“I raise up my voice—not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back.”
Malala Yousafzai
Brittany Gail Thomas, Esq. (BGT) is a former zealous public defender turned assistant director, adjunct professorial lecturer, trainer, and coach. She was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago. She graduated from Lincoln Park High School (Chicago, IL) with an International Baccalaureate degree. BGT graduated from Howard University (Washington, DC) where she majored in Communication & Culture and graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Arts. After Howard, BGT went to American University Washington College of Law (Washington, DC) where she focused on criminal defense and trial advocacy. BGT attained various awards and honors throughout her education.
She went on to serve indigent clients in her role as a public defender. She started her career at the Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Practice (Brooklyn, NY) and later worked at the Office of the Public Defender (Baltimore, MD). After years as a public defender, BGT returned to her law school alma mater and the program that helped her be a successful advocate – the Stephen S. Weinstein Trial Advocacy Program. There, she was the Assistant Director of Student Competition Teams and an adjunct professorial lecturer, coach, and trainer. BGT even authored a case file used at a prestigious mock trial competition.
BGT is a champion for racial and social justice, students, and womxn. As an attorney of color, she created a support system for other attorneys of color. As a law school administrator and professor, she’s created a safe space for students and womxn of color. She is proud to join the National Womxn of Color Collective as the Director of Communications in its efforts to create a safe space for womxn of color to grow, thrive, and connect.
My journey to the US and my life as an immigrant and woman of color in the US.
Sabrina Putri is an Indonesian lawyer who came to the US in 2016. She wanted to become a lawyer since she was young when she accompanied her mother to court for her divorce proceedings without the assistance of an attorney because her mother could not afford it. She secured both public and private scholarships and moved from a small island, Bali, to a big city near the Indonesian capital of Jakarta to pursue her bachelor of law, where she graduated Cum Laude from the University of Indonesia.
She decided to come to the US to follow her dream to be an international lawyer. In 2018, she graduated with her Master of Laws (LL.M) from the University of Southern California (USC) Gould School of Law, where she immediately began her Juris Doctor (JD) program at USC. Throughout her JD program, Sabrina deepened her knowledge in the immigration field by writing a paper regarding the due process clause and the treatment of detainees with mental health conditions as a 2019-2020 fellow in the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy and Ethics Program. Sabrina was a Policy Director of the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) 2019-2020, a Project Director of the Court Monitoring Project IRAP 2020, and a student representative at the USC Immigration Clinic 2019-2020.
Currently, she is a student attorney at the USC International Human Rights Clinic and a senior submission editor at the Southern California Review of Law and Social Justice. Coming from a developing country and a first-generation immigrant, Sabrina has faced many struggles in the US. She believes the NWOCC will be a place where women of color, especially immigrants, can share their experiences, support each other, and address social justice issues without being afraid to be judged. Sabrina is excited to connect with women of color across the nations in NWOCC!
We look forward to the amazing work that these womxn of color will do for the NWOCC community!