Lauren Carbajal

The Project

Lauren will provide legal services to Bay Area residents harmed by encounters with the police through direct representation, community outreach, and policy advocacy to defund the police and reinvest in communities.

Black and Latino communities are subject to constant low-level policing. This results in frequent encounters with officers, who then leverage their power in traffic, infraction, and other enforcement of laws that criminalize ordinary human behavior. All of these police encounters can lead to lifelong health consequences such as PTSD and asthma, the exacerbation of existing mental illnesses, trauma in Black communities, criminal punishment of the police’s victims, and interruption of employment and childcare. A gap in legal services exists when it comes to representing these kinds of injuries, leaving community members with the understanding that they must endure their injuries without redress.

Lauren’s Mexican-American upbringing and pre-law school work with incredible students of color in New York City motivate her commitment to racial justice.

Fellowship Plans

During her Fellowship, Lauren will provide legal services to people who have been harmed by the police through direct representation and a pro bono clinic. Lauren will also work with community organizations in the Bay Area to build coalitions and ensure that the voices of all marginalized communities targeted by police are heard. Drawing from those experiences, she will engage in local and statewide policy advocacy to support the burgeoning Defund the Police movement, and push for the community reinvestment that impacted communities are calling for.