case she argued set the groundwork for Miranda vs. Arizona (the case we get our Miranda rights from). President Nixon tapped her talents to be the first female and the first African American Deputy Solicitor General in 1973, a post she held until 1975. While she returned to private practice, her public service continued under President Bush, serving as Ambassador at large and US coordinator for refugee affairs from 1989-1993. She practiced law until her death from breast cancer in 1997. Hear an interview with her here.

Thank you Jewel Lafontant- Mankarious for being a Legal Diva of Color, blazing the trail for African American prosecutors on both the state and federal level!

Why Should We Care About Diversity in Hollywood?

On February 2, 2016February 3, 2016 By Melba V. PearsonIn Good Vibes, Pop LifeLeave a comment

#OscarsSoWhite?

In stark contrast, #SAGSoBlack.

In a great kickoff to Black History Month, Sunday night’s Screen Actors Guild Awards proved what we all knew — there is no shortage of talented actors/actresses of color in Hollywood. Idris Elba won an award for his amazing portrayal of Luther, as well as his supporting role in Beasts of No Nation. I was incredibly pleased because after a Netflix session of binge watching Elba’s portrayal of tortured Detective John Luther, I completely understood why everyone’s across the pond sings his praises from the rafters. Viola Davis continued her absolute domination of Thursday night with another award for How to Get Away with Murder.

So why should we care about diversity in Hollywood?

Hollywood spends a great deal of time in our homes, resulting in Hollywood shaping our psyche. By audiences not seeing positive portrayals of people of color, coupled with negative images in the evening news, stereotypes become even more ingrained.

The naysayers say “be patient, this is subjective, considering diversity is racist against Whites”

Really?

I understand that an individual actor has to be patient in their quest for greatness. You have to get the right role to shine. But if people of color are not getting roles (including white actors playing African American characters, cue Michael Jackson), and those who do great work are not being recognized, then it is clear who the racism is against.

Take a listen to my thoughts on BBC’s World Have Your Say, where I was invited to discuss whether or not Chris Rock should boycott his hosting duties at the Oscars. Link is here, segment begins at 17:50.

See who the diverse winners of the SAG Awards here.

New Year, New Level: The Year of “Yes”

On January 10, 2016January 12, 2016 By Melba V. PearsonIn Good Vibes, Pop LifeLeave a comment

Happy New Year! So here we are in 2016, on the cusp of a brand new adventure. We have high hopes, resolutions, and plans that we hope will unfold.

But, we still have our fears.

What would happen if we stared fear in the face, and went for it (whatever it is)? One thing is for sure. If you don’t try, you are guaranteed that you will not move forward.

This interesting piece from theRoot.com talks about lessons learned from powerhouse writer Shonda Rhimes’ (of Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy and How to Get Away With Murder fame) new book. She challenges us to say “yes” for 1 year to everything that scares you.

I have to vouch for that tactic. There were many opportunities presented to me in 2015; as my husband can attest, some of these chances scared the beJesus out of me. But I said yes, and was so glad I did. From moderating a panel on wrongful convictions, giving a speech on C-Span introducing the US Attorney General, improving my snowboarding, to standing up for what I believe in during not so friendly situations — there were times I was literally shaking. But on the other side came triumph.

So join me in making this the year of yes….or yaaaaaasssssss (for when the inevitable amazing things occur)!

Take a read and share your thoughts!

Last month, power TV showrunner Shonda Rhimes released her first book, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person, in which she reveals how a stray observation said to her by her older sister during the Thanksgiving of 2013—“You never say yes to anything”—challenged her to say yes to everything that scared her for one life-changing year.

Read more here.

End of Year Giving

On December 30, 2015 By Melba V. PearsonIn Good Vibes, Legal News, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I just did another guest blogging spot — this time on The California Immigration Attorney. Geri Kahn has some interesting articles, so be sure to check it out!

Since there are two days left in the year for giving, here is some advice on how to do so safely. And I would be remiss if I did not mention the National Black Prosecutors Foundation, which is nurturing the next generation of African American prosecutors through scholarships and paid internships. Learn more here.

Budget planning for new year

It’s the end of the year, and your inbox is flooded with charities seeking your donation. You may also be getting requests from crowdfunding sources such as GoFundMe. You want to be generous, as well as get the tax credit, but what should you do?

Earlier this year, much was made over Karla Lee, mother of murdered Chicago boy Tyshawn Lee, misusing funds earmarked for her young son’s funeral. $17,000 was raised after a public appeal to aid Lee in defraying the costs of her 9 year old son who was shot in November. Not long after, it was revealed that she bought a 2015 Chrysler 200. Criticism swirled on the internet; Lee responded by stating that she was afraid to walk the streets as a result of the shooting, and the car was needed to assure her safety. She claimed that of the $17,000 given to her, $13,000 remained in the account after paying funeral expenses. Lee also claimed that she used her own money to buy the car.

If she had misused the money, can she be arrested for theft, or an organized scheme to defraud? Technically — no. It has to be proven that at the time she asked for the funds, she had no intentions of the money being used for her son’s funeral. Also, since these donations came from a crowdfunding source via the Internet, requiring wire transfers, this could be a federal offense. But again, intent is the main issue. Obviously, the fact that she bought a brand new vehicle right around the time of the donations is suspicious, especially since she asked for money for Tyshawn’s funeral, yet had enough money to buy a new car.

This story, among others, can leave a bad taste in your mouth regarding crowdfunding causes. So in the future, what do you do?