Nekima Levy-Pounds

Nekima Valdez Levy-Pounds (born June 27, 1976) is an American lawyer, professor, activist, writer, and preacher. She served as president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP from 2015–2016 and also serves on and has founded a variety of organizations that focus on issues of racial equality and disparity in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area.

Levy-Pounds was an associate professor of law at the University of St. Thomas (UST) in Minneapolis from 2003 to 2016. After leaving her position at UST and concluding her term as Minneapolis NAACP president, she announced her intention to run for mayor of Minneapolis in the 2017 election as a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL). Levy-Pounds writes for several local publications including the Star Tribune and MinnPost and has been recognized for her legal work, including being named 2015 Attorney of the Year by Minnesota Lawyer.

Early life

Nekima Valdez Levy-Pounds was born on June 27, 1976 in Jackson, Mississippi, the eldest sister of five.^[1][2][3] She moved to Los Angeles after spending the first eight years of her life in Mississippi, and later attended school in Massachusetts.^[2][4] She received her BA from the University of Southern California and her J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law.^[5] Levy-Pounds lived in Los Angeles until 2003 when she moved to Minnesota.^[6]

Teaching and activism

Levy-Pounds began teaching law as an associate professor at the University of St. Thomas (UST) in Minneapolis in 2003.^[4][6][7] In her research, she has focused on the War on Drugs, incarceration, mandatory sentencing, and sentencing guidelines, primarily as they affect women and children of color, but also young black men.^[7][8][9] In 2006, Levy-Pounds founded the Community Justice Project (CJP), a partnership between UST's School of Law and the Saint Paul chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The CJP allows law students interested in working with underserved communities to gain experience through academic writing, fora, and interaction with local governments and communities.^[10]

Levy-Pounds cofounded Brotherhood Inc., an organization dedicated to helping young African American men stay away from gang activity and prison.^[10] Using what Levy-Pounds describes as "a proven holistic approach to community building that employs culturally sensitive social services, educational opportunities, and on-site employment", Brotherhood began by selling a blend of coffee, Brotherhood Brew, and currently has plans to open a coffee shop in Saint Paul.^[4][11] She chairs the Minnesota State Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights and Everybody In, a nonprofit with the goal of closing race-based employment gaps in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area.^[2][12] As a writer, Levy-Pounds has been published in the Twin Cities Daily Planet, MinnPost, and the Star Tribune.^[12][13] She formerly preached at Minneapolis's First Covenant Church every other month.^[2][14]

In December 2014, Levy-Pounds participated in a Black Lives Matter protest of police brutality at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. She and ten other protesters were charged by the City of Bloomington with disorderly conduct and trespass which carry a penalty of a fine up to $8,000 and a prison sentence of up to two years.^[6][15] Levy-Pounds, who had in 2014 participated in anti-police brutality protests in Ferguson, Missouri, characterized herself as "a defender of the law and a protector of the law [and] a protector of my people", and the actions of the City of Bloomington as "prosecutorial overreach and misuse of taxpayers' dollars."^[15] Restitution charges for $40,000 against the protesters were later withdrawn by the City^[6] and in November 2015, a Hennepin County judge dismissed the charges against Levy-Pounds and the ten others charged by Bloomington.^[16]

Levy-Pounds has garnered several accolades including being named one of Lawyers of Color's "50 Under 50", Minnesota Lawyer's Attorney of the Year in 2015, and receiving the Hennepin County Bar Association's Diversity Award.^[10][13]

Minneapolis NAACP presidency

Levy-Pounds marching in 2015

Jerry McAfee served as president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP until 2015, at which point Levy-Pounds decided to run.^[6] She won the election unopposed on the ballot but faced criticism from McAfee who contended that she was too focused on issues of police brutality to the neglect of concerns such as crime perpetrated against African Americans by African Americans.^[6][17] Levy-Pounds stated that she hoped to increase youth engagement with the NAACP during her term with the organization.^[6] She has been critical of racial disparities in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul region, citing them as some of the nation's worst.^[12]

In November 2015, following the shooting death of Jamar Clark at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, Levy-Pounds was involved in a human blockade of Interstate 94. Of the approximately 40 protesters, Levy-Pounds was among the first arrested for the action.^[18] MinnPost wrote that she served as a leader in the subsequent protests against Clark's killing in an article that highlighted Levy-Pounds's savvy in using social media as a tool to encourage local and national media to report on the death and demonstrations.^[19]

Levy-Pounds announced in May 2016 that she intended to exit her professorship with UST at the end of July and devote herself full-time to addressing issues of economic and racial justice.^[20] She announced in October of that year that she did not intend to seek a second term as president of the Minneapolis NAACP, but that she "plan[s] to have an even more visible presence in the community".^[21] As her successor, Levy-Pounds nominated Jason Sole, an activist and professor of criminal justice. He successfully won the election and credited Levy-Pounds with leading the Minneapolis chapter of the organization in its support of BLM, describing Minneapolis's as "the only branch in the country to stand so closely with Black Lives Matter".^[22]

In November 2016, Levy-Pounds announced her intention to run for mayor of Minneapolis in the city's 2017 election as a member of the DFL. Levy-Pounds will face incumbent mayor Betsy Hodges, also a member of the DFL.^[14]

Personal life

Levy-Pounds lived in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, until September 2015 when she moved to north Minneapolis.^[14] She has a husband and five children, two of whom are adopted.^[2][23]

Selected publications

• Levy-Pounds, Nekima (2006). "Beaten by the System and Down for the Count: Why Poor Women of Color and Children Don't Stand a Chance against U.S. Drug-Sentencing Policy" (PDF). University of St. Thomas Law Journal. 3 (3): 462–495. 
• Levy-Pounds, Nekima (2007). "From the Frying Pan into the Fire: How Poor Women of Color and Children are Affected by Sentencing Guidelines and Mandatory Minimums" (PDF). Santa Clara Law Review. 47 (2): 285–346. 
• Levy-Pounds, Nekima (2010). "Can These Bones Live: A Look at the Impacts of the War on Drugs on Poor African-American Children and Families". Hastings Race & Poverty Law Journal. 7: 353–380. 
• Levy-Pounds, Nekima (2013). "Going up in Smoke: The Impacts of the Drug War on Young Black Men". Albany Government Law Review. 6: 563–589. 

References

External links

• Official website
• Levy-Pounds's Star Tribune columns