Brief Reflection

I will be forever grateful to all of those who encouraged and made it financially possible for me to attend the IADL Congress in Hanoi. I am a 3rd year law student at Loyola College of Law in New Orleans, Louisiana and am plan several of our Guild's events and programs. The time at the Congress has been very inspiring and educational for me. Through meeting delegates from countries that we seldom have an opprotunity to share stories, meals, and time with (ex.- Bangladesh, Lebanon, Colombia, North Korea), I have gained a better understanding of what it means to be a people's lawyer in the context of international law. To daily hear the stories of struggles and hope by lawyers who practice and study the law with an economics and global perspective has been a moving experience. I have made much progress in my own way of seeing the practice of law as an organic and holistic journey for justice. While it's easy to get discouraged with our ideals of a more peaceful and loving world, there is so much beauty and hope to be found in the stories of ordinary people whose voices have been heard because a people's lawyer was able to make the law accessible to the oppressed and/or voiceless.

Alison McCrary