Draft:Roy L. Austin Jr.

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  • Comment: Roy L. Austin, Jr. is married to Traci Mitchell Austin, and they have two children. Please verify this statement with a reliable source and also verify the accuracy of the Howard University section. When you are finished please leave notes on my talk page. CONFUSED SPIRIT(Thilio).Talk 17:28, 10 December 2025 (UTC)

Roy L. Austin, Jr.

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This page is about the lawyer. For the diplomat (father of the lawyer), see Roy L. Austin.

Roy L. Austin, Jr. is a civil rights attorney, policy advisor, and serves as the inaugural director of the Howard Law Artificial Intelligence Initiative.[1] He served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the U.S. Department of Justice, Deputy Assistant to the President for the Office of Urban Affairs, Justice, and Opportunity during the Obama Administration,[2] and as the Vice President of Civil Rights at Meta from 2021 to 2025.[3]

Early life and education

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Austin grew up in State College, PA[4] and was born to parents Roy Leslie Austin and Glynis Josephine Sutherland. His father, born in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, was an Associate Professor of Sociology, Justice, and African American Studies at Pennsylvania State University and served as Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago during the George W. Bush Administration.

Austin graduated from State College Area Senior High School in 1987, and earned a B.A. in Political Science from Yale University in 1991 and a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from the University of Chicago Law School in 1995.[5] During his time at Law School, he served as Vice Chair of the Hinton Moot Court Board, President of the Black Law Students' Association, and was an Earl Warren Scholar.[6][7]

Career

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U.S. Department of Justice and D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office

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Austin started his career as an honors trial attorney with the Criminal Section of the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division investigating and prosecuting hate crime and police brutality cases.[8][9] While serving as honors trial attorney, he was a part of the team that re-investigated the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama.[10] In 2009, he joined the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office as a Senior Assistant United States Attorney and Coordinator of the D.C. Human Trafficking Task Force.[11] He would later return to the Justice Department as Deputy Assistant Attorney General from 2010-2014, where he supervised the Criminal Section and the Special Litigation Section's law enforcement portfolio.[12][13] During his time as Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Austin led an investigation into the New Orleans Police Department which resulted in a consent decree.[14][15] In 2014, he represented the United States and testified before the United Nations Human Rights Committee on the United States’ compliance with International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.[16]

Private Practice

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Early in his career, Austin joined Keker & Van Nest LLP in San Francisco in 2000 as an associate after four years at the U.S. Department of Justice. He would later go on to serve as partner at McDermott Will & Emory and Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP where his practice primarily focused on criminal defense and civil rights litigation.[17][18][19]

The White House

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In March 2014, Austin joined the White House Domestic Policy Council as Deputy Assistant to the President for the Office of Urban Affairs, Justice, and Opportunity. In this role, he co-authored a landmark report on Big Data and Civil Rights, contributed to the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, helped launch the Police Data Initiative, supported expanded reentry assistance, and participated in the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force.[17][20][21][22]

Meta/Facebook

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Austin was appointed Vice President of Civil Rights & Deputy General Counsel for Meta in January 2021 following an external civil rights audit as a response to the company's products having a discriminatory impact on marginalized groups.[23][24][25] Over the course of four years, Austin built and led the company's first civil rights team to oversee civil rights audits, training, and policy reviews. The team tackled issues such as police posting fake profiles for public surveillance, housing and employment discrimination.[26][27] On January 10th, 2025, Austin announced his departure from the tech conglomerate with his last day being March 31st of that year.[28]

Howard University

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On July 31st, 2025 Howard Law School announced Austin as the inaugural director of its Artificial Intelligence Initiative which aims to align AI with civil and human rights rights frameworks.

Recognition

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He was listed in Washingtonian Magazine's 500 Most Influential People in D.C. in 2022, 2023, and 2024.[29][30][31] In 2021 and 2022, Austin named in Lawdragon's 500 Leading Lawyers in America.[32][33] He was also listed as a vLex Fastcase 50 honoree in 2021 for his civil rights and tech work at Meta.[34]

Personal life

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Roy Austin, Jr. is married to Traci Mitchell Austin and they have two children.

References

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  1. ^ "Howard University School of Law Launches Howard Law AI Initiative; Roy L. Austin, Jr. named Director | Howard University School of Law". law.howard.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  2. ^ "Roy L. Austin - Council on Criminal Justice". counciloncj.org. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  3. ^ Rosenberg, Ina Fried,Scott (2025-01-11). "Meta's civil rights team head to leave company". Axios. Retrieved 2025-09-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ "Roy L. Austin, Jr. | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". sdgs.un.org. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  5. ^ "Roy Austin". www.law.georgetown.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  6. ^ buildenpartners (2017-01-23). "HWG LLP Welcomes Former Deputy Assistant to the President Roy L. Austin, Jr". HWG LLP. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  7. ^ "Roy L. Austin Jr., '95: Through Law and Policy, Uplifting Those Who Need It Most | University of Chicago Law School". www.law.uchicago.edu. 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  8. ^ "Roy L. Austin - Council on Criminal Justice". counciloncj.org. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  9. ^ "4 ex-cops indicted on US civil rights charges in Floyd death". WHYY. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  10. ^ Jones, Doug. MLK50 Symposium: Where Do We Go From Here? Introduction to the Keynote Address [Speech transcript]. The University Memphis. https://www.memphis.edu/law/documents/sen_dougjones.pdf (Original work published 2018)
  11. ^ "Roy Austin". www.law.georgetown.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  12. ^ "Roy Austin". www.law.georgetown.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  13. ^ Scheck, Justin (2012-01-23). "San Francisco Police Probed". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  14. ^ "Office of Public Affairs | Justice Department Announces Consent Decree Regarding Orleans Parish Prison in New Orleans | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  15. ^ "9th Anniversary Celebration Wrap-Up". National Center for Transgender Equality's Blog. 2012-12-12. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  16. ^ Geneva, U. S. Mission (2014-03-12). "ICCPR Opening Statement by Roy L. Austin, Jr., Deputy Assistant Attorney General". U.S. Mission to International Organizations in Geneva. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  17. ^ a b Roy L. Austin (Report). Urban Institute. 2024-05-07.
  18. ^ "Roy L. Austin Jr., '95: Through Law and Policy, Uplifting Those Who Need It Most | University of Chicago Law School". www.law.uchicago.edu. 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2025-09-08.
  19. ^ Kelly, John (2020-11-11). "The Biden Transition Team: Key Players on Family and Justice". The Imprint. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  20. ^ Kelly, John (2020-11-11). "The Biden Transition Team: Key Players on Family and Justice". The Imprint. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  21. ^ "Criminal Justice and Civil Rights". C-SPAN. December 20, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ "Roy L. Austin Jr., '95: Through Law and Policy, Uplifting Those Who Need It Most | University of Chicago Law School". www.law.uchicago.edu. 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  23. ^ Fried, Ina (2022-01-28). "Exclusive: Meta's civil rights chief aims to "turn the knob" for good". Axios. Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  24. ^ Only, Subscription (2021-01-11). "Roy L. Austin Jr. to Become Facebook's First-Ever VP of Civil Rights". Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  25. ^ Booker, Brakkton (2021-01-11). "Facebook Taps Former Obama Official As Vice President Of Civil Rights". NPR. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  26. ^ Rosenberg, Ina Fried,Scott (2025-01-11). "Meta's civil rights team head to leave company". Axios. Retrieved 2025-09-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  27. ^ Hendrix, Justin (2022-06-21). "Facebook Settles Lawsuit Stemming from HUD Discrimination Complaint | TechPolicy.Press". Tech Policy Press. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  28. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  29. ^ "Washington DC's 500 Most Influential People". 2022-05-03. Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  30. ^ Staff, Washingtonian (2023-04-27). "Washington DC's 500 Most Influential People of 2023". Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  31. ^ Staff, Washingtonian (2024-05-02). "Washington DC's 500 Most Influential People of 2024". Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  32. ^ "The 2021 Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America". Lawdragon. 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  33. ^ "The 2022 Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America". Lawdragon. 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2025-09-09.
  34. ^ "vLex Fastcase 50 – 2021 Honorees | Legal Innovators". vlex.com. Retrieved 2025-09-09.