The historical exhibit above was shown at the 1999 Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association

[You can view the photos and text from the above exhibit on the Library's main website by clicking on "ABA EXHIBIT."]            

THE NATIONAL EQUAL JUSTICE LIBRARY'S  

PERMANENT HISTORICAL DISPLAY

        The National Equal Justice Library has a museum area containing permanent exhibits portraying the history of the development of civil legal services for the poor in the United States, and in another section the history of indigent criminal defense.  Both displays combine documents, photographs, graphics, and explanatory text to tell a story.  So in just 15 or 20 minutes a visitor to the Library can gain an overview of both of these important movements.

PORTABLE HISTORICAL EXHIBITS

        We recognize, however, that only a relative few will be able to come to our reading room at Washington College of Law.  So the National Equal Justice Library has begun developing portable historical exhibits it can offer to conferences and schools and organizations that might be interested in learning more about how far we have come in achieving equal justice for all -- and how far we have yet to go.

        The first opportunity for the Library to mount such a historical exhibit came when the American Bar Association chose the theme for its 1999 Annual Convention to be held in Atlanta, Georgia.  The ABA selected  as that theme the "Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of the creation of the Legal Services Corporation."  In July of 1974, President Richard Nixon had signed the Legal Services Corporation Act of 1974--in what turned out to be the last bill-signing before his resignation from office.  The ABA annual convention was held in August, 1999, and thus within a month of the 25th anniversary of Nixon's signature creating the Legal Services Corporation.

EXHIBITS AT 1999 ANNUAL ABA AND NLADA CONVENTIONS

       The National Equal Justice Library agreed to prepare a historical exhibit for the 1999 ABA Annual Meeting reflecting the American Bar Association's long support of legal assistance for the poor and especially its crucial role in both helping to create and then protecting the Legal Services Corporation. The Library selected documents and photographs from its permanent historical displays.  It then wrote text explaining the events portrayed in those documents and photos and assembled a portable display that conveyed the highlights of the eighty years the ABA has been supporting equal justice for poor people.  Consistent with the theme of the 1999 convention, two-thirds of the exhibit focused on the last quarter century.  It showed the ABA's instrumental role in creating the Legal Services Corporation, then supporting its expansion and more recently protecting it from political attacks. (The ABA display is pictured in the photo above.)

        The NEJL's historical exhibit attracted great interest at the 1999 ABA Annual Meeting.  For the first three days, it was prominently featured outside the main room used for large receptions and dinners where it could be viewed by hundreds of lawyers attending these events.  The ABA staff then moved it to the main foyer when President Clinton appeared for his keynote speech.  This made the exhibit accessible to the thousands of lawyers attending the cake-cutting ceremony commemorating the 25th birthday of the Legal Services Corporation.

        In November, 1999, the National Equal Justice Library transported this same exhibit to the Annual Convention of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, held in Long Beach, California.  Even though most of those attending the NLADA Convention were legal services lawyers and public defenders they too learned a great deal about their own history from the NEJL exhibit. (You can view the text and photos from this exhibit by clicking on "ABA EXHIBIT" below.)

THE NATIONAL EQUAL JUSTICE LIBRARY INVITES

REQUESTS FOR PORTABLE HISTORICAL DISPLAYS

AT OTHER CONVENTIONS, SCHOOLS, AND OTHER LOCATIONS 

        In the future, the National Equal Justice Library expects to make similar historical exhibits available to others.  Although the first two exhibits appeared at conferences of lawyers, the Library's displays are designed to be equally intelligible and interesting to students and average citizens.

        If you or a school or an organization with which you are affiliated would be interested in a historical exhibit about the history of equal justice in the United States, please contact Robert Forman, the Library's Archivist at nejl@wcl.american.edu or at: (202)- 274-4320.