Practice with Passion, Commencement Address, Golden Gate University School of Law
Dean White, distinguished faculty, families and friends. Members of the class of 2007: I’m so pleased to say, you did it.
It was a team effort, including your family and your friends . . . Gilbert’s Outlines . . . and indeed Red Bull.
Graduates, continue to keep them around, especially the Gilbert’s and Red Bull --- they’ll get you through the next phase --- the Bar Exam. And you will pass the Bar.
It’s been three wonderfully excruciating years, and the years have no doubt transformed you. You’re different today. You’re now a lawyer, and we couldn’t be more proud.
With the degree you’ve received today, you’ve become a very powerful person.
With this degree, you now have the incredible ability to protect people’s lives, their freedoms, and their rights.
With this degree, you now have the power to stand up against injustice, in particular in a court of law.
So, today, I want to leave you with a simple message: practice law with passion.
Now, I know you already have passion. You had the passion to go to law school in the first place. Passion to speak up, passion to work on important issues, a passion to be heard and to argue. And your family probably knows that best.
And I promise that the same kind of passion that inspired you to go to law school in the first place will inspire you to become a great lawyer and a noble lawyer.
Let me share with you why I became a lawyer. I grew up in Berkeley in the 70’s, and my parents were deeply involved in the civil rights movement. I grew up surrounded by people who were marching and protesting at the top of their lungs for civil rights . . . for justice. And, around me, the architects of the movement to make civil rights real were lawyers. They were my heroes. People like Thurgood Marshall, Charles Hamilton Houston, and Constance Baker Motley.
What made them great lawyers was not that they argued before the Supreme Court. What made them great lawyers was their passion --- passion for justice and for public service.
That’s the kind of passion I’m talking about today. I’d ask you to passionately and courageously assume the responsibility of representation. I’d urge you to practice law with a deep sense of responsibility for the welfare of strangers and a strong commitment to public service.
Practicing with this kind of passion may take you on paths you don’t expect.
I started out with a passion for civil rights. The traditional thinking was that you had to be at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or the ACLU to do civil rights work. But I soon realized that you can fight for civil rights in many ways.
That’s why I chose to become a prosecutor --- to use the law to get justice for victims and communities who are often neglected and ignored.
For me, standing before a jury of twelve people and arguing for justice for an abused child, a battered spouse, or a victim of hate crime has been one of the greatest rewards of my legal career.
Some of you will take jobs at public interest law firms or in a public defender’s office. Or even join a DA’s Office. The sacrifice is that you’ll probably make less money, but the reward is that you’ll be able to practice with passion.
Many of you are also going to private firms. And, you, please don’t feel any guilt for all the money you’re going to make. I’m sure you’ll spend it well. No doubt, some of you will be handling big IPO’s and taking calls from corporate CEO’s. And you will practice law with passion, too. But I also ask you to take the opportunities that come up to put that passion to work for those who can’t afford it.
Take those calls from people whose names you’ve never heard. Everyday-people desperate for a lawyer to take up their case and their cause. Encourage your firms to make a commitment to pro bono work. You will deepen your understanding of the transactions you’re working on, but you may also find your greatness as a lawyer by taking one of those cases for yourself. Think of Fred Korematsu, Jane Roe, Linda Brown --- names you remember from your law books. They were just ordinary people who needed help. Now their names, and the lawyers who represented them, belong to history.
As I look out today, I see a group of people who have been on a long train ride. The train you took to get here today went through high school, college, and then law school. Today, on your graduation, you’re finally pulling into the station. And you’re getting ready to step out on the platform, which is a remarkable place.
As you get off this train, look around and see the signs posted there. They all point to enormous social, economic and political challenges and opportunities that are facing our country. This is an exciting, extraordinary time to practice with a passion for justice.
For example, our country is today having an intense and important debate about immigration, which goes to the root of our identity as a nation.
Our civil liberties are under fire, and our Justice Department is not just failing to enforce them, but is frankly contributing to their deterioration.
In politics, doors are opening for the first time for men and women from every walk of life. Just think: for the first time ever, three of the strongest candidates for President of the United States are a woman, a Latino and an African American.
Across the world, forces of globalization are unfolding that are connecting our lives in real-time with citizens of every country, rich and poor.
Times like these call for people like you to practice their profession with passion. I ask you:
Who’s going to articulate why we need to end torture?
Who’s going to stand up and defend Roe v. Wade?
Who’s going to litigate the future of stem cell research, or what content we can put on YouTube?
The answer is that young lawyers like you will be at the heart of these great struggles. So, follow your passion, and get out there.
Today, you’ve become lawyers. Tomorrow, there’s no limit on what you can do. Practice with passion.
Thank you and congratulations.