Mallika Sarkaria

I am a Joint JD/MPP (Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley; Kennedy School of Government, Harvard) candidate, with an expected June 2010 graduation date. I intend to pursue a career in International Human Rights Law. During the Summer 2007, I was a judicial extern with Magistrate Judge Edward M. Chen in the U.S. District Court, San Francisco. The Judge re-enforced my belief that a single individual, working with strong principles and clarity, has the capacity to affect social change. I also realized the importance of communities of color to enter the public and government spheres, and have visibility in the profession. In my entire time this summer, I only saw one other South Asian extern and two south Asian lawyers. Obviously, there must be more South Asian lawyers appearing before federal district court judges, but in my personal experience I felt the lack of ‘brown’ in the federal building.

SABA-NC has been a source of support and encouragement. I am glad to know there is a South Asian public interest community in the area that is eager to encourage social justice minded students to pursue their ambitions. look forward to maintaining ties with the Summer Fellowship program and hope I can motivate more South Asian students to avail the opportunity of externing with a judge and expanding horizons.

Mazarin A. Vakharia

I am a 2L at Santa Clara Law School. I will graduate in May 2009. After graduation, I hope to practice immigration and family law, preferably with an established firm.

This past summer, I worked at Legal Advocates for Children and Youth (LACY), part of the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley. I worked on guardianship, emancipation, immigration and family law cases. LACY is frequently court-appointed to protect the best interest of children. In one such case, our client, “X,” was asked to testify against his father in a trial about several workplace violence restraining orders. I wrote a Motion to Quash the testimony because “X” suffered severe emotional trauma resulting in hospitalization when he previously testified in his father’s presence. As a result, the Judge ensured X’s safety by allowing him to testify in chambers, away from his father.

For me, SABA-NC represents what is best about the legal profession. I appreciate being mentored by successful and dedicated attorneys who use their legal skills to improve people's lives, both in America and abroad.

Monika Saini

I am a 3L at UC Davis School of Law with an expected graduation date of May 2008. In the future, I would like to do immigration/human rights work.

I worked at the National Legal Sanctuary for Community Advancement (NLSCA), a non-profit that does post 9/11 immigration and civil rights work. At NLSCA, I worked on various tasks, ranging from researching legal issues, writing memorandums and motions, to organizing a Know Your Rights campaign (KYRC). The work cemented my interest in immigration law. I also enjoyed the opportunity to do grassroots organizing through the work I did on the KYRC. The KYRC is a collaborative effort amongst various groups, including SABA, to educate the Iranian and South Asian communities and their rights and available resources.

SABA-NC has introduced me to amazing attorneys and law students with whom I share similar interests and backgrounds. The organization has opened up a network of individuals who are helpful, understanding, and supportive. Also, if it had not been for SABA-NC, I would not have been able to pursue the unpaid internship at NLSCA this summer and gained the experience of working at a non-profit that addresses the needs of the Middle Eastern/South Asian communities.