At the ACLU-DC, days can often blur into each other amidst the frenzy of protecting civil liberties. But we always knew it was a Wednesday when Larry Pearl, our longtime volunteer, would appear in the morning to help our Legal department screen through the hundreds of requests for legal help we receive each year.

On November 8, we will honor Larry with the Adrienne and Alan Barth Volunteer Award at our Bill of Rights Celebration to recognize his 22 years of volunteering with the ACLU-DC.

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Larry’s interest in civil rights and civil liberties began during his years at Antioch College in Ohio as he was searching for housing as a student. Landlords suddenly had no availability when he and two fellow students, one white and one Ghanaian, would show up in person to see the rental. This first sparked his interest in housing discrimination issues.

As a D.C. resident during work-study jobs as an Antioch student, he witnessed the results of landmark civil rights victories such as the fall of racially restrictive housing covenants following the 1948 Supreme Court decision in Hurd v. Hodge, a challenge to racial covenants in Bloomingdale. Five years later, Larry was at the Supreme Court on June 8, 1953, when the District of Columbia v. Thompson decision was handed down. The unanimous decision in that case, brought when a white cafeteria owner refused to serve Black patrons at his 14th St. restaurant, ended racial segregation in public places in the District. In the early 60s, Larry worked with a nonprofit group called Neighbors Incorporated to counter the effects of blockbusting in then-mostly-white Brightwood.

After a year-long fellowship at Harvard followed by graduation from Yale Law School, Larry worked for a D.C. law firm for a year before embarking on a 37-year legal career in the federal government. His first position, in 1961, was in the General Counsel’s Office at the Housing and Home Finance Agency, which became the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1965. His work at HUD advancing nondiscrimination laws and fair housing practices across the country mirrored his work on the ground in his own neighborhood.

Following the passage of the Fair Housing Act in 1968, Larry became the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Equal Opportunity (later the Assistant Secretary for Equal Opportunity and Fair Housing) and eventually became a member of the Senior Executive Service before retiring as the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Program Operations and Compliance in 1998.

But retirement is when Larry’s ACLU career began. After meeting Mary Jane DeFrank, then the Executive Director of the ACLU of the National Capital Area (as the ACLU-DC was called then) at a dinner party in 1999, Larry started volunteering at the office on 20th Street, just off Dupont Circle.

If you’ve ever sought legal assistance from the ACLU-DC, you might have talked to Larry. Over the years he’s spoken with thousands of people about issues when they feel their rights have been violated. From federal government employees who've suffered discrimination by their employers, to D.C. residents who have experienced harassment, abuse, and intimidation by D.C. Police, to individuals incarcerated at the D.C. Jail seeking legal help, Larry has been a patient listener to every person's call for help for over 20 years.

When he’s not volunteering, Larry enjoys Bridge and word games, and still attends Supreme Court decision days in the spring, just as he did in 1953.

Larry’s lifelong commitment to civil rights and civil liberties inspires all of us. Thank you, Larry Pearl, for your enduring service to the civil rights of Americans across the country and the D.C. community.

ACLU of the District of Columbia's Bill of Rights Celebration honors outstanding people in our community who fight to advance civil liberties and rights. This year, we’ll be celebrating our 60th anniversary as well as some very worthy awardees, one being Samantha Davis and Black Swan Academy. 

Samantha Davis and Black Swan Academy (BSA) are receiving the Henry W. Edgerton Civil Liberties Award. This award is named after Judge Henry W. Edgerton, a professor of law appointed to the US Court of Appeals in D.C. by President Roosevelt.  He served for 30 years and left behind a legacy of excellence. This award is given to someone who, like Judge Edgerton, has an unwavering commitment to justice as well as a strong character and a warm heart.  

 Samantha Davis founded Black Swan Academy in 2013 to create a pipeline of Black youth civic leaders. The young people of Black Swan Academy, as a collective, also have the distinction of being the youngest-ever recipient of the Edgerton Award – an achievement that is very well deserved! 

Fighting to end the school-to-prison pipeline in D.C., Samantha Davis and Black Swan Academy empower Black youth in under-served communities through civic leadership and engagement. Samantha and BSA’s members are leading voices in the urgent conversation around policing reform in D.C., especially through successful advancements in their Police Free Schools Campaign. 

One of their many advancements was in the summer of 2021, when BSA successfully lobbied the D.C. Council to remove police from schools.  As a result, the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety voted unanimously to phase out – with the intention of eventually eliminating – school resource officer programs in D.C. between 2022 and 2025. An ACLU report, Cops and No Counselors showed that schools with police reported 3.5 times as many arrests of children as schools without police, and have higher rates of suspensions and expulsions. They are frequently forcing students with disabilities and students of color to be sent into the criminal legal system. This shift that BSA pushed for the Council to implement will be important for Black and brown students (Black girls especially), students with disabilities, and LGBTQ students, who are disproportionately harmed by police in schools. 

In addition to being the Founder, Samantha Davis is also the Executive Director of BSA. She currently serves on the Black Women & Girls Advocacy Taskforce and the Self Development of People national committee of Presbyterian Church USA. Her work has been recognized by American University, Pittsburgh Public Schools, Boys & Girls Club of Greater Washington, the National Urban League, and among Essence's 2019 Woke100. 

Samantha believes that everyone has the innate ability to succeed, but they must be given the opportunity to do so. We think Black Swan Academy does exactly that. These awardees and more will be honored on November 8 at 7 p.m., where we’ll look back on 60 years of civil rights litigation and advocacy at one of the ACLU’s key affiliates and share in our hope for the future alongside our honorees, staff, and members. Make sure you rsvp for the event today!