Diana McDougle: Flying Full Throttle into Civil Rights

Published: 
Friday, October 17, 2014

Diana McDougle’s route to the ACLU was full of surprising twists and turns. Fully intending to continue to graduate school, Diana completed her undergraduate studies in International Studies and Arts and Literature while working full-time as a flight attendant.

However, she became sidetracked and ended up working with the nonprofit Collateral Repair Project on a fundraiser that raised a significant amount of money towards helping Iraqi refugees. This experience plus her love of challenges sparked her interest in returning to school to study law.

While at Seattle University Law School, she took part in several interesting civil justice cases as part of her class curriculum. Included were the cases of Jason Puracal, whose conviction was vacated after he had been wrongfully arrested in Nicaragua, and of Maj. Margaret Witt, who won a landmark ACLU case challenging her dismissal from the Air Force under the notorious “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

She was introduced to the ACLU during these cases, and her professor – ACLU-WA cooperating attorney James Lobsenz – inspired her to join. “I remember writing on my notes, JOIN ACLU,” she said, “but it just didn’t happen until now.”

Instead of civil justice, Diana ended up in a business law firm in Oregon and took the bar exam there. But the ACLU never left her mind. Eventually she moved back to Washington to be closer to family and decided that it was finally time to get involved with the ACLU. She began recently as a volunteer attorney and finds the research she’s doing on the mental health system fascinating and deeply involving.

She will be sitting for the Washington bar exam soon, and hopes to be able to continue with the same kind of civil justice work she is currently doing at the ACLU. She also hopes to reconnect with some of her professors, as well as old friends and sports teams.