Amici Podcast

In this Veterans Day episode of Diversity Dialogues, a production of the New York State Unified Court System’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion, we explore leadership, service and camaraderie from the perspective of a woman who followed an unlikely path to become an Army medic, treating Wounded Warriors during Operation Desert Storm, and then an equally unlikely path to become the first Black woman ever to serve as Deputy District Executive and now District Executive in the Eighth Judicial District.

Ms. Moore discusses her journey, the influence of Buffalo area role models such as judges Wilbur Trammell, Samuel Green, Rose Sconiers, Shirley Troutman, Jeanette Ogden and Kevin Carter, and her commitment to lifting as she climbs.

“It's very important that to the best of my ability, I make myself available to anyone who wants to speak to me, who I'm able to assist in moving forward, to the youth who come after us,” Ms. Moore said. “Every one of us has someone who was behind us, who has made it easier for us to get where we're going. And it is due to their hard work, their sacrifice, their willingness to lift as you climb.”

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-11/Tasha%20Moore.pdf

In a new Diversity Dialogue podcast, Rafael Dilones, the Clerk of Richmond County Family Court and the child of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, reveals that as a child he questioned whether he was fully American, even though, as a natural born citizen, he’s as American as George Washington. He simply didn’t see anyone who looked like him in authority positions.

“When I was in grade school, none of my teachers were of color,” Rafael said. “They were all great teachers and very encouraging, but I didn't see anyone that looked like me, and I think that matters. When I saw people on TV, the people that had the power did not look like me, and the people that were marginalized, they were the people that looked like me. Representation matters so, so much, especially to the young kids. They need to see that not only are we a member of this society, but we have a lot to contribute.”

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-10/Rafael-Dilonas-FINAL.pdf

It's hard to imagine anyone having a better grasp of the history of the Office of Court Administration than Legislative Counsel Marc Bloustein -- for the simple reason that Marc is the history of the OCA. Marc was there at the start of OCA and, in his 50-year career, has served under every Chief Administrative Judge in state history.

In this wide-ranging and insightful interview, Marc discusses the origins and evolution of statewide court management - and reveals some tidbits that only an insider would know. Marc is retiring Sept. 26.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-09/Marc%20Bloustein%20FINAL.pdf

For today's Diversity Dialogue segment, we're going to commemorate National Wellness Month, albeit just a little bit late, with a program that will largely focus on legal, judicial, and court workforce practice. Our guest is Dr. Aimée Neri Gueye of the Office for Justice Initiatives, Child Welfare and Family Justice Division.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-09/AimeeNeri.pdf

#wellness #traumainformed #circlekeepers #cwcip #icwa

In a special co-production of the Historical Society of the New York Courts and Amici, the podcast program of the NYS Unified Court System, an insightful panel discusses with Host John Caher the growth of the Latino Judges Association, a little known case that ended school desegregation in California and set the stage for future civil rights victories, an upcoming inaugural moot court competition, and the differences between bilingual education and English as a Second Language (ESL).

Three sitting judges – Supreme Court Justices Patria Frias-Colón and Wilma Guzman and Court of Claims Judge Linda Mejias-Glover – and Daniel O. Sierra of the Historical Society offer insight and perspective.

Video: https://youtu.be/ZeAFOMc3foU

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-08/Mendez%2024-edited.pdf

In this latest podcast production by the NY Courts Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Today we have a program like no other, because we have a guest like no other.

Nicole "Nicky" Hylton is a new Deputy Director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and Special Projects Coordinator, but that doesn't begin to tell the story of a "queer" Black woman who grew up with functionally illiterate parents in Jamaica and brought her remarkable experience and two master's degrees to the NYS Unified Court System.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-08/Nicky%20Hylton.pdf

In this Amici podcast, we introduce you to the three chairs of the NYS Permanent Commission on Access to Justice -- Helaine M. Barnett, the Grand Dame of the Access to Justice movement, Supreme Court Justice Christina Ryba and Acting Supreme Court Justice Shahabuddeen A. Ally.

Transcript: Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-07/A2J.pdf

Thirty-four years ago today, President George Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act, the world's first comprehensive declaration of equality for people with disabilities.

Our guest today is a young woman with a very special perspective on the doors that were opened, literally, by the ADA, and a painfully special insight into the consequences of inner-city gun violence.

Her name is Rolanda “Dolly” Coleman, a soon to be second year law student at Fordham Law School, who was interning this summer with the New York City Criminal Court.

Rolanda was only 17 years old and living in public housing in East New York when she was shot three times in a stairwell, paralyzing her and leaving her to navigate life in a wheelchair.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-07/Rolanda.pdf

In this podcast, Diego Santiago, a court attorney/ referee in the NY Courts, discusses his journey as a gay Puerto Rican, the meaning of "Pride," why he prefers "queer" to "gay," the concepts of "social justice" and “Nuyorican,” explains why gay men often identify with non-gay strong women like Madonna, Cher, Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand -- and even entertains us by singing a stanza from "I Will Transform" by Pax Ressler.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/files/2024-06/Diego%20Santiago%20final.pdf

In a new Diversity Dialogue podcast, the Hon. John Zhuo Wang, a Criminal Court Judge in New York City, discusses the persecution and oppression his family suffered at the hands of the communists in China, his early battles with anti-Asian discrimination, his realization that his ethnic group is just as capable of racial bias as other groups – and his insightful reflections on what makes for a good judge, summed up in one word: humility.

Transcript: https://ww2.nycourts.gov/doc/37426