Professor Brenda Smith Speaks at Inaugural United State of Women Summit
On June 14, the White House Council on Women and Girls convened the first United State of Women Summit, a large-scale effort to rally together advocates of gender equality to highlight the achievement of women, identify remaining challenges, and chart the course for addressing them.
Experts, advocates, and leaders in domestic and international arenas gathered in Washington, D.C., to highlight key issues affecting women and girls. American University Washington College of Law Professor Brenda Smith was invited to share her expertise in the panel discussion, "Second Chances for Success: Women, Girls and the Justice System," which explored the significant challenges women face in the criminal and juvenile justice system, and focused on finding solutions to these issues.
"My invitation to participate in the White House's United State of Women Summit reflects the importance of women and girls in crafting solutions to this nation and indeed the world’s most pressing issues," said Professor Smith. "This summit is an important opportunity to go beyond talking about the problem to talking about overcoming roadblocks to effective solutions and remedies for women and girls in the criminal justice system."
Smith joined an impressive lineup of women’s rights advocates, including President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Gloria Steinem, Nancy Pelosi, Meryl Streep, Tina Fey, Oprah Winfrey, and many more. The Summit focused on a number of pillars; including economic empowerment; health & wellness; educational opportunity; violence against women; entrepreneurship and innovation; and leadership and civic engagement.
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