Shanti Brien

I grew up in the Central Valley of California listening to Guns and Roses and going to keg parties on Lit Road. I went to Berkeley and got heavily into poetry in the group Poetry for the People founded and led by social activist and writer June Jordan. After Stanford Law School, I defended convicted criminals for 10 years. I am co-founder of Fogbreak, an education company for criminal justice professionals and civic leaders. On Medium I write about social justice issues and growing up in a cowboy-Indian family. I also blog about legal issues and women in the legal profession for Ms. JD. I live in the Oakland area with my husband of 20 years, a former NFL player turned serial entrepreneur and our three kids. I am trying to raise them to be kind and to contribute to the world; they are probably at a keg party right now.