The Magic City Bar Association (MCBA) has established an ongoing Protest Protection Plan (PPP) to help provide free legal representation to many Birmingham protesters arrested during demonstrations.

“This plan has two phases and the phase we’re in right now is where our members provide pro-bono representation or free legal services for people who are arrested for protesting itself or people arrested for things related to the protest like disorderly conduct,” said attorney Christopher Burrell of Burrell & McCants LLC, president of MCBA, which has about 400 members and is made up of Black lawyers.

“While we seek to support individuals engaged in responsible and organized protests, we will nonetheless assist in providing representation or referrals for all individuals in protest settings, recognizing the citizens right to counsel and the history of certain people being disproportionately prosecuted or punished,” said Burrell.

MCBA has worked with some local activists to identify demonstrators who need legal representation

“There may be some cases where we won’t provide pro bono representation but we will nonetheless assist in referring to an attorney,” Burrell said.

Burrell said the MCBA was founded to address the needs of African American attorneys and the community at large.