David C. Baum Memorial Lecture on Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
"The Rage of Innocence: DeCriminalizing Race, Adolescence, Trauma, and Disabilities"
Presented by Kristin Henning, The Blume Professor of Law
Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic and Initiative
Georgetown Law
Weaving together powerful narratives and persuasive data, Professor Henning will explore the criminalization of normal adolescence and make a compelling case that racial disparities in the juvenile and criminal legal systems are rooted in America's unfounded, and sometimes intentionally manufactured, fears of youth of color. Her talk will examine the criminalization of Black adolescent play and identity, the demonization of Black adolescent culture, and the discriminatory policing of youth with disabilities. Professor Henning will identify the long-term consequences of racism and trauma that youth of color experience in contact with police and explain how contemporary policing has socialized a generation of young people to fear and resent law enforcement. She will offer practical insights for serving youth of color and transforming systems that harm young people.
About the Speaker
Kristin Henning is the Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic and Initiative at Georgetown Law. Professor Henning has been representing children accused of crime for more than 26 years and was the Lead Attorney for the Juvenile Unit of the D.C. Public Defender Service. She trains state actors across the country on the impact of racial bias in the courts and the traumatic effects of policing in communities of color and is the co-founder of several initiatives to combat racial inequities in the juvenile and criminal legal systems, including the Ambassadors for Racial Justice program and a Racial Justice Toolkit for defenders. Professor Henning writes extensively about race, adolescence, and policing, and her book, "The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth" (2021) was featured on the front page of the New York Times Book Review. She earned her B.A. from Duke University, her J.D. from Yale Law School, and her LLM in Advocacy from Georgetown Law.
About the David C. Baum Memorial Lecture Series
The family and friends of David C. Baum endowed the David C. Baum Memorial Lecture on Civil Liberties and Civil Rights not only in his memory, but at his request.
Deep concern for the dignity and rights of all people was central to Professor Baum’s character and activities. After receiving his undergraduate and legal education at Harvard University, Professor Baum served as law clerk for Justice Walter V. Schaefer of the Illinois Supreme Court, 1959-60. He then practiced law with the Chicago firm of Ross, McGowan, Hardies and O’Keefe until he joined the faculty of the University of Illinois College of Law in 1963.
Professor Baum was an inspiration to his student and colleagues, not only because of the excellence of his teaching, scholarship, and public service, but because of his remarkable human qualities. Conscientious and judicious, blending passion for justice with dispassionate objectivity, he inspired the highest level of discourse and endeavor in all who had the privilege of knowing and working with him.
It is hoped that the David C. Baum Memorial Lecture on Civil Liberties and Civil Rights will constitute a fitting memorial to a man whose unrelenting intellectual vigor and moral commitment made his presence in the world of law invaluable.
