MEET BACARDI JACKSON, (New) DIRECTOR of FLORIDA ACLU
Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025
Time: 5:00pm
Place: Sanibel Public Library
770 Dunlop Rd, Sanibel, FL 33957
Space is Limited so please RSVP to pcisancap@gmail.com
Bacardi Jackson joins the ACLU of Florida as its Executive Director in May 2024, making history as the first Black woman to lead the organization. She brings a wealth of experience and a passionate commitment to justice to the organization. Most recently, she served as the Deputy Legal Director of the Children’s Rights Practice Group at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), where she led efforts to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline and advocate for equitable access to mental health services and high-quality public education.
With over 20 years of litigation experience, Bacardi is a seasoned trial attorney who has made her mark in state, federal, and administrative courts. She previously served as a managing attorney for the Tucker Law Group, a Black-owned litigation boutique, where she established and managed the firm’s Florida office. Her diverse clientele included Fortune 100 companies, colleges, universities, governmental entities, and individuals, whom she represented in civil rights, employment, catastrophic personal injury, and other complex civil cases.
Bacardi’s impressive academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree in political science from Stanford University and a law degree from Yale Law School. Following a prestigious federal clerkship, she practiced at the international law firm of King & Spalding in Atlanta before joining Morgan, Lewis & Bockius in Philadelphia. Her early legal career was marked by internships at several legal services and civil rights organizations, including the SPLC. She also co-taught an undergraduate law course in Yale’s African and African American Studies Department with the Honorable Justice Fleming Norcott.
Her extensive public service includes working in Congress for U.S. Rep. John Conyers and U.S. Sen. Harlan Mathews, spearheading national programming on Voting Rights at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee, serving as a court advocate in the Manhattan Criminal Court for the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services, and developing a transition program for returning citizens as a New York City Urban Fellow with the NYC Department of Correction.
Bacardi has been recognized with numerous accolades throughout her career. She was the inaugural recipient of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund’s Distinguished Young Leader Award and has been recognized as a Florida Super Lawyer from 2020 through 2023. In 2023, Stanford University’s Centers for Equity, Community & Leadership honored her as a Changemaker, and Legacy magazine named her one of South Florida’s 25 most influential and prominent Black women in business and leadership in 2015. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Bacardi has dedicated significant time to serving on the boards of several nonprofit organizations, further demonstrating her commitment to community and justice.
As she steps into her new role at the ACLU of Florida, Bacardi Jackson is poised to lead with vision, dedication, and a profound commitment to upholding the rights and freedoms of all individuals.
ANNUAL POT LUCK DINNER
Date: Wednesday, April 9, 2025
Time: 5:00 – 7:00 pm
Place: Sanibel Congregational United Church of Christ
2050 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, FL 33957
VIRTUAL MEETING With ANNA ESKAMANI
Florida State Representative of the 42nd District
Date: Thursday, May 15, 2025
Time: 4:00pm
Born and raised in Orlando, Representative Anna V. Eskamani is the daughter of working-class immigrants, first elected to serve District 47 in the Florida House in 2018 and overwhelmingly re-elected in 2020. Authentic, vocal, and effective, she is a widely recognized champion for LGBTQ equality, the environment, affordable housing, increased access to healthcare, and public education.
As a self-described bridge builder, Representative Eskamani has constructed an ambitious legislative agenda, sponsoring or cosponsoring dozens of bills aimed at making the system work for everyone. She sees her role as that of an advocate for all Floridians and is fearless in holding politicians of both parties accountable to those they represent. She supports civil discussion and building consensus across party lines. She has successfully mobilized outstanding grassroots Get Out the Vote efforts.
Representative Eskamani’s work and success have become increasingly well-known and respected throughout Florida as well as garnering national attention. The long list of her endorsees includes President Barack Obama.
RSVP before Monday, May 12, 2025 to pcisancap@gmail.com for invitation to the stream
