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.