Peter Edelman

Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Public Policy

Georgetown University Law Center

Washington, DC, USA

Biography

Peter Edelman is the Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Public Policy at Georgetown University Law Center, where he teaches constitutional law and poverty law and is Faculty Director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality.

Peter has also served in all three branches of government. During President Clinton's first term, he was Counsellor to HHS Secretary Donna Shalala and Assistant Secretary for Planning & Evaluation. He has held numerous legislative positions, including serving as a Legislative Assistant to Senator Robert F. Kennedy. He was a Law Clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and worked in the U.S. Department of Justice as Special Assistant to Assistant Attorney General John Douglas.

Author of several books, his most recent is titled "Not a Crime to Be Poor: The Criminalization of America". He is the author of many articles on poverty, constitutional law, and issues pertaining to children and youth. His article in the Atlantic Monthly, titled "The Worst Thing Bill Clinton Has Done," received the Harry Chapin Media Award. Peter has chaired and served as a Board Member of many organizations and foundations and is currently Chair of the District of Columbia Access to Justice Commission and the National Center for Youth Law. Formerly, he was Board Chair of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy and the Public Welfare Foundation, Board President Emeritus of the New Israel Fund, and a board member of the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Center for American Progress Action Fund and a half dozen other nonprofit organizations.

He has been a United States-Japan Leadership Program Fellow, was the J. Skelly Wright Memorial Fellow at Yale Law School and has received numerous honors and awards for his work.

Peter Edelman’s Newsfeed

Fordham University Feerick Center for Social Justice Luncheon Speaker Series

Professor Peter B. Edelman, Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Public Policy and Director, Center on Poverty and Inequality, Georgetown Law, will be the featured speaker at the Feerick Center for Social Justice Luncheon Speaker Series event titled "Criminalization of Poverty: Three Intertwined Crises".

“Youth Opportunity Guarantee” Critical for U.S., Center on Poverty and Inequality Says

The Center on Poverty and Inequality is a leader in developing solutions to the education and employment challenges youth face, which it has identified as largely stemming from underfunded and disconnected secondary, postsecondary, and workforce systems. The status quo is not working for young people, the Center’s faculty director, Professor Peter Edelman told assembled advocates, policymakers and students at a recent event on campus. “We’ve made progress, but it’s not sufficient.”

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Peter Edelman’s Background

Georgetown University Law Center

Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Public Policy

1982 - Present

Washington, DC, USA

Peter teaches constitutional law and poverty law at Georgetown University Law Center, the second largest law school in the United States.

Georgetown Law, The Center on Poverty and Inequality

Faculty Director

1982 - Present

Washington, DC, USA

Georgetown University's Law School is the second largest law school in the United States.

Donna Shalala

Counsellor to HHS Secretary, Donna Shalala

Washington, DC, USA

Donna Shalala was appointed by President Bill Clinton to serve as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) where she served for eight years, becoming the longest serving HHS Secretary in U.S. history. A lifelong Democratic she has fought to improve the lives of others.

Clinton Administration

Assistant Secretary for Planning & Evaluation

Washington, DC, USA

Bill Clinton, a Democrat, was inaugurated as the 42nd President of the United States in 1993.

Georgetown University Law Center

Associate Dean

Washington, DC, USA

Georgetown University's Law School is the second largest law school in the United States.

University of Massachusetts

Vice President

Amherst, MA, USA

The University of Massachusetts is a world-class public research university, committed to advancing knowledge and transforming lives.

District of Columbia Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals

Law Clerk

Washington, DC, USA

The DC Court of Appeals is arguably the most important inferior appellate court. It has eleven active judgeships.

U.S. Department of Justice

Special Assistant to Assistant Attorney General John Douglas

Washington, DC, USA

The U.S. Department of Justice, also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the U.S. government, responsible for the enforcement of the law & administration of justice in the United States.

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Current Board Positions

The Districrt of Columbia Access to Justice Commission

Foundation Board President & Chair

Washington, DC, USA

The DC Access to Justice Commission seeks to increase significantly the resources for civil legal services, reduce barriers that prevent equal access to justice by low and moderate income residents, advocate for increased pro bono work by local attorneys & improve planning and coordination of legal services delivery.

National Center for Youth Law

President

Washington, DC, USA

The National Center for Youth Law (NCYL) is a non-profit law firm that helps low-income children achieve their potential, by transforming the public agencies that serve them.

Previous Board Positions

Center for Law and Social Policy

Board Member

Washington, DC, USA

Center for Law and Social Policy, CLASP, is a national non-partisan anti-poverty non-profit, advancing policy solutions for low income people. They develop practical and visionary strategies for reducing poverty, addressing barriers faced by people of color and promoting economic opportunity.

The US-Japan Leadership Program

Program Fellow

Washington, DC, USA

The purpose of the U.S.-Japan Leadership Program (USJLP) is to develop a network of communication, friendship & understanding among the next generation of leaders in each country. The relationship between two of the world’s most powerful democracies and economies has become so complex and broad-ranging , that it is beyond the ability of governments or specialists to manage.

Yale Law School

J. Skelly Wright Memorial Fellow

New Haven, CT, USA

Yale Law School is one of the world’s premier law schools. It offers an unmatched environment of excellence & educational intimacy in a world renowned faculty, with small classes, limitless opportunities for clinical training and strong encouragement of public service.

New York State Division for Youth

Director

New York, NY, USA

The Division for Youth engages in help and support for young people and gives access to justice.

American Constitution Society for Law and Policy

Board Chair

Washington, DC, USA

American Constitution Society for Law & Policy, ACS, is a leading progressive legal organization with student and lawyer chapters across the nation.

Public Welfare Foundation

Board Chair

Washington, DC, USA

Public Welfare Foundation has adapted to meet the challenges of changing times through its mission to advance justice and opportunity for people in need.

New Israel Fund

Board President Emeritus

Washington, DC, USA

New Israel Fund, NIF, is the leading organization advancing democracy and equality for all Israelis, based on the founders of Israel's vision.

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Philanthropy

RFK / Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

Board Member

New York, NY, USA

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, founded in 1968, is led by human rights activist and lawyer Kerry Kennedy and advocates for a more just and peaceful world. Working alongside local activists to ensure lasting positive change in governments and corporations, the RFK team includes leading attorneys, advocates, entrepreneurs and writers united by a commitment to social justice.

Center for American Progress Action Fund

Trustee Advisory Board

Jan 1990 - Present

Washington, DC, USA

The Center for American Progress Action Fund is an independent, non-partisan policy institute and advocacy organization dedicated to improving the lives of all Americans, through bold, progressive ideas, as well as strong leadership and concerted action.

Media

Robert F. Kennedy: Ripples of Hope

Panel Moderator

May 2018

Washington, DC, USA

Peter Edelman, Georgetown law professor and former advisor to Senator Robert F. Kennedy, moderated a panel on Kerry Kennedy’s new book ‘Robert F. Kennedy: Ripples of Hope’, a collection of interviews with world leaders, activists, and celebrities about her father’s influence.

After Words with Peter Edelman

Interview

Nov 2017

Washington, DC, USA

Professor Peter Edelman talked about his book 'Not a Crime to Be Poor', in which he argues that courts are exploiting the poor by charging excessive fines and fees for minor crimes. He was interviewed by Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA).

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Publications

Not a Crime to Be Poor The Criminalization of Poverty in America

Author

Winner of a special Robert F. Kennedy Book Award. Former New York Times columnist Bob Herbert writes, “If there is one essential book on the great tragedy of poverty and inequality in America, this is it.”

So Rich, So Poor | Why It's So Hard to End Poverty in America

Author

Peter Edelman's book explains that if the nation’s gross national income of over $14 trillion were divided evenly across the entire U.S. population, every household could call itself middle class. Yet the income-level disparity in this country is now wider than at any point since the Great Depression.

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Speaking Engagements

1968 Poor People's Campaign Organizers

Panel Member

Jul 2018

Washington, DC, USA

Peter Edelman, former staffer to Robert F. Kennedy, and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee founding member Bernard Lafayette spoke at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign.

Lecture by Peter Edelman: "Not A Crime To Be Poor: The Criminalization of Poverty in America"

Speaker

Apr 2018

South Bend, IN, USA

In a lecture sponsored by the Center for Ethics and Culture and presented at the University of Notre Dame, Peter Edelman discusses his book "Not A Crime To Be Poor: The Criminalization of Poverty in America".

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