Allison Riggs leads the voting rights program at the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, an organization she joined in 2009. Her voting rights work has been focused on fighting for fair redistricting plans, fighting against voter suppression, and advocating for electoral reforms that would expand access to voting.
She has litigated redistricting cases on behalf of State NAACP Conferences in Texas, Florida, Virginia and North Carolina. In 2018, she argued the Texas redistricting case in the United States Supreme Court. Allison works closely with grassroots organizations and communities of color as they seek to advance their political and civil rights. She received her undergraduate, Master’s Degree and J.D. from the University of Florida.
Jaclyn Maffetore is a staff attorney in SCSJ’s voting rights section, where she engages in litigation and policy advocacy promoting fair districts and voter enfranchisement for marginalized communities. Growing up in Southeastern North Carolina and witnessing discrimination first hand, Jaclyn developed a strong sense of justice and fairness that guided her toward the legal profession at a young age. Jaclyn received her B.A. in Political Science from Wake Forest University in 2013, and received her J.D. with honors from Elon University School of Law in 2016.
During her time at Wake Forest, she focused her studies on the politics of identity and intersectionality, which highlighted the disparate treatment minority groups have faced in our political systems. While at Elon, Jaclyn served as Vice President of Elon’s OutLaw chapter, was a member of the Moot Court Board, and participated as a student member of the Inns of Court. Jaclyn first came to the Southern Coalition as a full-time Voting Rights extern in her final year of law school, solidifying her commitment to use her law degree as a tool for change.
John Carella is a staff attorney in SCSJ’s voting rights team and engages in litigation regarding redistricting, voter registration, and other issues surrounding the right to vote in free and fair elections. Prior to joining SCSJ, John worked for six years with the Office of Appellate Defender, where he represented indigent clients in direct appeals before the North Carolina appellate courts.
John previously practiced law in both Pennsylvania and California. For four years he was a staff attorney with Bay Area Legal Aid, where he represented tenants living in subsidized housing in San Francisco and Oakland. In that role, he litigated eviction defense cases and represented plaintiffs in civil litigation raising fair housing and civil rights claims. John is a 2004 graduate of the University of Chicago Law School and a 2001 graduate of UNC Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead-Cain Scholar.
Southern Coalition for Social Justice
Partnering with communities of color and economically disadvantaged communities in the south to defend and advance their political, social and economic rights through the combination of legal advocacy, research, organizing and communications.
This was a state court challenge to North Carolina’s racially gerrymandered legislative and congressional districts in its 2011 plan. Ultimately, a state court three-judge panel entered judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs. While the Defendant initially appealed, the appeal was subsequently withdrawn.
