Op-Ed Writing for Clinics and Clinicians

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Session Type: Concurrent Sessions

Session Capacity: N/A

Location: N/A

Room: Union Square 3&4

Floor: 4th Floor

We teach our students that lawyers are problem solvers who can work with clients on press, media, and organizing strategies beyond litigation. Clinicians and clinics, for example, can publish op-eds to more broadly communicate about problems and legal and structural barriers experienced by clients and communities and to advocate for solutions. Our session explores how op-ed writing can raise awareness of a problem, mobilize support for an issue, and persuade in efforts to remedy injustice, such as by urging elected officials to support legislative remedies. Powerful ideas can be conveyed concisely in op-ed form and read by many, and the content in op-eds can be used across social media platforms to reach multiple audiences. Session participants will generate ideas for op-eds to build support for legislative, systemic, or community solutions to pressing issues their clinics seek to address. Session facilitators will lead participants through a rubric created for this session while discussing ways to structure the argument, pitch and publish the piece, and co-author or work with clients, including ethical and dignity-related aspects of conveying clients’ experiences. A multi-modal approach to problem solving and to hopeful futures can incorporate op-ed writing, including through collaborative writing with clients.