USC Law students receive social justice fellowship

Alisa Valderrama and Sam Yebri are being groomed as future leaders of L.A.’s social justice and Jewish communities. The USC Law students were recently named Jeremiah Fellows by the Progressive Jewish Alliance, which spotlights issues of peace, equality, diversity and justice.

Alisa Valderrama, 2L (above) and Sam Yebri, 3L (below) will spend the next two years learning about and engaging in social justice activities with the Progressive Jewish Alliance.

“The fellowship brings together young Jewish professionals and trains them to be future leaders in the social justice community in Los Angeles,” says Yebri. “It teaches us about economic, social and political issues in Los Angeles and explores the nexus of Judaism and community activism.”

The first year of the fellowship focuses on exploring ways to produce social justice and learning from community leaders who contribute to the program as speakers or teachers. In the second year, fellows put their theories into practice through service and action.

Yebri and Valderrama already have met several times with the handful of other fellows, who are all in their mid-20s and come from a variety of backgrounds and careers. The group’s activities so far have included discussions of the death penalty, economic justice and the Jewish history of L.A.

The idea of bringing together young people in Los Angeles to work on issues of social justice attracted Valderrama, who is new to the city but said she is interested in pursuing certain social, political and economic issues.

“In that regard, the Jeremiah Fellowship is an amazing opportunity,” Valderrama says, “because it brings us together and offers exposure to local leaders and builds a capacity for us to be effective leaders for the rest of our lives.”

A second-year student at USC Law, Valderrama is concerned with how the law can be used more effectively to produce accountability in the global arena, particularly where large corporations are concerned.

Yebri, a third-year student, already has established himself as a leader in the Jewish community at USC. As president of the USC Law Jewish Students Association and the National Jewish Law Students Association, Yebri this spring organized the 18th Annual National Jewish Law Student Conference, the first to be hosted by USC Law.

His experience as a Jeremiah Fellow will fit into his plans to use his law degree to protect immigrants’ rights, an issue that has sparked his interest as a participant in the Immigration Clinic.

“I’ve always felt a real inspiration to balance a legal career with involvement in the community,” Yebri said. “Specifically, the challenges facing immigrants as they strive to realize the American Dream really resonate with me."

To learn more about the Jeremiah Fellowship or the Progressive Jewish Alliance, visit pjalliance.org. Members of the PJA's L.A. Regional Council include Geoffrey Cowan, USC Law professor and dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication; Ralph Fertig, clinical associate professor in the USC School of Social Work; and founding member Alan Sieroty '56.