Brittany Francis

she/her/hers

Executive Director & Civil Rights Attorney

As Executive Director of Peoples’ Counsel, Brittany fights for a world free of police violence and harm. Through her experience as a public defender, organizer, and civil rights attorney, she has seen firsthand that the criminal legal system is this country’s primary means of rebranding systemic racial oppression as “personal accountability” and “justice.” Her advocacy is grounded in the core belief that all people are deserving of care and that we cannot punish our way to freedom.

Brittany founded Peoples’ Counsel after 3 years as a civil rights attorney, and seven years as an appellate public defender and supervising attorney at the Center for Appellate Litigation. At CAL, she served people convicted of crimes in Manhattan and the Bronx, many of whom were caged in New York State prisons. Each of Brittany’s clients are a testament that hope and humanity bloom in the darkest places.

At each stage of her career, Brittany has demonstrated herself to be a formidable advocate and litigator, whether she is writing policy, developing city-wide organizing campaigns, or winning freedom and reparations in court for clients harmed by the state.

Brittany is currently an Adjunct Professor of the Equality and Justice Clinic at the CUNY School of Law. There, she has the distinct privilege of teaching students the principles and practice of abolitionist, movement-led lawyering.