2020 Peggy Browning Summer Fellows

2020 Peggy Browning Summer Fellows Maria DiGeorge JD’21 Temple University School of Law Philadelphia, PA International Labor Rights Forum Washington, DC Before going to law school to pursue a career in labor law, Maria worked on various political campaigns in the U.S. and Scotland. She also served as Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs for the Pennsylvania Department of State. She earned her master’s degree from the London School of Economics, where she studied international inequality. Maria was a Peggy Browning Fellow with United Steelworkers in 2019 and currently serves as co-chair of the Workers’ Rights Committee of Temple’s National Lawyers Guild chapter. She is active in the Sheller Center for Social Justice, where she represents low-wage workers and advocates for policy change in Philadelphia. James DeBoer JD’21 New York University School of Law New York, NY Cohen, Weiss & Simon LLP New York, NY Over the course of eight years as a community organizer and minister prior to law school, James came to understand how unfair employment conditions often undermine workers’ dignity and destabilize communities. In partnership with impacted parishioners and other ministers, he explored the challenges caused by inconsistent shift schedules at large retail establishments. Organizing with Latinx immigrants spotlighted the exploitative practices of anonymous middlemen and name-brand enterprises alike. Workers received too small a share of corporate earnings and had too little a voice in workplace management. In law school, James has represented an unemployment benefits claimant, co- founded a coalition of unions and students, and helped enforce New York State’s Labor Law with the office of the Attorney General. This summer James looks forward to learning more about the labor movement.  Jeremy DaCruz JD’22 Boston University School of Law Boston, MA Service Employees International Union (SEIU) In the wake of the 2008 financial crash, Jeremy developed an interest in workers’ rights and social justice more broadly through the Occupy Movement. In college, he attended rallies and tried to understand how economic inequality had become so extreme; he concluded that the neo-liberal attack on the labor movement was a major cause. That awareness led Jeremy to spend two years in Nicaragua working with people with disabilities, learn more about the macroeconomic causes of economic inequality, and volunteer with the UAW to help organize graduate workers. Those experiences deepened Jeremy’s commitment to the labor movement. He concluded that the best way to fight for workers’ rights and reduce economic inequality is to pursue union-side labor law. Jeremy hopes to stay in the Northeast and work as a labor lawyer.  Julie Daw JD’21 University of Pittsburgh School of Law Pittsburgh, PA American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) Washington, DC With a background in international affairs, Julie worked in international development for several years before law school. This experience helped her to better understand the need for international solidarity, and led her to pursue a law degree. In her 1L summer, Julie interned with Community Justice Project, where she helped represent workers experiencing wage theft. As a 2L, Julie worked with the United Steelworkers at the union’s headquarters. She is a research editor at the University of Pittsburgh Law Review , focusing on pregnancy discrimination, and a Pitt Graduate Student Organizing Committee member. Julie grew up in a union family, with her mother teaching for nearly 40 years as an AFT member. In the future, she hopes to use her law degree to support workers across international borders.