We know that one of the best ways to retain and advance attorneys of color is to foster a vibrant and diverse legal community, both in the workplace and beyond.
That’s why Twin Cities Diversity in Practice (TCDIP) invests in initiatives that facilitate personal connections between attorneys at Member Organizations. From our casual and fun Summer Social to more formal professional networking events, TCDIP provides many opportunities to build personal and professional community.
Summer Alliance
The annual Summer Alliance provides an opportunity for all attorneys of color and allies to have fun, connect with friends, and expand personal and professional networks. The Summer Alliance tradition began more than 15 years ago with a casual crawfish boil and has since grown in size and scope. We now invite local affinity bar organizations to join us in the fun. This event is open to all attorneys, regardless of TCDIP membership. This is primarily a social and networking event with no formal programming. With close to two hundred attorneys and guests attending each year, this is our premier social and networking event and a great way to reconnect with colleagues and forge new relationships. Join us!
Women of Color in the Law Socials
In the summer of 2021, TCDIP partnered with Minnesota Women Lawyers to organize small community gatherings across the Twin Cities. For one week two times per year, volunteers host small groups in backyards, restaurants, and parks to foster community, camaraderie, and conversation. Meeting in small, casual settings helps women of color in the legal industry get to know their colleagues and connect over shared experiences.
Women of Color in the Law Forum
The Women of Color in the Law Forum is an event focused on women of color building community and lifting each other up. We welcome all women-identified and gender-non-binary people of color and allies to join us. In 2015, the Minnesota Asian Pacific American Bar Association (MNAPABA) Women’s Committee, under the leadership of Cynthia Lee at Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath and Loan Huynh at Fredrikson & Byron, began an annual event for women attorneys of color which has now become the Women of Color in the Law Forum. Now in its sixth year, the event has grown to a twice-yearly program co-organized in partnership with several affinity bar organizations (Minnesota Women Lawyers, Hmong American Bar Association, Minnesota American Indian Bar Association, Minnesota Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers, Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association, Minnesota Lavender Bar Association, and Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers). The event features a keynote speaker and interactive discussion circles focused on issues relevant to women of color. Discussion topics have included grit, generational wealth access, impostor syndrome, building your brand, and balancing work responsibilities with cultural expectations for caretaking. This event is not only an opportunity to learn and network—it is an opportunity for over one hundred women of color in the law to gather and connect with each other.
