Rise Up, Inc
Advise Civil Rights Accelerator Participants
Join us in making legislative history!
Posted December 1, 2020
Background & Context
Rise Justice Labs is a first of its kind civil rights accelerator. We dismantle systemic barriers in the legislative process by giving everyday people a blueprint to access democracy. Our mission is to help everyday people pass their first law. We deliver on this mission through an intensive 12-week training program (December 7, 2020 to March 1, 2021) that includes seed funding, skills workshops, 1:1 coaching, guest lectures, access to professional services, and a network of Congressional and State legislators.
Work & Deliverables
We are seeking short-term pro bono legal support to effectively equip program participants. Primary activities would likely include:
- Supporting ongoing legal and/or policy research to help participants determine which rights already exist and where there are opportunities to strengthen the law (potential bill sponsors want to know that proposed legislation is not duplicating or creating conflict among existing laws and definitions);
- Reviewing and editing draft legislation;
- Providing feedback on briefs to legislative and governors' offices;
- Answering questions about filing for 501(c)(3)/501(c)(4) status, if relevant.
We are currently looking for volunteer support on the following issue areas:
1. Rights for campus sexual assault survivors (state level)
2. Voting rights and ending the probation trap in Tennessee (state level)
3. Standards of care and rights for survivors of the troubled teen industry (federal level)
Volunteers will be matched with one of the following three teams. The Every Voice Coalition empowers survivors of sexual violence and students to write, file, and fight for legislation that codifies institutional accountability and support measures in all college communities. The Tennessee Alliance for Black Lawyers advances the common professional interests of Tennessee's African American bar and advocates for legislation including criminal justice reform through changing probation policies and laws and voting rights for formerly incarcerated individuals. Breaking Code Silence aims to put an end to institutional child abuse within the troubled teen industry.
Please indicate which team(s) you would be interested in supporting. After an initial placement call with the Accelerator Director, volunteers will be introduced with team members to learn more about their current stage of campaign development and their legal needs. From then, We the Action volunteers will coordinate directly with their designated team. While the accelerator program formally ends on March 1, volunteers may decide if they’d like to continue supporting a team going forward.
Rise Up, Inc
Rise, a national nonprofit, was founded by Amanda Nguyen, a sexual assault survivor, in November 2014 to pen her own civil rights into existence along with the 25 million rape survivors in the United States. Rise started by passing the federal Sexual Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights unanimously through Congress and later signed into law by President Obama. Rise’s immediate goal is to scale up a social movement to pass their Sexual Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights - in all 50 states. Rise trains volunteers to pen their own rights into existence, giving them the tools and resources necessary to engage with state legislators with the ultimate goal of passing a bill in their home state.
Rise Up, Inc
Rise, a national nonprofit, was founded by Amanda Nguyen, a sexual assault survivor, in November 2014 to pen her own civil rights into existence along with the 25 million rape survivors in the United States. Rise started by passing the federal Sexual Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights unanimously through Congress and later signed into law by President Obama. Rise’s immediate goal is to scale up a social movement to pass their Sexual Assault Survivors' Bill of Rights - in all 50 states. Rise trains volunteers to pen their own rights into existence, giving them the tools and resources necessary to engage with state legislators with the ultimate goal of passing a bill in their home state.