Members of our Board of Directors sent a letter to Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey on March 25, 2024, urging him to publicly support the nomination of Adeel Mangi to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and denounce the disinformation campaign against him.
March 25, 2024
Re: Nomination of Adeel Mangi to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Dear Senator Casey,
We, the undersigned Members of the Board of Directors of the Public Interest Law Center (the “Law Center”), urge you to publicly state your support for the nomination of Adeel Mangi to the United State Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and denounce the disinformation campaign against him.
The Public Interest Law Center is one of the most distinguished organizations of its kind in the United States. For more than 50 years, the Law Center has used high-impact legal strategies to advance the civil, social, and economic rights of Pennsylvanians facing discrimination, inequality, and poverty. With a legacy dating back to 1969, the Law Center started as a local affiliate of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Today, the Law Center uses a multitude of tools to accomplish its work, including litigation, community education, advocacy, and organizing to secure access to fundamental resources and services. Our work depends upon the availability of a fair and impartial judiciary, as well as the willingness of our pro bono partners to commit time and resources to our work.
As your office has pointed out, “Adeel Mangi has had a distinguished legal career and would make history as the first Muslim American on the appellate court. Should his nomination come to the Senate floor for a vote, Senator Casey will make his determination based on his qualifications and fitness.” We urge you to follow through on your commitment to judge Mr. Mangi by his qualifications, and vote to confirm him to United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
We strongly support his nomination and are deeply disturbed by the outlandish, unfounded, and Islamophobic attacks he continues to face.
There is no doubt that Mr. Mangi is a skilled lawyer, has a keen intellect, and is eminently qualified to serve on this court. He is a well-respected litigator, and those who know him—including a number of the Law Center’s Directors—hold him in the highest regard. We strongly support his nomination and are deeply disturbed by the outlandish, unfounded, and Islamophobic attacks he continues to face.
The Law Center has its roots in the Civil Rights Movement and maintains, as part of its mission, the fight against all forms of invidious discrimination. We are all better off when there is a place on the federal bench for a jurist as capable as Mr. Mangi. In the face of these shameful attacks that threaten the quality and reputation of our judiciary, we cannot stay silent.
As then-Attorney General Robert Kennedy said to the graduating class of the California Institute of Technology in 1964, “There are people in every time and every land who want to stop history in its tracks.” We urge you not to bow to those who seek to do that here.
On behalf of the many vulnerable citizens in Pennsylvania the Law Center represents, we ask that you promptly issue a public statement to denounce this disinformation campaign and pledge to support the nomination of Mr. Mangi.
Sincerely,
The Board of Directors of the Public Interest Law Center
Molly Flynn
Chair
Mark Kasten
Vice-Chair
Marc Topaz
Secretary
Liz Lambert
Treasurer
Zachary Arbitman
Steven Bizar
Leigh Ann Buziak
Christina Diaz
Diana Dukes
Bret Flaherty
Ellen S. Friedell
Anthony Gay
David Gersch
Virginia Gibson
Melissa Hatch O’Donnell
Katherine Hatton
Shauna Itri
Charles Lange
Peter Leckman
Melinda Levine deLisle
Ellen Meriwether
H. Laddie Montague Jr.
Wesley Payne
Donald Perelman
David Perri
Robin Roberts
Katrina Robson
Stephanie Saunders
David Smith
Dana Trexler
Kahlil Williams
Benjamin Wilson
Robert Wiygul
