by Alisa Peskin-Shepherd | Mar 27, 2023 | Legal Process
This month, as we celebrate women in history and around the world, I want to take a few minutes to celebrate women who lead the legal landscape – today as well as those trailblazers who paved the way for us.
At the Department of Justice, women rose through the ranks to assume leadership positions, with Attorney General Janet Reno serving as the first female AG during the Clinton Administration (1993-2001). But that was remarkable considering that prior to the 1970s, you could rarely find a woman at the level of Assistant Attorney General, let alone higher.
Annette Abbott Adams was our nation’s first female Assistant Attorney General (1920 – 1921) and also the first woman to sit on the California Supreme Court, having been appointed by special assignment for one case. Adams attended Chico State Normal School and the University of California Berkeley, where she earned a Bachelor of Law in 1904. She was the one of the first women to graduate from UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall, and was admitted to the California state bar in 1912.
The first female attorney in U.S. history was Belle Babb Mansfield – here’s an interesting video about her.
In 1869, trailblazer Myra Bradwell attempted to become the first woman admitted to the Illinois bar to practice law, but was denied by both the Illinois Supreme Court (1870) and the U.S. Supreme Court (1873), who insisted that a woman’s place was not, apparently, in the courtroom.
Bradwell founded and served as publisher for Chicago Legal News. In 1872, inspired by her case, the Illinois legislature passed a state law prohibiting gender discrimination in admitting a person to an occupation. Four years before she died, Bradwell was admitted to the Illinois bar. Two years later, the U.S. Supreme Court followed with its own motion.
Charlotte E. Ray was the first African-American woman lawyer in the United States. A graduate of Howard University School of Law, she was the first woman admitted to the District of Columbia Bar and the first woman allowed to practice before the Supreme Court of D.C. Her admission opened doors for women seeking admission to the bar across the nation.
Here in Michigan, more trailblazers include the first three female Justices of our Supreme Court were Mary S. Coleman, Dorothy Comstock Riley and Patricia J. Boyle. The Women Lawyers Association of Michigan created a fascinating video about these three leaders.
Patsy Mink was the first Japanese-American woman lawyer in Hawaii, and the first Asian-American woman and woman of color elected to Congress. Here’s a video about her.
And finally, our very own Vice President, Kamala Harris, is an incredible woman whose legal and political career should inspire us all. Not only is she the first female Vice President – she has lived a life devoted to serving the public, as District Attorney of San Francisco, California’s Attorney General and a U.S. Senator.
Although Harris has an impressive and extraordinary career, I am most inspired by her character, dignity and determination to not be cowed by critics. Like all these trailblazers, she sets an example of a strong and smart woman – which can be off-putting to so many, but should not be. Thank you, Vice President Harris, for setting such a great example!
by Alisa Peskin-Shepherd | Jan 18, 2021 | Off Topic
Welcome to a New U.S. President
This week, the United States inaugurates a new President, with a major change in Administration after a tumultuous election season. There are many reasons why change can be good, and in this blog, I’d like to focus on how the new American presidency might affect divorce, marriage and the way people get along in our nation.
We know that Americans are deeply divided. If the last year showed us anything, it’s that we may all be united by citizenship, but we remain in opposition to one another in ideology, belief, practice, and politics.
Whether America can survive as a functioning democracy remains to be seen. More than 8 million people are excited this week about Joe Biden becoming our next U.S. President. And yet, 7 million people voted to retain Donald Trump for another term.
That’s a big gap.
What lies ahead for our nation depends on whether we can find a way for ALL Americans to believe in the possibility of America once again. Can we come together in shared values and vision?
After the November election, it felt like some of the rampant divisiveness calmed a little. I hope that the Biden Administration gives us time to try to readjust the scales, get back into balance.
Some people who are more progressive, or did not want to retain Donald Trump, but who may not quite be on the Biden bandwagon, may have expectations for what lies ahead. Wherever we stand on the political spectrum, we must be careful to hold realistic expectations for what is possible.
A President is ONE human trying to make decisions on behalf of one of the largest nations in the world, populated by so many varieties of people. It is not an easy job for anyone, and I have yet to see a candidate who speaks and moves for ALL the people.
There is only so much that can be accomplished in
the first 100 days of a new presidency. We must remember that before we jump to critique or condemn.
Over the last year, due to the ongoing pandemic, we’ve taken to digital communication channels as our lifeline.
We’ve debated and discussed, blocked and welcomed. We’ve argued over what is best for our people, what is the way forward.
As a divorce lawyer, I look at the lessons we are beginning to pull from the last year, and the last four years, and the new presidency ahead, and I think, there is advice in all this for marriages and relationships. Here is what I have to offer:
- Just like a President can only do so much in the first 100 days of an Administration, so too a relationship can only withstand so much effort and energy in its early days.
- We must have realistic expectations for every relationship – and for the humans in those relationships.
- We are, as a species, easily disappointed, and easily excited. The healthiest place is to live in between those extremes.
- We cannot put all our hope into one person to lead us forward. Whether a President, or a spouse/partner.
- That said, we must respect the expertise of our leaders. For a marital relationship, that means take advice from those who’ve endured through decades – don’t think you know better than they do how to make a marriage work! (I’m thinking of all the Dr. Fauci haters who think they know how to handle a pandemic better.)
- There is no perfect partner. Only you can strive to be the best you can be and forgive the faults of your partner. (We should remember this when President Biden isn’t perfect. He can’t be. He’s human. He’ll do things we won’t agree with, but that doesn’t make his Administration evil.)
- Keep your expectations in check, stay realistic, and remember there is no perfect system.
Whether it’s a marriage or a political position, or the leader of the free world, we’re all doing the best we can. Go into it with this perspective – knowing that there will be disappointments, arguments, and reasons to celebrate.
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