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Read the obituary for Lauren Sampson, civil rights lawyer who died at 30
“Lauren was everybody’s friend and it was so easy for her to be around people and get them to lighten up.”
At the age of 30, Lauren Sampson was already one of the region’s most impassioned civil rights champions and a prominent community leader. She was a senior attorney at Lawyers for Civil Rights in Boston, she loved stand-up comedy, and was a generous mentor to aspiring attorneys.
In her work as a lawyer in the greater Boston area, she argued a wide range of cases, including one aimed at keeping anti-discrimination provisions in place for housing nationally and one ensuring diversity in Boston’s exam school admissions.
On Jan. 30, Sampson ended her life.
“You can think of yourself as a good person,” her husband, John Slinkman told The Boston Globe, “and then you meet Lauren and you think, ‘Wow, I’ve got to step my game up.’
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“She gave so much of herself,” Slinkman said, “and unfortunately, didn’t ask for enough help in return.”
Born in Canada to Nisreen and Clifford Sampson, Lauren Sampson had lived in the United States since entering Duke University School of Law a decade ago. She joined Lawyers for Civil Rights in 2018, and assumed leading roles in many high-profile cases.
Iván Espinoza-Madrigal, the executive director at Lawyers for Civil Rights, described Sampson to the Globe as “such a bright light.”
“She died at 30 with all of these accomplishments,” Espinoza-Madrigal said. “I keep thinking about what the universe would have had in store for her in the decades to come.”
After graduating with her law degree, Sampson served as a clerk for the Vermont Supreme Court.
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“Lauren was just a rock star in so many ways, loved by so many people from across the country and internationally,” said Kienan Christianson, who clerked with Sampson, to the Globe.
Sampson also taught as an adjunct professor at Boston College.
“Lauren was everybody’s friend,” Slinkman said to the Globe, “and it was so easy for her to be around people and get them to lighten up.”
Read her full obituary, shared by Slinkman, below:
Activist, lawyer, and beloved friend Lauren Sampson died in Cambridge, MA on Sunday January 30th at the age of 30.
Lauren was a brilliant lawyer who oriented her life around fighting for justice for the marginalized and oppressed. She came to the Boston area in 2018 with her husband John Slinkman to join Lawyers for Civil Rights Boston, where she worked as an attorney until the time of her death. She also served on many non-profit boards and taught as an adjunct professor at Boston College.
Lauren was the most loving and loved person there was. She was always there for the people she was closest to and brought laughter and joy into the lives of many, many more. She loved to travel, loved discovering new food, loved board games and was a voracious reader who delighted equally in high literature, well researched non-fiction and stories that are just good stories.
Lauren was born in Ontario, Canada in 1991 with a love of theater and was an especially talented improv comedian from an early age. She graduated from Queen’s University in Ontario. On a whim, she applied to law school in the U.S., eventually graduating with a J.D. and a Masters in English from Duke University. She then clerked on the Vermont Supreme Court. While in Vermont, she met her husband John Slinkman. They lived together in VT for a little over a year before moving to the Boston area with their two rescue dogs.
Lauren is survived by her husband John, her mother Nisreen Khanbhai, her father Clifford Sampson and his partner Hiltrud Dawson, and her brother David Sampson. She is also survived by an enormous group of friends and adoptive family members. She will be sorely missed.In lieu of flowers, her family is requesting that donations be made in her name to Boston Court Appointed Special Advocates (Boston CASA), on whose board she served as Vice-President and President. Donations can be made online.
The Samaritans 24-seven crisis helpline can be reached by calling or texting 877-870-4673. People experiencing a crisis can call also the Disaster Distress Helpline: 1-800-985-5990, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255, or the Crisis Text Line: Text CRISIS to 741741.
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