Hate crimes – criminal offenses motivated by bias against a particular group of people – are on the rise in cities across the United States, a concerning trend that transcends geographic boundaries. Connecticut is not immune to this increase; in response, the state created the Connecticut Hate Crimes Advisory Council and members were appointed in June 2021. The Council’s main mission is to “encourag[e] and coordinat[e] programs that increase community awareness and reporting of hate crimes to combat such crimes.”
The James W. Cooper Fellows of the Connecticut Bar Foundation and the University of Connecticut School of Law presented The Law of Hate Symposium on Friday, November 17, 2023, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at UConn Law. This program provided a safe and inclusive forum to discuss hate crimes and profile the work of the Hate Crimes Advisory Council. We examined the law enforcement response to these acts and possible civil law ramifications, and explored how this corrosive problem impacts communities. We were also honored to welcome U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery and CT Attorney General William Tong, who participated in a Q&A moderated by Dean Eboni Nelson.
Admission was free, and continental breakfast and lunch were provided.
Up to 4 hours of CT CLE credits are available for attendees.
The event was held in William F. Starr Hall, Reading Room.
Featured speakers included:
Det. Alvin Chen
Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Chen
Attorney Steven Dembo
Tony Ferraiolo
Chief State's Attorney Patrick Griffin
Steven Ginsburg
Rep. Maryam Khan
Mike Keo
Sgt. Luke LaRue
Hon. Douglas Lavine
Zahir Muhammad Mannan
Attorney Amy Lin Meyerson
Prof. Melinda Miceli
Jaspreet Singh
Attorney John Strafaci
Attorney Preston Tisdale
Prof. Richard Wilson
To read more about our speakers, please click here.
To access a copy of the event program, please click here.
Co-sponsored by the
James W. Cooper Fellows of the Connecticut Bar Foundation
and University of Connecticut School of Law
