Kristin Henning is a nationally recognized advocate, author, trainer, and consultant on the intersection of race, adolescence, and policing in communities of color. She is the Blume Professor of Law and Director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic and Initiative at the Georgetown University Law Center and was previously the Lead Attorney of the Juvenile Unit of the D.C. Public Defender Service. Kris has been representing youth accused of crime for more than twenty-six years and is the co-founder of a number of initiatives to combat racial inequities in the juvenile and criminal legal systems, including the Ambassadors for Racial Justice program and a Racial Justice Toolkit for defenders. Kris also trains state actors across the country on the impact of racial bias in the courts and the traumatic effects of police contact and surveillance.
Professor Henning has received many awards including a 2023 Embracing the Legacy Award from the RFK Community Alliance, a 2022 Women of Distinction Award from the American Association of University Women, and the 2021 Juvenile Leadership Prize from the Juvenile Law Center. She has published many articles advocating for reform in the juvenile legal system, and her recent book, The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth (Penguin Random House), was featured on the front page of the New York Times Book Review and received rave reviews in the Washington Post. The book was awarded a 2022 Media for a Just Society Award by Evident Change and the 2022 Social Justice Advocacy Award from the In the Margins Book Awards Committee.