Zoha Irfan joined the KARAMAH team this fall as an intern. She is a graduate of the University of London currently pursuing her Master’s degree in International Legal Studies at the Washington College of Law at American University. Growing up in Pakistan, she was startled by abject poverty, injustice and desensitization towards human suffering and witnessed the dire effects of patriarchal customs carried out in the name of religion to oppress women and hinder their full participation in society. Therefore, she became interested in humanitarian work and decided to pursue a law degree to potentially utilize her legal skills for the benefit of society.
During her legal internship at KARAMAH, she learned KARAMAH teaches that in order to bring about change in patriarchal societies, we need to educate women of their rights within the existing legislatures and break preconceived notions and stereotypes which unfortunately shape relational dynamics. However, education alone is not enough in cases where women need direct legal services. This is why KARAMAH provides pro-bono legal services in addition to education.
As a legal intern at KARAMAH, Zoha sharpened her legal research skills, particularly in terms of gender equity, civil rights in the United States, and family law. She was a part of our professional, caring and respectful team that allows interns to adjust and learn. She was able to see the high degree of professionalism and compassion KARAMAH gives to women who are not well-versed in terms of legal matters of custody, complex divorce laws, and property rights.
We at KARAMAH hope Zoha’s experience was memorable and helped develop her core legal ethics that she can carry forward in her profession and will teach other future women lawyers.
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