Events
Upcoming Events
Join us for events that challenge conventional thinking and elevate bold ideas for justice. We invite you to be part of the conversation and hope to see you at our upcoming events.
Roots & Resilience — A Story of Black Equity in Brooklyn
Join CRIL and Access Justice Brooklyn for a conversation at Weeksville Heritage Center on July 29th, examining deed fraud as a modern manifestation of historic housing inequities. Drawing on legal, academic, and community perspectives, panelists will explore connections to redlining, racial justice, and housing security, and discuss practical strategies to protect homeowners and preserve Black homeownership in Brooklyn.
Save the Date — CRIL's 10-Year Anniversary
Please save the date for our 10-year anniversary celebration on Thursday, February 25, 2027. We look forward to marking this milestone and sharing more details in the coming months. Interested in sponsoring the event? Please contact law.race.inequality@nyu.edu.
Event Inquiries
Interested in partnering with us? Submit your event co-sponsorship request using this form.
Recent Events
7th Annual Kenneth P. Thompson ’92 Lecture on Race and Criminal Justice Reform
On April 2, 2026, the Peter L. Zimroth Center on the Administration of Criminal Law and the Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law hosted the seventh annual Kenneth P. Thompson '92 Lecture on Race and Criminal Justice Reform. The panel examined "Second Look Sentencing" — how courts, prosecutors, and policymakers can revisit extreme sentences in light of rehabilitation and evolving standards of justice. Moderated by Professor Vincent Southerland, panelists included former federal judge John Gleeson, Kevin Haynes, Jule Hall of the Innocence Project, and Sara Cohbra of The Sentencing Project.
More about the Kenneth P. Thompson Lecture.
The Alabama Solution Film Screening
On February 19, 2026, the Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law hosted a film screening for The Alabama Solution, a documentary examining conditions within Alabama’s prison system and the efforts of incarcerated activists to organize for change. The film highlights the work of Robert Earl Council and Melvin Ray, as well as the death of Steven Davis, an incarcerated man who was beaten to death by prison guards. The screening was followed by a discussion featuring Eric Buchanan, faith leader and justice advocate, and CRIL Faculty Director Vincent Southerland.
View photos from the film screening.
30th Annual Derrick Bell Lecture on Race in American Society
On November 6, 2025, NYU School of Law and the Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law hosted the 30th Annual Derrick Bell Lecture on Race in American Society. James Forman Jr. delivered the lecture, "Changing the Law by Changing the Lawyers: Can Pipeline Programs Survive the Current Moment?" Forman explored the role of pipeline programs in expanding access to the legal profession and examined the challenges these initiatives face in the current legal and political climate.
Watch video of the Derrick Bell Lecture.