Twenty Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law students from various existing student organizations have joined together this year to create a coalition called the Diversity Symposium and Publication Initiative to create a space to discuss social justice issues. The group will host its first symposium entitled “Blinded Justice: A Discussion About How the Legal System Values and Protects Diverse Communities” on March 3, 2016.

The coalition’s evolution began after an event organized by the now Diversity Initiative’s leadership that brought together several representatives of Orange County Affiliate Bars in 2014.

After the event, Hugo Salazar (JD ’16), April Cristal (JD ’16) and alumna Hadeer Soliman (JD ’15) set out to create a publication and organization that would provide Fowler School of Law with resources to explore large-scale social justice issues as they pertain to the legal community. After originally pitching an idea for a print journal, the students came together to create an online publication and symposium, which was spurred by a series of student surveys distributed to various organization presidents and the general student population.

“We want to create something that will serve as a useful resource for the legal community to better understand the impact of laws, court decisions and legislation on diverse communities like Orange County,” said symposium co-chair April Cristal.

To establish the organization, co-chairs Hugo Salazar and April Cristal met with the Chapman University Fowler School of Law curriculum committee and general faculty after a year-long campaign for student and local bar association support. The Diversity Symposium and Publication Initiative quickly gained the support of Dean Tom Campbell (who donated $5,000 to the symposium), Chapman University Chancellor Daniele Struppa, and faculty adviser Denis Binder.

The Diversity Symposium and Publication Initiative officially launched in July, quickly growing from three to more than 20 student members from among Fowler’s diverse student organizations, including Outlaw, Minority Law Students Association, Muslim Students Association and Women Lawyers Association, to name a few.