Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
2019-2022
Juris Doctorate
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW
Root-Tilden-Kern Public Interest Scholar | Co-chair of the Disability Allied Law Students Association | Founder of the Government Benefits Assistance Project | Co-Founder of the Breaking Point Project | Member of the BeTogether Disability Inclusive Culture Committee
2013-2017
Bachelor of Arts
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
Anthropology and Global Development Studies | Tuba Player in the Cavalier Marching Band | Dean's List Honoree | Vice President of Alternative Spring Break | Miller Arts Scholar for Music | Brother and Social Chair of Kappa Kappa Psi | Harrison Undergraduate Research Award
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
JUNE 2020 — PRESENT
Treasurer
NATIONAL DISABLED LAW STUDENTS ASSOCIATION
Serves on the founding board of an organization dedicated to advocating for disabled law students across the country. Handles all financial matters, including tax filings, payments, and reimbursements. Spearheads fundraising efforts and coordination of independent contractors.
ACCESS LIVING
Interviews formerly incarcerated people with disabilities on their experiences with reentry and incarceration, particularly considering their disabilities. Collaborates with a videographer to produce short videos of these interviews for use in a webinar series on decarceration through a disability justice lens. Hosting the webinar series and co-designing it with community leaders and impacted folks. Building a coalition with community-based reentry organizations in Chicago.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR LAW & ECONOMIC JUSTICE
Assisted with developing and active cases involving Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act to ensure people with disabilities can live in their own homes and have meaningful access to public benefits (Olmstead litigation). Conducted factual and legislative research regarding the discriminatory history of subminimum wage laws. Assisted with the research and development of potential discrimination theories related to language access.
CENTER FOR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS
Wrote a letter to prison officials advocating for the constitutional rights of an incarcerated transgender woman. Conducted legal research on a variety of topics related to the Ashley Diamond case. Analyzed and conducted interviews about state surveillance’s impact on individuals to lay the foundation for future litigation. Examined Floyd v. City of New York trial transcripts to inform research on key tenets and strategies of movement lawyering. Conducted an organization-wide training on disability justice, disability history, and their intersection with other identities.
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
DISABILITY RIGHTS PROJECT
Conducted legal research to support ongoing litigation regarding communication access and COVID-19 safety for incarcerated people with disabilities. Drafted lines of questioning for depositions. Interviewed potential declarants regarding their experiences with communication access while on parole. Wrote a primer on the Americans with Disabilities Act for litigators.
JUNE – AUGUST 2020
Legal Intern
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
HUMAN RIGHTS PROJECT
Conducted legal research to support upcoming litigation related to COVID-19 and incarcerated or detained persons. Researched and drafted an appeal to the United Nations Human Rights Council in partnership with the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Philando Castile, and Michael Brown, as well as over 650 rights groups from around the world. This resulted in a resolution to hold a historic Special Session to investigate police brutality and protest suppression.
2017 – PRESENT
Tutor, Editor, Writer
LUCY TRIESHMANN, LLC
Supports students ranging from elementary school to Master's programs as they strive to achieve their academic best. Specializes in research and writing, standardized test prep, Spanish, and proofreading. Also writes content for businesses' marketing materials and websites.
2017 – 2019
Director of Operations
BLUE TRUNK FOUNDATION
Managed a growing nonprofit focused on accessible travel for people with disabilities, chronic illnesses, and age-related conditions. Produced content for the website, social media platforms, and marketing materials. Recruited and interviewed individuals for the blog. Attended networking events and gave informational presentations on accessibility in travel. Coordinated logistics related to operations, fundraising, marketing, web development, and community outreach. Handled the organization's finances, including account reconciliation, tax filings, and donation processing.
2017
Access Consultant
UNIVERSITY TRANSIT SERVICE
Rewrote the rider's guide and driver training materials for the University of Virginia's paratransit service. Recommended improvements to the service based on institution-specific data and research of other institutions' programs. Connected with other students to incorporate their experiences.
2014 – 2017
Safety Supervisor, Trainer,
Bus Driver
UNIVERSITY TRANSIT SERVICE
Promoted to Safety Supervisor in October 2016 due to performance as a bus driver (January 2014 — December 2017) and trainer (January 2015 — December 2017). Head of six-member Safety Committee responsible for assigning penalties for preventable accidents. Devised new measures to help the company exceed industry safety standards.
2015 – 2017
Student Researcher
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH SCIENCES
Performed cross-cultural, international research on barriers to chronic disease management in low resource communities with a team of other students. Focused primarily on the impact of social support structures on health outcomes. Received the 2016 Harrison Undergraduate Research Award. Presented research at both the 2016 and 2017 Human Development Conferences, as well as the 2017 Atlantic Coast Conference Meeting of the Minds. Wrote grants, conducted field research in South Africa, and co-designed research models with community partners.
JANUARY – APRIL 2021
Legal Intern
JUNE – AUGUST 2021
Ella Baker Intern
AUGUST – NOVEMBER 2021
Legal Intern
NOVEMBER 2021 — PRESENT
Interviewer
INTERVIEWS, PUBLICATIONS, & PRESENTATIONS
NOVEMBER 2021
Journal Publication
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA LAW REVIEW ONLINE
"The Breaking Point: A Critical Disability Analysis of Abolition"
Winner of the Sixth Annual Public Interest Essay Competition
Overview: Disability justice and abolition are inextricably intertwined. In Part I, we discuss the current state of the prison abolition movement. In Part II, we explore the abolitionist history of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, which serve as the foundation for a new vision of the Constitution as an anti-slavery document. In Part III, we examine forms of capital punishment and juvenile life without parole (“JLWOP”) sentences that violate the Eighth Amendment. In Part IV, we outline a new avenue of reconstructed Eighth Amendment argumentation that incarcerating disabled people constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. This involves considering the evolution of the public’s expectations for how the State treats disabled people and of how our understanding of the Eighth Amendment should evolve under an anti-slavery understanding of the Constitution. We also discuss the connection that ought to exist between the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and the Eighth Amendment. We conclude with our vision of BPP’s future and further areas for exploration of the intersection of disability justice and abolition. This paper demonstrates how storytelling may provide one pathway toward a more expansive civil rights interpretation of the Constitution to protect the rights of incarcerated disabled people. By humanizing the impact of jurisprudential theorizing, storytelling seeks to break through the sterile veneer of the law and expose its effects on peoples’ lived experiences.
THE ACTIVIST FILES PODCAST by CENTER FOR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS
"Episode 43: The Power of Art: Talking Disability Justice and Movements for Liberation"
Preface: Britney and Lucy discuss the ways that art can help to share important narratives and open up space for difficult conversations on controversial issues, how disability justice is situated within a larger liberation politic that includes racial, economic, LGBTQIA+ and gender justice and abolitionist frameworks, the necessity of moving beyond concepts of access and compliance towards understanding everyone's role in interdependence in order to get towards freedom, and lessons those working for justice must commit to learning in order to move beyond an ableist conception of "normalcy."
USA TODAY
"'I live a beautiful life': What wheelchair users wish you knew — and what to stop asking"
THE WASHINGTON POST
"Sidewalk seating is good for restaurants. It's a challenge for disabled people"
NOVEMBER 2020
Journal Publication
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL INFORMATICS ASSOCIATION
"Ensuring full participation of people with disabilities in an era of telehealth"
Abstract: The widespread use of telehealth resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to further exacerbate inequities faced by people with disabilities. Although, for some members of the disability community, the option to engage with telehealth may result in reduced barriers to care, for others, inadequate attention to the design, implementation, and policy dimensions may be detrimental. Addressing such considerations is imperative to mitigate health inequities faced by the disability community.
OCTOBER 2020
Interview
JUNE 2020
Interview
DISTOPIA PODCAST by DISART
"Episode 41: Lucy Trieshmann"
Preface: In conversation with Jill and Chris, I reflected on my identity as a Disabled person and my choice to pursue transformative disability justice through the law. I also spoke to the short- and long-term implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for disabled people.
APRIL 2020
Journal Publication
N.Y.U. JOURNAL OF LEGISLATION AND PUBLIC POLICY
"Open Letter to Yale Law Journal Denouncing Ableism and Eugenics"
Preface: Members of the Disability Allied Law Students Association at New York University School of Law authored this letter in response to concerns about a forthcoming article regarding medical triaging in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of the time of publication, it has been signed by multiple organizations and 150 students and individuals representing more than twenty-five law schools across the country.
FEBRUARY 2017
Conference Presentation
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE and ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEETING OF THE MINDS
"The Social Nature of Pain: Health, Community, and Ubuntu"
Abstract: Drawn from established theory and qualitative research data collected in an informal settlement in Khayelitsha, a township located outside of Cape Town, South Africa, this paper explores how a particular community of practice deconstructs and/or builds itself around pain and shared experiences of illness. We collected our data using participatory action research methods such as photo elicitation, transect walks, interviews, and focus groups with a local women’s group. We coded our data using grounded theory qualitative analysis methods. We present evidence that Ubuntu, a spirit of unconditional human compassion, is integral to the ideology of many members of the community and directly influences their lived experiences of pain. As a result of this shared belief, individuals often embody the suffering of others despite, or perhaps because of, the possibility of harmful repercussions in their own lives. Specifically, our data demonstrate the women’s feeling of a collective responsibility for the health and safety of the youth, a sentiment articulated through the language of stress. However, this belief is not universal: our data demonstrate generational differences in value placed on Ubuntu. We also noted differences based on individual lived experiences within the community of practice. We conclude with a call for more community-based research practices, and a closure of the gap between affect and health science.
JUNE 2021
Interview
JULY 2021
Interview
AUGUST 2021
Interview
OCTOBER 2021
Interview
JANUARY 2022
Interview
VOLUNTEER WORK
GOVERNMENT BENEFITS ASSISTANCE PROJECT
Founded a new student group to support people applying for government disability benefits. Coordinates with nonprofit partner Mobilization for Justice to train student volunteers and facilitate student-client relationships.
2018 - PRESENT
Interpreter
FORTHRIGHT LEGAL
Interviews Spanish-speaking clients to complete paperwork and secure appropriate documentation to file for legal status in the United States. Translates documents between English and Spanish for use in immigration proceedings.
MARCH - MAY 2020
Volunteer
SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER
Collected and analyzed data about the provision of education in the 67 school districts in Florida with a focus on action taken to provide services to students with disabilities, students who need behavioral and mental health services, and families without access to needed technology or other resources. Identified gaps within the state and assessed how we might be able to encourage the sharing of resources and influence the dissemination of federal aid to ensure its equitable distribution such that the most vulnerable children can have their needs met.
APRIL 2020
Volunteer
CENTER FOR POPULAR DEMOCRACY
Researched states' voting laws to assess preparedness to hold equal, accessible elections in 2020 in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
OCTOBER 2019 - PRESENT
Founder