Lisa Holder, President of the Equal Justice Society, announced a new advisory board of advocates, leaders, and creatives that will further strengthen EJS’s leadership and assist the organization’s growth as a racial justice leader.
The EJS advisory board members are:
- Ellen Barry, attorney and one of the nation’s leading prisoners’ rights advocates, founder of Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, based in Oakland, Calif.
- John Bonifaz, attorney and co-founder and President of Free Speech For People, former member of EJS board of directors, based in Amherst, Mass.
- Ernest Crim III, social justice influencer, advocate, and educator, based in Chicago, Ill.
- Eric Gibbs, Gibbs Law Group LLP – founding attorney of a law firm combating corporate misconduct with class actions and mass actions, based in Oakland, Calif.
- Kim Kruckel – retired executive director of the Child Care Law Center, based in Berkeley, Calif.
- Seith Mann, award-winning TV and film director based in Atlanta, Ga.
- Nate Smith, Partner at Brown, Neri, Smith & Khan LLP, trial lawyer experienced in complex commercial litigation, based in Los Angeles, Calif.
“The new EJS advisory board members are all leaders in their respective fields and individuals who share our commitment to racial justice,” said Holder. “The advisory board will complement our board of directors and staff in advancing our mission by sharing with us their experience and expertise.”
The Equal Justice Society is transforming the nation’s consciousness on race through law, social science, and the arts. EJS’s legal strategy aims to broaden conceptions of present-day discrimination to include unconscious and structural bias by using social science, structural analysis, and real-life experience. Currently, EJS targets its advocacy efforts on school discipline, special education, and the school-to-prison pipeline, race-conscious remedies, and inequities in the criminal justice system. The Oakland, Calif.-based nonprofit also engages the arts and artists in creating work and performances that allow wider audiences to understand social justice issues and struggles.
Ellen Barry is a longtime racial and social justice activist who lives in Oakland, Calif. She is currently senior Consultant for Women & Justice Issues. She founded Legal Services for Prisoners with Children in 1978, an organization focusing on the impact of the criminal legal system on incarcerated parents, their children and families. She has also co-founded National Network for Women in Prison, California Coalition for Women Prisoners, Critical Resistance and the Circle for Justice Innovations, and has been ED of two restorative justice organizations. She is a Senior Soros Justice Fellow (1997), a MacArthur Fellow (1998) and, as one of 1000PeaceWomen, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize (2005/2008.) She has written and spoken extensively on incarcerated parents and their children.
John Bonifaz is a constitutional attorney and the co-founder and President of Free Speech For People, a national non-profit organization dedicated to defending our democracy and our Constitution across the country. Mr. Bonifaz previously served as the executive director and general counsel of the National Voting Rights Institute, an organization he founded in 1994, and as the legal director of Voter Action, a national election integrity organization. He has been at the forefront of key voting rights and democracy campaigns in the United States for more than three decades. Mr. Bonifaz is a 1992 cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School and a 1999 recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship. He was a founding member of the EJS board of directors and transitioned off the board in January 2025.
Ernest Crim III is an Emmy-nominated producer, author and award-winning public educator who bridges cultural gaps and promotes social justice by facilitating workshops, writing, and creating content that centers overlooked historical narratives. Through his social media platforms, he reaches more than 5 million people a month and has partnered with companies and organizations such as CBS, HBO, HULU, Disney, Paramount, and the History Channel to advance justice-related historical narratives. Additionally, as a former classroom teacher and current CEO of Crim’s Cultural Consulting LLC, he has spoken at Harvard University, the University of Chicago, Crate & Barrel, Microsoft, Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp, and audiences in the U.K. and Canada. Mr. Crim has worked with EJS and Where is My Land to advocate for reparations, educational and political equity, mental health awareness, and food justice, among various other issues. Ernest currently resides in the Chicago area with his wife and four daughters.
Eric Gibbs is an attorney and the founder of Gibbs Law Group LLP, an Oakland, Calif.-based firm with a nationwide practice holding corporations accountable for misconduct. He has represented plaintiffs, often regular people who would otherwise not be able to afford legal counsel, in hundreds of class actions and large-scale cases in the areas of personal injury, consumer protection, data breach and privacy matters, and employee rights. In almost 30 years of practice, he has recovered more than two billion dollars for his clients. Eric is deeply committed to advancing equity both inside and outside his firm. Mr. Gibbs is an active member of the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), a nonprofit dedicated to stopping exploitative practices against low-income consumers. From his work with NCLC and understanding that diversity must be the cornerstone of providing excellent representation to plaintiffs, he recently launched Gibbs Law Group’s 1L Diversity Fellowship, a highly selective, paid fellowship that helps expand the pipeline for students with a diversity of backgrounds and experiences to gain exposure to plaintiff-side litigation.
Kim Kruckel has been an activist and organizer for 40 years. She believes the knowledge and experience of people affected by social and racial injustice are the foundation for more fair policies and practices. Ms. Kruckel recently retired from the Child Care Law Center, where she was executive director for twelve years.. During her tenure, the Law Center reformed rules and laws that were rooted in discrimination based on race or ability. Ms. Kruckel began her career as a community organizer. Before joining the Child Care Law Center, Ms. Kruckel helped struggling parents to organize Parent Voices to win more affordable child care, and worked at Legal Aid at Work to implement the nation’s first Paid Family Leave program. She earned her JD at the University of San Francisco.
Seith Mann is an award-winning writer, director, and producer. He directed and executive produced every episode of the multiple Emmy Award-winning series #FREERAYSHAWN. He was the co-creator/co-showrunner/executive producer of the scripted series, THE BREAKS. To date, he has written and directed one pilot and directed another four – all of which have gone to series. He has directed over fifty episodes of television including episodes of THE WIRE, RAISING DION, and HOMELAND. As an active member of the Directors Guild of America and Co-Chair of the DGA’s Eastern Diversity Steering Committee, Mr. Mann advocates for policies and practices that amplify diversity, equity, and inclusion within the film and television industry.
Nathan Smith lives in Los Angeles and is a Partner at the law firm of Brown, Neri, Smith & Khan LLP. Brown, Neri, Smith and Khan formed in 2014 and certified by the National Minority Supplier Development Council as a minority business enterprise. Mr. Smith’s practice is focused on employment-related civil rights litigation. His practice has produced winning multi-million-dollar jury verdicts, judgments, and arbitration awards, in addition to favorable settlements. Mr. Smith graduated with highest honors and Order of the Coif after receiving a full-tuition merit scholarship to the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law. He received his Bachelor of Arts with honors in political science from Northwestern University. Before law school, Mr. Smith was a member, coach, and assistant director for the Northwestern Intercollegiate Debating Team, which won multiple National Debate Tournament Championships during his tenure. He is humbled and inspired by his clients to work for equal justice.