Harsh Realities

Unfortunately, I do not have the most positive post for this week. Planned Parenthood announced shortly before I started my internship that they would be laying people off as part of a re-organization plan. Of course, I as an intern am not directly jeopardized by this situation. However, it has been a topic that has been discussed a lot on the team and has definitely been a challenging situation. In many ways, I think it has been important for me to realize that even at a mission-driven organization, job security is not a guarantee. For now, I just need to focus on my work and my internship experience, but this situation has made me confront the truth that the private sector and public sector are not as different as I would like to think.

On a related note, the PPFA Litigation team has wonderfully and helpfully put together a variety of sessions for us over the course of the summer to learn more about different topics related to our careers. Last week we had a conversation about clerkship applications, and earlier today we talked about fellowships. I am so grateful that the PPFA team has been willing to invest their time into these meetings as they are extremely eye-opening. However, it has also made me realize how challenging a legal career can be. Both of these processes are extremely competitive and are not a guarantee, even coming from Harvard Law School. I am of course not sure if I would participate in either process, but these conversations have given me a lot think about - both regarding what it would mean to apply for either a clerkship or a fellowship, but also about how the legal profession is structured.

While these conversations have mostly been geared towards the other interns who are rising 3Ls, I have still gotten a lot out of them and am starting to think more about the future. I am realizing that this internship has helped me understand some of the black box that is the legal profession - I have a better idea of what impact litigation would look like on a day-to-day basis and the various career paths that people took to get here. But I am also realizing that I have even more questions moving forward. There was so much about this work that I did not know, and this context has only made me realize how unsure I am about a lot of my next steps. With 1L grades out now, I feel as though a lot of my friends are starting to look to next summer and I am doing the same.

As I embark on this process, I am increasingly grateful to be working at PPFA this summer. The attorneys are all extremely kind and clearly are investing time into the internship program. While I am not sure what I want to do next summer for a future internship, I know that I can turn to my current co-workers to ask for advice and gain helpful insights into what sorts of things I should be prioritizing. Furthermore, their transparency about the clerkship and fellowships process, among other things, has helped me feel much more prepared to make these decisions and know what they entail. I know I have so much left to learn before embarking on any career, and I am glad that I am able to intern at PPFA so early during law school and at least start answering my many questions.

On a final note, the climate crisis is truly upon us. The air quality in New York City has been atrocious these past few days, and I have spent almost the entire time huddled inside in an effort to avoid the air. This picture below does not even do justice to how orange and cloudy the skies have been (I've also included what it looks like on a normal day for comparison). While it is thankfully clearing up now, I am not optimistic that this event is a one-time situation. Unfortunately we are destroying our planet and nowhere is safe. Although I do not want to be a climate lawyer, I am increasingly aware of the fact that this concern is no longer a future one but rather one we face everyday. Fingers crossed the clear skies bode well for a more optimistic next week!