Meet our Civil Rights Hub Director!

Jenny Ma (she/her) joined Public Rights Project in May as its inaugural Civil Rights Hub Director. Most recently, Jenny served as the principal deputy director for the Office for Civil Rights at U.S. Health and Human Services. Before that, she was senior counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, where she litigated reproductive rights cases across the Midwest and South, including in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. She has also taught the Sexuality and Gender Law Clinic at Columbia Law School for nearly a decade.

Q: What drew you to the role of director at PRP’s Civil Rights Hub?

I’m an Asian-American woman and a first-generation immigrant who grew up in one of the largest cities in the U.S. I have seen firsthand so many visible and invisible injustices and inequalities that fail to meet the promise of basic civil rights for all. I’m privileged enough to be an attorney with the tools and experience to do something about them. That’s why the promise I’ve made to myself is to stand up and fight for people made more vulnerable because of their race, income, age, gender orientation and identity, language facility, or immigration status. Public Rights Project’s incredible mission and work allows me to do that every day.

Q: What made you decide to become a lawyer?

I had quite the twisty road to law. I even had an entire past career in entertainment talent management. However, I was drawn to being a lawyer because I’ve always wanted to teach and mentor the next generation. What’s most important to me is to uplift the next generation of creative, thoughtful, motivated advocates. Being a lawyer allows me to advocate for my beliefs, represent people who couldn’t have a voice themselves. Being a lawyer allows me to wear many hats — as a counselor, teacher, mentor, advocate, communicator, and proxy. I’ve always taken what I thought was the right path, and I’m now practicing a profession that I love dearly. My advice to early-career lawyers is to check in with yourself to make sure you are happy with what you are advancing and advocating. This really allows you to avoid being one of those “unhappy lawyer” memes!

Q: What is a legal case you think about a lot?

I spent a year on the Dobbs case — and not a day that goes by where I do not think about the legal and real-life harms that the Supreme Court’s decision has unleashed. The court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade was wrongly decided and regressive. It took a hacksaw to nearly 50 years of long-standing precedent and, for the first time, eliminated a constitutional right. It endangered fundamental liberty and privacy cases involving how we live our lives and whom we love. Practically, the immediate and ongoing harms cannot even be quantified.

There is nothing more devastating than forcing people to give birth against their will — but that is now happening every day in America. People are being denied care and bleeding out in parking lots. Unfortunately, such preventable health emergencies happening across this country is just the beginning of harms we will see in years to come.

From the continued erosion of maternal health and rising mortality rates, especially for Black and brown communities, to the proliferation of ob/gyn deserts as these medical professionals leave parts of the country with abortion bans, the effects of this ruling will continue to unleash enormous pain and suffering. The fact that six Justices on the Supreme Court unilaterally made a decision removing bodily autonomy and access to basic health care from millions of people keeps me up at night.

Q: What gives you energy right now?

I am so inspired by my dedicated colleagues at Public Rights Project who work tirelessly perfecting briefs, coordinating with donors, sharing our work with the public, planning our training programs, and ensuring that our operations are optimal so that we can uphold our democracy and the rule of law. I feed off the energy of those around me. So it’s especially rewarding to be around such dedicated folks who have shared values, stand up for what’s right, and believe in building a better democracy — one community at a time. It’s what motivates me and drives my passion to fuel this work.

Q: What inspires you about the future?

People. I’ve had the privilege of representing clients all across this country. Through these cases, I have met incredible people from Jackson, Mississippi; Fargo, North Dakota; Phoenix, Arizona; Atlanta, Georgia; and Montgomery, Alabama. One thing is clear: they all care deeply about protecting their communities and building the America that they want and envision. The people and movements who are finding the courage to defend their values, fight for their rights, and stand up for their local communities, neighbors, and families today inspire me. Our country’s story is still being written — and it’s an incredible honor to be a part of that.