The Penn State Law Student Bar Association will hold its annual Diversity Banquet on February 27. The banquet honors members of the law school community who have contributed to the development of the legal profession and celebrates the Penn State campus for being culturally diverse, inclusive, and equitable. All members of the Penn State and State College communities are welcome and encouraged to attend by registering online.

The theme of this year's banquet is "Forging Ahead: Redefining Diversity" and compels diversity efforts in the legal profession to go beyond superficial markers for gender and  race. “Forging Ahead” not only recognizes Penn State Law’s commitment to expand its efforts across many axes of diversity, but also instills the belief that the presence of these voices are what lead us to be better lawyers and a better profession.

Penn State Law alumna Yasmine Taeb will be the keynote speaker and will receive the Diversity Award for Leadership in the Legal Profession. Taeb is an experienced human rights and civil liberties lobbyist who currently works for the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) on a number of issues, including lobbying for the closure of the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; against the U.S. lethal drones program; and for increased funding and resettlement of Syrian refugees. Previously, Taeb served as project manager at the Center for American Progress (CAP), and she is the co-author of CAP’s latest Islamophobia report, “Fear, Inc. 2.0: The Islamophobia Network’s Efforts to Manufacture Hate in America.” 

Her writings and commentaries have been published in Al Jazeera English, Democracy Now!, The Hill, The Huffington Post, Middle East Eye, Newsweek, ThinkProgress, and The Washington Post.

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