Friday, March 19, the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism presented The Necessity of Unparalleled Unity, a program focusing on the ways that attorneys can serve the public and the common good by using the tools of professionalism and “lead our fellow Americans in bridging our divisions despite our differences” (Program Materials, p. 1).

The panelists represented a variety of perspectives and experiences, including judges and practicing attorneys with significant leadership experience. The panelists shared their thoughts and suggestions for attorneys to build bridges. Several panelists commented upon the need to build connection by developing relationships—talking and listening (not just waiting to talk again) with each other.

If you missed the program—moderated by Professor Tanya Washington—and wish to learn more, you may visit the website and read the speakers’ prepared materials, related articles from the August 2020 Georgia Bar Journal issue addressing the subject, and also review materials related to the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism.

Several speakers recommended books that are available in the law library. Here are their suggestions. Books may be available as ebooks through GSU Libraries, as indicated below. Some are available for delivery to the College of Law to GSU students, faculty, and staff who log in to their library accounts and request the items, as described below.

Several panelists recommended some books to the attendees. These books are available for GSU students, faculty, and staff through the library. Mr. Bell recommended The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap by Mehrsa Baradaran, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander (available as an ebook too), and Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson (available as an ebook too).

Judge Dax Lopez recommended Our America: A Hispanic History of the United States by Felipe Fernandez-Arnesto. Ms. Patrise Perkins-Hooker recommended the Pulitzer Prize-winning book Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War by Douglas A. Blackmon (also available as an ebook). There  is also a DVD called Slavery by Another Name, which is based on the book and was an Official Selection of the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.

If you want to read any of these books, you can sign in to your library account (there is a link on the upper right). If you want to request delivery of the print version, you can select delivery to the library of your choice and either pick it up in person from the law library or arrange for curbside Express Pickup from one of the other university libraries.