Lawyers Without Rights
Santa Clara Law-sponsored exhibit shines a light on the lives and plight of lawyers under Nazi-era Third Reich
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 31, 2016 -- The highly acclaimed international exhibit, “Lawyers Without Rights: Jewish Lawyers in Germany under the Third Reich,” will be available for viewing at Santa Clara University's Harrington Learning Commons from Sept. 1 through Oct. 9, 2016.
The showing is sponsored by Santa Clara University School of Law in conjunction with the American Bar Association and German Federal Bar. The exhibit has been shown in nearly 100 cities in Germany, the United States and others parts of the world.
“Santa Clara Law is proud to bring the Lawyers Without Rights exhibit to Silicon Valley," said Santa Clara Law Dean Lisa Kloppenberg. "This display does not merely educate us about history. All over the world today, lawyers and others are denied global human rights. As we educate the next generation of lawyers for our American democracy, we must not forget the importance of the rule of law and respect for all persons. The way that we treat one person or group is the measure of our humaneness and civilization.”
The idea for the exhibit was conceived in 1998 when an Israeli lawyer asked the regional bar of Berlin for a list of Jewish Lawyers whose licenses had been revoked by the Nazi regime.
“The regional bar decided not only to research a list of names but also to try to find out more about the fates behind all those names,” said Axel Filges, past president of the German Federal Bar. “Some were able to leave the country after the Nazis came into power, but very many of them were incarcerated or murdered. The non-Jewish German lawyers of those days remained silent. They failed miserably, and so did the lawyers’ organizations. We do not know why.”
After the Berlin bar transformed its research into an exhibit, other regional bars began asking whether they could show it and add their own research. “So, like a puzzle, a portrait of the fate of Jewish lawyers in Germany has emerged step by step,” Filges said.
“We are honored to be one of a select number of law schools invited to sponsor this exhibit,” said Skip Horne, senior assistant dean for external relations. “It is a powerful reminder of the importance of social justice and human rights not just for lawyers, but for everyone around the world.”
More about the exhibit can be found here.