Law Day is an opportune time to recall and applaud our country’s landmark civil and human rights achievements, from the Emancipation Proclamation to the recent steps toward LGBT equality. It’s also a good day to remind ourselves that, for every such milestone, there are miles to go in the effort to meet the essential legal needs of many across our nation. Without basic representationthe day-to-day blocking and tackling that gets done by our legal services providers, pro bono organizations and othersour headline civil rights achievements risk being overshadowed by the continuing inequality and injustice that many Americans experience year after year.
Prohibitions on housing discrimination can be little consolation to a parent who cannot find a lawyer to protect her children from lead paint poisoning. Laws against bias in the workplace will not help a disabled veteran who can’t obtain the benefits that will enable him to work in the first place. Due process rights will not help a small business owner who can’t afford counsel to appeal an insurance company’s coverage decision after a major storm. The point here isn’t to diminish the significance of our human and civil rights successes. It’s to recognize that, without accompanying access to justice (read: access to lawyers), those achievements will fall short of their intended goals. Data and anecdotal experience show that outcomes for individuals, and the overall functioning of the courts, are vastly improved with legal representation.
