THE LANGSTON BAR ASSOCIATION, spearheaded by Deputy City Attorney, Kimberly Willis, will celebrate its twenty-fifth (25th) annual Hall of Fame Dinner on Saturday, October 22, at the L.A. Hotel Downtown. This year’s legal trailblazers being inducted into Langston’s prestigious Hall of Fame are the Honorable Barbara R. Johnson, and Attorneys Dianne Baquet Smith, Carl E. Douglas, Channing Johnson and Carl E. Jones (posthumously).
The Langston Bar Association began as a law club, almost a century ago, by a group of African American Attorneys who were routinely excluded from membership in other bar associations, based on race, not qualifications. From its inception, members of the association endeavored to establish a cohort of peers dedicated to education, inclusion, advocacy and service. Over the years, while the association grew in numbers and gained recognition, the mission and work of the founders endured. Each year, Langston selects honorees based upon their tenure of service, involvement within the community, commitment and how they contribute back to Langston through their careers.
Committee members include Attorneys Michele Anderson, (Chairperson), Judges Allen Webster, Jr. and Marion Johnson (retired), Kimberly Willis, Marie Maurice, Ann Saxton, Melinda Murray, Shonte Penland Abraham, Chrissy Roussell Willis, Danielle Ford Pauljohn, G. Edwin Rush, Gary Farwell, Shirley Henderson, Margo Bouchet, V. Ahda Sands, Eulanda L. Matthews, and Aaron Thorburn. The John M. Langston Bar Association of Los Angeles, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) publicly supported charity. Contributions to the organization are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
