By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
In her youth, Allura Williams lost her aunt — who was like an older sister — to suicide.
“She was being bullied and from that moment on, I made a vow to advocate for those that felt they didn’t have a voice and to make sure everyone felt seen and could be heard,” said Williams, a graduate of University of Detroit Mercy and now a 1L student at Detroit Mercy Law.
“I feel not many people in the community feel as if a role like this is accomplishable for them, and so in addition to being an advocate for others, I hope I’m able to show someone anything is possible and nothing is out of anyone’s reach.”
Williams is enjoying her law school experience, and is the recipient of a Philip J. McElroy Scholarship, awarded in honor of the late, distinguished graduate’s lifelong commitment to education.
“There are many schools that will tell you ‘We’re like a family,’ but in all my years of higher education, I’ve never seen that most executed like it is at Detroit Mercy and Detroit Mercy Law,” she said. “Before even stepping foot on campus there were administrators that knew my name and cared about my story. “
Her current legal interests include human rights, tech, trademark, and renewable energy.
“I have many interests of law, but with the help of Detroit Mercy Law I know in time I will have them narrowed down—but for now, I can say I want to focus solely on practice for 5 to 7 years and while still practicing, I want to open a community center for the youth,” she says. “My plan is to not have just summer recreation, but also somewhere for youth to receive additional education year-round with year-round recreation in all types of sports, even those that not many urban youths have the opportunity to experience.”
An alumna of Renaissance High School in Detroit, Williams earned her UDM undergraduate degree in political science and philosophy, and pre-law studies.
Her interest in political science was a need to further policies and laws so they were equal and fair. In middle and high school, her parents placed her in the Michigan Youth in Government program, where students wrote a bill, and amended and voted on each bill as the House of Representatives and the Senate in the manner that it actually occurs.
“Through this program, I was able to foster an understanding of what it’s like to advocate for policy reform and this love followed me to college.
During her undergraduate studies, Williams served as president of the Delta-Psi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.
“This gave me the opportunity to grow personality-wise, build a sisterhood and create programming for students on campus to feel more included,” she says. “We cleaned parks and held game night food drives and study tables and much more, all while building a better relationship with ourselves and each other.”
Williams worked for three years at Lakeshore Legal Aid, an experience that gave her the opportunity to combine wanting to be a support to a community with her love of the law.
“The team at Lakeshore Legal Aid truly strives to help as many people as it can, and I enjoyed giving my all to the cases each week so that every time someone met with me, they gained something in their favor,” she said. “My team was new and was dedicated solely to eviction in Out-Wayne County, sometimes Oakland if extra hands were needed.’
Williams attributes her educational and leadership success in large part to her family.
“My mother, Joanna, always an entrepreneur with big ideas and a big heart. My father, Michael, who has been a skilled journeyman bricklayer for over 30 years and has been a big supporter of mine. And lastly my older brother, Michael, who set the bar, now a Level 3 chemist and my younger sister, Meadeux, that I try to set an example for, and who is in the top of her class at Renaissance High School.”
Williams finds time to serve as a latchkey aide at Gesu Catholic School and also is heavily involved in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, where she has taken part in leadership conferences and a Christian Educational Conference.
A lifelong resident of Detroit, Williams is passionate about her home city.
“The Motor City is the City of Dreams and Culture!” she says. “Everyone here wants to see each other succeed and so we support each other like no other city will.”
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