I am sitting in a room filled with professors and students listening to a Civil Rights Attorney speak about a man’s remarkable comeback to society after being imprisoned for twenty years. The co-founders of the ATLaS JustSice Center, Kirstin Eidenbach and Jonathan Tretheway, give their perspective about the injustice inmates are currently facing in penitentiaries due to lack of funding and the degrading tactics instilled by those overlooking their captivity.

My heart clenches as they mention that over 2.5 million people reside behind bars. When they say that Arizona has the 6th highest prison population in the country, my jaw drops. These statistics enrage me and by the end of the seminar, I feel depressed.

As much as I want to remain focused on the speakers, I cannot help but dwell on Eidenbach’s opening statement: “I am a Civil Rights and Constitutional Law Attorney focusing on prisoners’ rights and prison reform.”
I have always aspired to be a Civil Rights Attorney, but the idea of arguing before a jury terrifies me. However, when Eidenbach mentions that she is the co-founder of ATLaS, which focuses on helping paroled prisoners adapt to life outside their cell, I am filled with relief and sudden insight about my future. I had this preconceived notion that an attorney mainly stands in court and defends their client, but Eidenbach shows me there are many more options when it comes to this profession. I turn to my friend and say, “So I guess you don’t have to get up in court and argue just because you’re a lawyer?”

Amused by my ignorant question, she smiles and says, “Of course not!”

My joy is immediately overlapped by my ongoing fear of picking one job for the rest of my life. I have more interests than I can follow in a lifetime, at least if I want to be successful, and my desire to be successful is like Trump’s desire to build a wall. The scariest part of any job I take is the constant dependency I will have on it. It is necessary for me to work, but being a Civil Rights Attorney seems like a voluntary submission into slavery.
Jobs are the basis of people’s lives. Work constitutes their decisions, schedules, and even their happiness. Besides needing jobs to survive, people rely on them to fulfill their greed. Humans are greedy by nature and are therefore never satisfied. They work endlessly to achieve and obtain beyond what they have and as a result, they enslave themselves. As a young woman that comes from a family of limited means, I sometimes find that I have unconsciously given into that greed, and therefore work like a slave at my current job. If I choose to become a Civil Rights Attorney, I could force myself to work long, stressful hours. I could have little say regarding the people I work with. I could risk screwing up and then deal with unpleasant consequences like not affording rent. The workload could affect my health and my mood, possibly putting my family and friends at a distance. Many would argue that these concerns are warranted and not worth the profession. However, even though this job is an enslavement, the struggles that come with the territory are worth plenty.

A lawyer’s job seems highly rewarding, not only for myself, but for those I would help. A Civil Rights Attorneys defends those who have had their basic human rights stripped away, and I see great honor in performing such a service because if one does not have their rights, they have nothing.

Furthermore, due to my limited perception, I did not realize there was so much more to some professions, such as doctors, teachers, or even lawyers, beyond what meets the eye. As respected as these professions are, I judged them solely on their stereotypes: teachers have horrible incomes, doctors have ridiculous schedules, and lawyers care only about how much their clients will pay them. Fortunately, my time in college, especially my time at this seminar, has opened my eyes. Professors teach classes, but they also organize conferences, conduct research, and publish papers. Doctors perform surgeries and run practices, but they also travel to places like Africa aiding children who have traumatic brain injuries. Lawyers prepare cases for trials and write contracts, but they also become intimately involved with social services. These types of professions are rewarding and life altering, and even though they can consume a person’s life, the outcome is beyond measure.

I do not get the privilege to approach Eidenbach when she finishes speaking because an influx of people immediately crowd around her, so I admire her from my seat and ponder how amazing her job must be. Every day, she has the opportunity to help people reconstruct their lives, a career choice I find incredibly humbling. I re-embrace the love I had for becoming a Civil Rights Attorney and reconsider the interesting life it might bring me. My dad has told me for the past three years that he believes I would make a great lawyer to the point that every time I say, “I want to be a writer,” he responds, “You should be a lawyer.” I am still indecisive about my career path, but I am filled with optimism and a reaffirmed love for becoming an attorney.

Although the life of a Civil Rights Attorney does not come without difficulties, it appears to be worthwhile. Spending countless hours trying to deliver justice, prosecute criminals, or rehabilitate former inmates, like Eidenbach does, is a type of enslavement I would not mind. The joy I would receive from changing someone’s life for the better is a reward that transcends any form of stress, exhaustion, or anxiety I might feel. If I willingly and joyfully trap myself into my work, then I am not a slave. I am a free servant.