Twyla Carter, Attorney-in-Chief and Chief Executive Officer of The Legal Aid Society, recently sat down with Rolling Out for a wide-ranging Q&A about the organization’s work on behalf of low-income New Yorkers.

Carter was asked to reflect on what reimagining justice looks like for Black communities, as Legal Aid looks forward to its next 150 years.

“For Black communities, reimagining justice means recognizing that justice cannot begin and end in a courtroom,” Carter said. “True justice requires stable housing, economic opportunity, and educational pathways, not just a lawyer standing between someone and the system.”

“Our founders insisted access to the law shouldn’t depend on wealth, and the next 150 years should be about making sure representation, dignity and opportunity are foundational, not luxuries,” she continued. “Justice should be expected, not exceptional.”

Read the full piece here.