Each year, the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School Black Law Student Association (BLSA) leads a trip to give back to the Black diaspora and learn about different issues Black communities are facing around the world. This year, twelve students traveled to South Africa for BLSA’s Spring Break Pan-African trip to engage in several high-impact activities focused on constitutional law, social justice, and legal education.
The group’s primary pro bono project involved collaborating with SECTION27, a human rights organization that seeks to achieve substantive equality and social justice in South Africa, and We the People South Africa, a non-profit dedicated to promoting knowledge and understanding of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, its making, and its impact on society.
BLSA was charged with updating the organizations’ “Know Your Constitution” (KYC) guide, an essential resource for constitutional education across South Africa. The KYC initiative aims to promote constitutional literacy and accessibility, operating within a framework based on constitutional requirements, legal mandates, court jurisdiction, and precedents.
BLSA students were tasked with addressing specific questions and issues marked throughout the document to refresh and update provisions, ensuring currency and comprehensiveness while considering relevant case law and historical updates.
Historic Opportunities
“As law students, we often study constitutional principles in the abstract, but our BLSA Pan-Africa Service Trip to South Africa transformed these concepts into living, breathing realities,” said Beverly Danquah L’26, G’26, who serves as a BLSA Pan-Africa Co-Chair.
Part of that concrete experience included meeting two drafters of the South African Constitution, Bulelani Ngcuka and Mohammed Bhabha. Ngcuka emerged as a pivotal figure in post-apartheid legal reform after earning his law degree from the University of Fort Hare.
Early in his career, he served eight months in solitary confinement and three years imprisonment for refusing to testify in a political trial and later became South Africa’s first National Director of Public Prosecutions in 1998. He was recognized among the Top 100 Great South Africans for his contributions to the country’s legal system and democratic transition.
Bhabha, a distinguished attorney and constitutional negotiator who joined the ANC negotiating team Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) in 1991, played an instrumental role in the drafting of South Africa’s final Constitution and was appointed as a Senator in the first democratic Parliament in 1994. He has since leveraged his expertise internationally, providing constitutional support in countries including Kenya, South Sudan, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Palestine, Bahrain, and Zimbabwe.
“Sitting across the dinner table from actual drafters of South Africa’s constitution—people who had been imprisoned for their beliefs—was both humbling and inspiring,” said Danquah. “Collaborating with organizations like SECTION27 and We the People SA on their ‘Know Your Constitution’ guide wasn’t just a pro-bono assignment, it was a chance to contribute to constitutional literacy.”
BLSA students received direct exposure to South Africa’s judicial system in action, observing two-appellate-level court cases at the Pretoria High Court as well as a visit to Constitution Hill Court.
And throughout the trip, the group also engaged with several prominent legal and advocacy organizations, including the Centre for Child Law at the University of Pretoria, the National Director of Lawyers for Human Rights South Africa, the Centre for Environmental Rights, and SECTION27’s Education and Health Care teams.
Other notable engagements included meeting with former United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women and the first woman appointed as Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka on International Women’s Day, as well as attending the University of Johannesburg’s Women Writers’ Festival as distinguished guests.
Additionally, the group gained insights on U.S.-South Africa relations from New York Times Johannesburg Bureau Chief John Eligon, whose reporting challenges Western preconceptions about Africa, focusing instead on how ordinary citizens navigate complex social and political landscapes.
“I believe all of us returned with not just enhanced legal knowledge but with lifelong connections and a newfound appreciation for how constitutional ideals must be continuously defended and expanded in both South Africa and at home,” said Danquah.
Connecting Legacies
Another standout moment from the trip occurred when BLSA students met with the family of the late Justice Yvonne Mokgoro LLM’90, Hon’09, the first Black woman appointed to South Africa’s bench and an instrumental figure in ending Apartheid.
“As we stood in her beloved South Africa, we were moved to honor Justice Yvonne Mokgoro’s legacy of breaking barriers and building bridges,” said Ambar Larancuent L’26, BLSA Pan-Africa Co-Chair. “Every day at Penn Law, we walk past her portrait in our halls, drawing inspiration from her excellence and determination.”
During the visit, the group presented Justice Mokgoro’s family with an honorary plaque and compilation of reflections from Penn Carey Law students, alumni, faculty, and friends on her remarkable work and legacy in what Larancuent said was a beautiful and emotional gathering.
“Her journey from Penn Law LLM student to constitutional architect shows us how legal education could transform theoretical principles into tangible justice for marginalized communities,” she said. “Her trailblazing legacy continues to guide and inspire legal professionals worldwide.”
Opportunities like BLSA’s 2025 Spring Break Pan-African trip not only provide unparalleled exposure to and tangible experience with legal landscapes outside of the United States—in this case South Africa’s history, constitutional framework, and ongoing societal transformation—but also the chance to make connections and gain insights that enhance global perspectives and professional development well after law school.
“Being a Penn Carey Law LLM alumnus and South African national who accompanied these students on parts of their trip, I was inspired by the realization that our histories and futures are intertwined,” said Olwethuthando Banele Ndlovu LLM’24. “The trip constructed a bridge where the U.S. and South Africa could meet to create understanding, awareness, and empathy for one another. Through this experience, we all recognized that meaningful societal change is our joint endeavor.”
Original source can be found here.