About the Town Hall
In 2015, the United Nations (U.N.) Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) acknowledge that eradicating poverty is an “indispensable requirement for sustainable development.” The goals and targets focus on health and well-being, housing, gender equality, and climate action amongst others and correspond with fundamental human rights.
However, according to the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Racism, “[d]espite the 2030 Agenda’s promising rhetoric, it largely fails to fulfil its pledge to ‘leave no one behind’ when it comes to the principles of racial equality and non-discrimination.” As the Black Audit Project explains, “Systemic racism and racial oppression manifest in similar ways worldwide, including racial wealth gaps and economic inequity, stark health disparities, fewer educational opportunities, higher incidents of police violence, and decreased safety for Black people. Black communities often live under different conditions despite sharing the same geographical areas as other groups.” In the United States (U.S.), no state is even halfway to achieving the SDGs by 2030 for all racial groups.
By exposing these gaps, the SDGs can serve as an accountability framework guiding the collection of disaggregated data and highlighting racial inequalities. The Black Audit Project, a multi-city initiative across the U.S., assesses progress on the SDGs and human rights for Black residents. Key findings are then shared with the U.N. Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, established in 2021 by the U.N. General Assembly to “improve the safety and quality of life and livelihoods of people of African descent.”
Working with community partners, the Environmental Justice Clinic (EJC) and Human Rights Clinic and Program (HRP) at the University of Miami School of Law are collaborating with the Black Audit Project on an assessment of Miami-Dade County. Key findings will be shared with the U.N. Permanent Forum on People of African Descent at their April 2024 meeting.
To support these efforts, EJC, HRP, and community partners are convening a Town Hall on the SDGs and Racial Justice in Miami-Dade County. A special symposium issue of the University of Miami Race and Social Justice Law Review will further capture lessons and reflections from the Town Hall and deepen analysis of issues raised. Additional sponsors of the Town Hall include the Miami Law Human Rights Society, Freedom Lab Miami, Black Audit Project, University of Miami Center for Global Black Studies, and Miami Law Office of Intellectual Life.
Please see the Town Hall concept note, as well as agenda and speaker bios.
Approved for Florida CLE Credits: 3.5
9:30 a.m. Registration and Refreshments 10:00 a.m. Welcome Charkera Ervin, Human Rights Counsel, Office of Justin Hansford Moderators: Speakers: 11:45 a.m. Parallel Roundtables FOOD Facilitator: Arely Lozano Cantu, Director of Healthy Access and Livability, Urban Health Partnerships HOUSING Facilitator: Robin Bachin, Senior Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, Founding Director of the Office of Civic and Community Engagement, University of Miami Facilitator: Caroline Bettinger-López, Professor Law; Director, Human Rights Clinic, University of Miami School of Law 2:30 p.m. Art Exhibit 3:00 p.m. Round Table Reports & Public Comment 4:00 p.m. Closing Remarks Facilitator: Abigail Fleming, Associate Director, Lecturer in Law, Environmental Justice Clinic; Faculty, Environmental Law Program, University of Miami School of Law 4:30 p.m. CloseSATURDAY, MARCH 2
Abigail Fleming, Associate Director, Lecturer in Law, Environmental Justice Clinic; Faculty, Environmental Law Program, University of Miami School of Law
Abigail Fleming, Associate Director, Lecturer in Law, Environmental Justice Clinic; Faculty, Environmental Law Program, University of Miami School of Law
Valencia Gunder, Co-Director, The Smile Trust; Executive Director, The Black Collective
Justin Hansford, Member, U.N. Permanent Forum on People of African Descent
Tamar Ezer, Acting Director, Human Rights Clinic; Faculty Director, Human Rights Program; Lecturer in Law, University of Miami School of Law
10:30 a.m. Introductory Multi-Issue Panel
Denisse Córdova Montes, Acting Associate Director, Human Rights Clinic; Faculty Advisor, Human Rights Program; Lecturer in Law, University of Miami School of Law
Donette Francis, Associate Professor; Director, Center for Global Black Studies, University of Miami
Jamarah Amani, Director, Southern Birth Justice Network
Erica Hall, Board of Directors Chair, Florida Food Policy Council
Cheryl Holder, Associate Professor, Florida International University
David Peery, Executive Director, Miami Coalition to Advance Racial Equity (MCARE)
Key Participants:
Erica Hall, Board of Directors Chair, Florida Food Policy Council
Ieshia Haynie, Executive Director, Overtown Optimist Club
Keith Ivory, Community Resident
Florence French Fagan, Senior Regional Organizer, Southeast, Bread for the World
Precious Makuyana, Mysun Foundation Fellow, Environmental Justice Clinic
Key Participants:
Rayna Milfort, Housing Program Manager, Miami Homes for All
David Peery, Executive Director, MCARE
Theresa Pinto, Founder, P.E.E.R. Group; Lecturer in Ecosystem Science and Policy, University of Miami
Rob Robinson, Senior Advisor, Partners for Dignity and Rights
Stephen Schnably, Professor of Law, University of Miami School of Law
CLIMATE JUSTICE
Facilitator: Nicole Crooks, Overtown Community Engagement Manager, Catalyst Miami; Community Resident
Key Participants:
Cheryl Holder, Associate Professor, Florida International University
Bereatha Howard, Climate Equity Program Coordinator, The CLEO Institute
Armen Henderson, Professor, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Founder of Dade County Street Response, Director of Health Programs with The Dream Defenders
Sierra Taliaferro, Community Outreach Associate, Southeast, Environmental Protection Network
MATERNAL HEALTH
Facilitator: Jordan Brooks, Human Rights Clinic Fellow, University of Miami School of Law
Key Participants:
Jamarah Amani, Director, Southern Birth Justice Network
Jose Filpo, Vice President of Community Programs, YWCA
Cortés Marià Lewis, Owner and Chief Motivational Advocate, CMLEnterprises, LLC Advocacy Consultant; Executive Board Member, MCARE
Okezi T. Otovo, Associate Professor and Principal Investigator, "The Black Mothers Care Plan," Center for Women’s and Gender Studies, Florida International University
Alison Yager, Executive Director, Florida Health Justice Project (FHJP)
GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE
Key Participants:
Viviana Alvarado Pacheco, Senior Research and Policy Manager, The Women’s Fund Miami-Dade
Francesco Duberli, Chief Executive Officer, Survivors Pathway
Rachel Gilmer, Co-Executive Director, Dream Defenders
Brother Lyle Muhammad, Executive Director, The Circle of Brotherhood
Rosa Pache, Director, AfroLatino Domestic Violence Program, Survivors Pathway
Elizabeth Regalado, Executive Director, Domestic Violence Oversight Board, Miami-Dade County
1:30 p.m. Lunch Break
Speakers & Artists:
Gary Allen, The HeArt Room
Abigail Fleming, Associate Director, Lecturer in Law, Environmental Justice Clinic; Faculty, Environmental Law Program, University of Miami School of Law
Rachel Komich, Buddy System MIA
Abbigail Wettstein, Legal Intern, Human Rights Clinic, University of Miami School of Law
Facilitator: Valencia Gunder, Co-Director, The Smile Trust; Exectuive Director, The Black Collective
Speakers:
Jason T. Smith, Director, Equity and Engagement, Office of Mayor Daniella Levine Cava
Timothy Mondloch, Editor-in-Chief, University of Miami Race and Social Justice Law Review
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