Lowenstein Project

The Lowenstein Human Rights Project is the law school's extracurricular human rights group. Through the Lowenstein Project, small teams of students work on specific human rights issues, usually on behalf of, and with guidance from, a human rights or other public interest NGO. Teams conduct research, write memoranda, engage in advocacy activities, and organize events at the law school. The Lowenstein Project was founded in 1981 and named in honor of Allard K. Lowenstein, a U.S. Congressman and pioneering human rights activist. Yuan Ji, Jennifer Jones, DeLisa Lay and Anna Vinnik are the 2009-10 Student Directors of the Lowenstein Project, and Jim Silk is the Project's faculty adviser. The Lowenstein Project regularly works with leading U.S.-based human rights organizations as well as smaller organizations headquartered in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Although the Lowenstein Project is an extracurricular group, student participants may receive one ungraded credit per semester for their participation after their first semester of law school. Many students find summer internships through their involvement in the Lowenstein Project.

In 2008-2009, more than 50 students participated in the Lowenstein Project, joining a community of students committed to using the law to promote human rights abroad and at home. These students are working on a diverse range of human rights projects, including:

• a brief on legal reforms implemented in Nicaragua and a memo with recommendations on the future of these reforms;
• a report on the economic and social rights violations committed in the oil- producing communities of Congo-Brazzaville to be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council;
• historical research on habeas corpus and asylum law in preparation for two certiorari petitions to the U.S. Supreme Court;
• research on the economic effect of immigration detention on the U.S.-citizen and legal-permanent-resident families of detainees, medical conditions or injuries that detainees sustain in immigration custody, and circumstances surrounding illegal detentions by the Department of Homeland Security;
• a portion of an amicus brief for the Louisiana Supreme Court that argues for the recognition of Death Row Syndrome claims based on international law jurisprudence;
• a policy statement on current U.S. government law and policy on Iraqi refugee issues sent to political campaigns in advance of the November 2008 election;
• research on U.S. 501(c)(3) regulations and legal issues surrounding the transfer and disbursement of funds to Burmese schools for a U.S. organization that supports primary education in poor communities; and
• research on universities’ patent policies and abililty to urge pharmaceutical companies to accept licensing terms that promote global access to medicine.

While almost all of these projects were developed in cooperation with outside organizations, students are also encouraged to initiate their own projects and solicit volunteers through the Lowenstein Project. The Lowenstein Project holds an organizational meeting each fall to recruit new members and discuss possible projects.

If your organization is interested in working with the Lowenstein Project, please click here to learn more about our project development process.

Please contact Directors Yuan Ji, Jennifer Jones, DeLisa Lay or Anna Vinnik with any other questions or inquiries.