Activist Lawyer

Ep 130: Rainbow Afghanistan – defending the rights and dignity of the LGBTQI+ community

In today’s episode, Sarah is joined by activist Basira Paigham and legal officer, Ebrahim from ‘Rainbow Afghanistan.’ Learn more about the work of this impactful and vital organisation established to defend the rights, dignity and lives of members of Afghanistan’s LGBTQI+ community. 
Rainbow Afghanistan, is a non-profit organisation established to defend the rights, dignity, and lives of members of Afghanistan’s LGBTIQ+ community. The organisation’s work is rooted in decades of structural discrimination, criminalising laws, and deeply embedded cultural and traditional oppression that have made it extremely difficult for LGBTQ+ individuals including gay, bisexual, lesbian, transgender, intersex, non-binary, and queer people to live freely and safely in Afghanistan.
 
Social Media & Links
LinkedIn: Rainbow Afghanistan (Company Page)
Facebook: Rainbow Afghanistan
Instagram: @rainbowafghanistan
X (Twitter): @Afghani1Rainbow
Website: Rainbow Afghanistan https://rainbowafghanistan.com/ 

Ep 129: Writing is Resistance – with Dr Yousef Aljamal

Sarah is joined by Dr Yousef Aljamal on his visit to Ireland as Gaza co-ordinator at the American Friends Service Committee.  This discussion focuses on writing as a form of resistance from the perspective of a Palestinian growing up in Gaza at the hands of Israeli apartheid and oppression.  Dr Aljamal, in a candid conversation, shares how the genocide and decades of aggression impacted his family, friends and neighbours, focusing in particular on his mentor, colleague and friend – renowned Gaza poet – Refaat Alareer, author of ‘If I must Die.’
 
Yousef is a Palestinian writer, translator, and a refugee from Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. He recently completed his PhD at the Middle East Institute at Sakarya University. He also serves as the Gaza Coordinator for AFSC, supporting humanitarian work, peacebuilding, and advocacy for justice.
 
He is co-host of the PalCast podcast alongside Tony Groves, where they explore Palestinian history, politics, and lived experience through long-form conversations.
 
His writing spans both academic publications and international media platforms, including Al Jazeera, where he brings critical insight into the realities of life in Gaza. His work centres on Palestinian literature, resistance, and the lived realities of life under occupation and siege. Having endured multiple wars in Gaza, he brings both intellectual depth and lived experience to international audiences.
 
Central to this visit is his co-edited book, ‘If I Must Die’, a powerful collection honouring the life and legacy of Refaat Alareer—the Gaza poet, teacher, and mentor killed in an Israeli airstrike in December 2023.
 
The book takes its title from Alareer’s final poem, which has resonated globally as a testament to dignity, resistance, and the enduring power of words in the face of violence. Through poetry, essays, and reflections, it amplifies Palestinian voices and preserves cultural memory amid ongoing devastation.
 
Further reading:
Al Jazeera articles: https://www.aljazeera.com/author/yousef-m-aljamal
Academic profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=PD3iv-MAAAAJ&hl=en
AFSC- https://afsc.org/ 
 
Links to 'If I Must Die'
https://orbooks.com/catalog/if-i-must-die/ 
https://inthesetimes.com/article/refaat-alareer-israeli-occupation-palestine 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/If-Must-Die-Poetry-Prose/dp/1682196216
 
 

Ep 128: Beyond the Courtroom: Law, Language and Liberation with Ifé Thompson

In this episode of The Activist Lawyer, we’re joined by barrister Ifé Thompson, whose ground breaking work is reshaping criminal defence through a racial justice and linguistic lens. Ifé is the host of the Black British English Podcast and is widely recognised by communities and by her peers as a champion for linguistic, cultural and human rights.  From challenging the criminalisation of rap and drill lyrics in court to defending the cultural context of Black language, Ifé’s work pushes the boundaries of how the law understands evidence and harm. We also explore her wider advocacy as a movement lawyer and how centring community can transform legal practice. Links to cases, organisations, and Ife’s work are included in the show notes.
 
Ifé Thompson is a barrister at Nexus Chambers practising criminal defence, family law and human rights, nationally and internationally recognised for her pioneering work at the intersection of crime, racial justice, and human rights. Her practice focuses on youth justice, protest law, and racially aggravated matters, with a specialist emphasis on language-based injustice and the use of racial trauma within criminal defence matters. Her legal practice challenges how Black British English (BBE), African American Vernacular English (AAVE), and rap or drill lyrics are misrepresented in court as evidence of criminality rather than being recognised as cultural and linguistic rights.
 
She has transformed defence strategies by centring linguistic expertise and racial justice with now many lawyers using this strategy in their cases. In R v LZ (2024), she successfully defended a Black child prosecuted for using AAVE, and in R v L (2022), she successfully challenged the misinterpretation of Jamaican Patois by a non-linguist witness. In the widely publicised March 2025 “N-word trial,” she secured the withdrawal of charges against a Black woman accused of obscene communication for using the N-word, arguing that intra-community use of the term must be understood within its cultural and historical context.
 
She describes herself as a movement lawyer committed to confronting injustice at its roots. She treats the courtroom as a site of struggle in exposing state violence and systemic harm all while wielding legal tools in creative, disruptive ways. She believes the law, though shaped by oppressive systems, can be repurposed as a tool in the hands of communities fighting for liberation.
 
Prior to coming to the Bar, she founded two civil society organisations, one being BLAM UK, which supports Black cultural education and wellbeing alongside advocacy rights of Black children in UK schools and a legal observing group focused on protecting protest rights during Black Lives Matter. She was also a United Nations Human Rights Fellow in 2020 and continues to contribute to both international and domestic efforts to challenge systemic racism within the criminal justice system.
 
 
In April 2025, she was invited to deliver training to second-six pupils and junior tenants on challenging systemic racism in youth courts, as part of the Youth Practitioners’ Association. She was also commissioned to update the Youth Justice Legal Centre’s Rap & Drill Guide, introducing new sections on the criminalisation of Black language, relevant human rights arguments, and how to use international and ECHR case law when responding to challenges about the admissibility of expert evidence. The updated guide is now considered an authoritative resource for criminal defence practitioners.
 
Her presence on Legal Twitter has also had a significant professional impact. Lawyers frequently approach her in court after recognising her from social media, sharing how much they’ve learned from her case insights. Her tweets about the racial justice lens she applies in her criminal defence cases have led to requests from her peers for draft sentencing notes and strategic guidance when raising issues of race. These exchanges have contributed to a steady stream of professional instructions, recognition from her peers and have helped her grow a criminal practice grounded in accessibility and innovation.
She is also a member of the Art Not Evidence campaign and has spoken on Represent Radio on the issue of the criminalisation of Rap and Drill music.
Through her community organising and research, Ifé continues to champion linguistic rights and human rights. Her deep ties to her community give her a unique and grounded understanding of how systemic anti-Blackness operates, knowledge she uses to craft new and innovative legal arguments in the courtroom. Whether through challenging the racialised policing of language, integrating racial trauma experts into defence strategy, or advancing human rights frameworks in youth justice cases, Ifé’s creative legal approaches are rooted in real-world insight and community accountability. Her ability to synthesise grassroots realities in criminal matters allows her to challenge discrimination in powerful and effective ways that stand out within her criminal defence practice.
 
Her work has been recognised through prestigious nominations, including:
BBC! 1Xtra Future Figures Award 2025 Legal Aid Newcomer of the Year (Finalist), LALY Awards 2023Outstanding Individual Award, 2020, for contributions to racial justice in the criminal justice system.
Through innovative casework, strategic litigation, and public legal education, Ife Thompson is shaping a new and necessary direction for racial justice within criminal defence. 
 
R V LZ – Bromley Youth Court 2024 – Crown offered no evidence to racially aggravated charges against Black child who used the AAVE ( African American Vernacular English) terms “Nigga” and “Cracka”. Defence instructed an AAVE linguists and wrote length representation as to the importance of respecting and honouring Black Language speakers rights. The crown on the day of trial offered no evidence.
R v X, Wimbledon Magistrates Court 2023 – Defending on a case where the client was charged with calling a prospective Tory MP Candidate a “coon” on Twitter. The defence included complex human rights points on freedom of expression and Black political thought.
2024 – Currently being instructed on the N-Word Trial that has already gained media attention.
R v L (Magistrates Court) 2022Successfully raised issue of language injustice in closing speech as Crown sought to rely on a non-Jamaican patois speaker’s wrong interpretation of a word used by the defendant. Client was found not guilty.
 
R v LZ – Bromley Youth Court 2024 and other cases: https://nexuschambers.com/barristers/ife-thompson/
 
Instagram: @ifedior
 
Twitter: @fufuisonme
 
BLAM UK – https://blamuk.org/
 
The Black British English Podcast - https://open.spotify.com/show/2caDrziJlWOtppmAdXl5ss
 
Guardian Newspaper - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/21/black-student-police-cps-hate-speech-laws-n-word
 
ABC News Law Report (Australia)  - https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/lawreport/race-language-and-the-law/105012404
 
Hyphen Newspaper - https://hyphenonline.com/2025/03/07/case-dropped-over-black-muslim-womans-n-word-tweet-about-alexander-isak/
 
Canary Newspaper - https://www.thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2025/03/07/jamila-abdi-charges-dropped/
 
The Voice Newspaper - https://www.voice-online.co.uk/news/uk-news/2025/03/14/charges-dropped-against-black-woman-who-used-n-word-on-social-media/
 
 

Ep 127: Replay – Episode with Jude Copeland (ep 48)

We are delving into the archive and sharing this 2022 Activist Lawyer episode featuring solicitor Jude Copeland. Jude shares his journey into law, his practice as a legal technology specialist and his outstanding work with the LGBTQ+ community.  We chose to ‘replay’ this episode as it is full of brilliant anecdotes and stories showing how activists, campaigners and fearless people can help shape the law for our benefit inspiring Jude and others in the profession.  Enjoy!

Ep 126: Challenging the System: Jack Murphy on Article 2 inquiries, Housing and Prisoner Rights

In this episode, host Sarah speaks with solicitor Jack Murphy of McIvor Farrell Solicitors about his work across a broad range of human rights areas. From representing Raymond McCord Sr in the long-running campaign for an Article 2-compliant public inquiry into his son’s murder, to challenging unlawful housing decisions affecting refugees and social housing tenancy succession, Jack discusses the legal and emotional realities of working on challenging human rights cases.
 
The conversation also explores prisoner rights and cultural dignity following a case that led to Irish language books being permitted in Maghaberry Prison, the pressures facing access to justice and legal aid, and the wider human impact of housing and homelessness litigation. Jack reflects on standout moments in his career to date, his work with Belfast Homeless Services, and offers advice for aspiring lawyers hoping to use the law as a tool for social change.
 

Ep 125: Corporate Criminal Liability in Conflict Settings – with Roi Bachmutsky, Amnesty International.

In this episode of Activist Lawyer, host Sarah Henry speaks with Roi Bachmutsky from Amnesty International’s Business and Human Rights team about corporate criminal liability - how companies become implicated in international crimes, and what it takes to investigate and pursue those cases. From tracing supply chains to preparing criminal complaints, Roi unpacks how corporate accountability operates in practice.
 
Drawing on his experience, including his work with the Global Echo Litigation Centre - a small non-profit law firm he founded and led to focus on strategic litigation against companies implicated in war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territory, Roi reflects on a complaint linked to war crimes in the West Bank. He shares key lessons on gathering and assessing evidence, engaging ethically with law enforcement, and staying resilient in emotionally demanding work.
 
A thoroughly insightful and compelling conversation for anyone interested in working in this emerging field of law.
 
Roi Bachmutsky is a human rights attorney specializing in strategic litigation against corporate actors. He currently serves as a Legal Advisor and Researcher on Amnesty International’s Business and Human Rights team, where he manages the organization’s Corporate Crimes Project and recently authored the Corporate Crimes Handbook.
 
Before joining Amnesty, Roi co-founded and directed the Global Echo Litigation Center, a non-profit law firm that represents Palestinian communities in strategic litigation seeking to hold companies accountable for complicity in violations of international law in the occupied Palestinian territory. He has also supported prosecutions of the most serious international crimes at the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and the Commission for International Justice and Accountability.
 
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Roi worked for the Israeli human rights organisation Breaking the Silence.
 
For more on Roi Bachmutsky ’s work visit his website:
Roi Bachmutsky - International Lawyer

Ep 124: Activist Lawyer Book Club information

We kick off our first Activist Lawyer Book Club of 2026 – with ‘Through the Gates of Hell – American Injustice at Guantanamo Bay’ by Joshua Colangelo – Bryan.
 
Listeners to the podcast will remember a recent episode featuring lawyer and author , Joshua Colangelo – Bryan discussing his career in international human rights law, his role with Human Rights First and his latest publication which of course features as our first Book Club 2026 read!
 
 
Please join us if you can: info@activistlawyer.com 
 
Email us
Thursday 19th March 2026
6-7pm GMT
Via Zoom
 
 

Ep 123: Rap Lyrics and Racial Injustice in the Criminal Justice System: Keir Monteith KC on 'Art Not Evidence'

Host Sarah Henry interviews Keir Monteith KC from Garden Court Chambers, discussing his pivotal work with the Art Not Evidence campaign. Keir explores the use of rap lyrics as evidence in court, shining a light on the systemic racism that pervades the criminal justice system. He shares the story of Ademola Adedeji, an aspiring law student whose conviction for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm was quashed after new evidence revealed he had been wrongfully identified in a video in which drill music played. This case, part of the Manchester 10 appeal, underscores the urgent need for reform. Listen in and support the Art Not Evidence campaign, fighting for a fairer criminal justice system by advocating for a restriction on the use of creative and artistic expression as evidence in criminal trials.
Keir Monteith KC is a highly sought-after leading silk who represents clients facing heavyweight criminal allegations.
He has defended in numerous murders, industrial-scale Class A drug importations, high profile National Crime Agency cases, £100M frauds, multi-million-pound confiscations, escape from custody cases and heavily armed Organised Crime Group conspiracies.
Keir is ranked for criminal law in Chambers UK and the Legal 500. He is also ranked in Tier 1 for Fraud in the Legal 500. Keir is an Honorary Professor of Law and Simon Fellow at the University of Manchester. He is currently briefed in two murder cases; has obtained leave to appeal in a murder; is instructed in a high profile triple murder CCRC application and is briefed in a multi-handed Class A drugs conspiracy allegedly involving a machine gun, other firearms and a turnover of almost 1 metric tonne – 35M worth of cocaine.
Keir sits as a Recorder (part-time Crown Court Judge) and is a training tutor for the Judicial College.
 
Keir acted for Ademola Adedeji in his historic and ground-breaking appeal, where his conviction for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm was quashed in early 2025.
 
Links:
For more on Keir Monteith KC’s work:
https://gardencourtchambers.co.uk/barrister/keir-monteith-kc/
 
For super merchandise to support Art not Evidence: Art Not Evidence official store – Art Not Evidence shop
 
Art not Evidence Campaign
https://artnotevidence.org/

Ep 122: Lawyering for Liberation – talking about movement lawyers with Ameca Reali and Marbré Stahly-Butts

We are delighted to welcome two brilliant lawyers, Marbré Stahly-Butts and Ameca Reali, to the Activist Lawyer podcast. Talking to our host Sarah Henry, the discussion centres on movement lawyering - what it is, what it takes, and how lawyers can be forces for liberation. Marbré and Ameca have recently launched an excellent new book, Lawyering for Liberation: A Toolbox for Movement Lawyers -  an insightful, practical guide for lawyers and social justice workers who want to make real and meaningful change.
 
Marbré Stahly-Butts
Marbré Stahly-Butts is a distinguished lawyer, scholar, and leading voice in movement lawyering. She currently serves as an Associate Professor of Law at CUNY School of Law, where her teaching and research focus on abolition, racial justice, and law as a tool for transformative social change. Prior to academia, Marbré co-founded and served as Executive Director of Law for Black Lives, a national network of lawyers, legal workers, and advocates committed to advancing Black liberation through collective legal strategies. Her leadership in this movement lawyering community helped shape frameworks that centre abolitionist politics, Black feminist thought, and anti-capitalist critique in legal practice. Marbré’s professional journey includes work with grassroots organisations, policy development, and national campaigns to advance racial and economic justice, reflecting her commitment to building responsive legal infrastructure for social movements. She holds a J.D. from Yale Law School and has been a central figure in both scholarship and practice that bridges law, activism, and systemic change.
 
Ameca Reali
Ameca Reali is an accomplished civil rights attorney and nonprofit leader dedicated to housing justice, racial equity, and the empowerment of communities historically denied fair treatment under the law. She is the Executive Director of the Louisiana Fair Housing Action Centre, where she leads efforts to enforce fair housing laws and dismantle discrimination across the state of Louisiana. Before this role, Ameca was Membership Director at Law for Black Lives, where she built and strengthened a network of thousands of lawyers and legal workers committed to supporting Black liberation and movement lawyering. Her career spans over a decade of advocacy, including co-founding and directing community-based legal initiatives, and developing programs that address housing insecurity, economic justice, and systemic inequality. A graduate of Loyola University College of Law, Ameca brings both lived experience and deep professional expertise to her work advancing social justice and transformative legal practice.
 
About Lawyering for Liberation
Lawyering for Liberation: A Toolbox for Movement Lawyers is a timely and powerful manifesto offering concrete tools for legal professionals and activists engaged in struggle for justice. Edited by Marbré Stahly-Butts and Ameca Reali, the book draws on years of frontline movement work and collective insight from lawyers, organizers, and legal workers. Grounded in abolitionist politics, Black queer feminism, and anticapitalist analysis, this guide reframes lawyering not as an isolated profession but as a strategic part of broader social movements seeking liberation and systemic transformation. Topics include jail and bail support, protester defense, reparations, housing justice, and more — all oriented toward building long-term power and community-rooted change.
 
For more on Marbré and Ameca's work check out:
- https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Lawyering-for-Liberation-by-Ameca-Reali-editor-Marbre-Stahly-Butts-editor/9780520392359?srsltid=AfmBOop_GVO9v4PiRYNvAVAuoExGdCdAtksZYBJYr1rn7j4_nEUTOfBq
- https://www.instagram.com/amecareali?igsh=MThocHU1YWt3YWp4Ng==
-https://www.instagram.com/marbrecaryn?igsh=MWo4YTFzcWg2Z2Zieg==

Ep 121: Seeking Justice: Diarmuid Brecknell on Fighting for Victims of Historical Abuse and the Troubles

Activist Lawyer Podcast, host Sarah Henry sits down with Diarmuid Brecknell, solicitor at Phoenix Law, to discuss his pivotal role in securing justice for victims of historical abuse and families affected by the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Diarmuid shares his experience of working on inquests, inquiries, and actions against public authorities, and sheds light on his involvement in some of the most high-profile and sensitive cases in recent years. Tune in to hear about the challenges, triumphs, and the ongoing fight for accountability in some of the most complex legal battles in Ireland.
 
Diarmuid is a Solicitor in the Public Law, Inquests, and Inquiries Department at Phoenix Law. He completed his LLB at Ulster University before graduating from the Institute of Professional Legal Studies at Queen’s University Belfast in 2025. Diarmuid specialises in inquests, inquiries and actions against public authorities and is instructed in some of the most high-profile and sensitive cases in the jurisdiction. He also acts in several high-value civil claims arising from the actions of both public bodies and private organisations.
Diarmuid has assisted in some of the most contentious and complex legal challenges brought against public authorities in recent years. His experience includes involvement in the landmark Supreme Court case Re McGuigan & McKenna (the “Hooded Men”) and the Court of Appeal decision in Re Barnard (the “Glenanne Series”), which resulted in an order for a fresh investigation into more than 120 murders, Operation Denton. He is also instructed in the significant civil actions flowing from these matters and has played a key role in securing substantial settlements for victims and survivors in claims against the PSNI, MOD, and other state bodies.
Diarmuid’s extensive inquest and inquiry experience includes appearing in the historic Stardust Fire Inquest in Dublin, one of the largest and most complex inquests ever held in Ireland. Representing families who had campaigned for justice for over four decades, Diarmuid was part of the legal team that ultimately secured unlawful killing verdicts for all 48 victims, a landmark outcome that overturned 40 years of injustice and fundamentally reshaped public understanding of the tragedy.
Diarmuid’s experience also includes the Ballymurphy Inquest, which examined the deaths of ten civilians killed during the introduction of internment in 1971. After nearly five decades, the Coroner found that all of those who died were entirely innocent of wrongdoing and that their killings were unjustified and unlawful.
In addition, Diarmuid has worked on the Hickson Public Inquiry into historic child sexual abuse committed by Bill Kenneally in Waterford from 1970-1990s. Phoenix Law acted for survivors in their pursuit of transparency and accountability from institutions such as An Garda Síochána, Tusla, and the political leadership of the period, all of which had received reports of abuse but failed to intervene, allowing it to continue.
Diarmuid is also currently instructed by over 380 victims of Michael Shine, one of the largest and most significant institutional-abuse cases ever brought in the State. He has helped progress the matter from its earliest stages to its current point, where a government-led scoping exercise is now underway to determine the most suitable model for a formal public inquiry. Throughout this process, he has represented survivors before senior public officials, including the Taoiseach, ensuring that their voices and experiences remain at the centre of the emerging investigative framework.
Alongside his public law work, Diarmuid continues to act in multiple high-value civil claims and has experience in complex commercial litigation in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
 
For more on Diarmuid’s work, check out: https://www.phoenix-law.org/