OKPOLICY.ORG
We’re happy to announce that OK Policy’s legislative liaison, Damario Solomon-Simmons, is receiving the Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher Diversity Award from the Oklahoma Bar Association. The award will be presented during the annual Oklahoma Bar Association Diversity Dinner on Thursday, Oct. 15th.
The award is named after a key figure in the civil rights movement in Oklahoma who in 1949 was the first black woman admitted to the University of Oklahoma School of Law. After initially being denied admission, Fisher filed a lawsuit that made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where judges ruled that OU law had to allow her to attend.
Solomon-Simmons began working with OK Policy in December 2013. He also practices law with Riggs Abney, where he focuses on civil litigation, civil rights, employment, government relations, and sports and entertainment. He served as a member of the national legal team that fought to obtain reparations for the survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot in Alexander et al. v. Oklahoma.
“Working to promote diversity, social justice, and equal opportunity matters to me, because I strongly believe that lawyers should serve on the front lines of justice and equality in this nation,” he said.
The Oklahoma Bar Association’s Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher Diversity Award was previously awarded to Oklahoma Policy Institute in 2013. Besides Solomon-Simmons, this year’s recipients are Judge Jerome Holmes, Valery Giebel, The Education and Employment Ministry (TEEM), OU Unheard, and VOICE.
Congratulations, Damario!
