Rising Stars: Meet Lauryn Crawford of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauryn Crawford.

Hi Lauryn, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in LA most of life, Gardena area off of El Segundo and Normandie, but I also moved around a lot. My parents divorced when I was young so my brother and I lived with my mom. Although she tried her best and my dad supported as well, we were broke. Before moving with my dad at age 12 I had lived in at least 6 different places, often switching schools and moving around the I.E.

So no, I didn’t grow up thinking that I could be something that seemed so unattainable as a lawyer. I was a poor black kid who had rips in her clothes and shoes. I had never seen a black lawyer growing up and when I did see them as I was older I assumed they were the best of the best. It wasn’t until I was in college at San Jose State University and multiple professors approached me with the idea based on my passion for justice in the Black community. During the end of my sophomore year I decided I was going to be a lawyer so I focused on grades and locked in as best I could.

In May of 2025 I graduated from Florida A & M University College of Law with my Juris Doctorate. 10 weeks later I sat for the California Bar Exam in July and received my results on November 7, 2025 that I had passed one of the hardest bar exams in the country. I became Lauryn Crawford Esq., on November 16th when I was sworn in and I now work as an attorney for the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.

I wasn’t the smartest, but I worked hard and I asked a lot of questions. All thanks to God for making it through because without him I wouldn’t have done any of it.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road hasn’t been smooth at all. My parents did a great job at educating me about the struggles and success of Black people in America. I don’t think it truly hit home until Trayvon Martin was killed and Zimmerman walked free. I was 12 years old and the whole family watched on through television as the verdict read “not guilty” and my whole perspective of America changed from false belief to reality. I thought all that was in the “past.”

So I stopped standing for the pledge of allegiance in high school, then I started to sit all together by junior year. In 2015 in pre-calculus teacher was upset that I was sitting and told me I had to stand the next day. I went home and told my parents and they were hot. My dad walked up to the office with me the next day to speak to the principle at Lakewood High showing him the Supreme Court case West Virginia v. Barnette and next thing you know all of LBUSD was notified that teachers could not force students to stand for the pledge. I feel like this was the beginning of my activism and my struggles to convey the injustices faced by Black folk in America.

My passion only grew, but again I was broke lol. I knew I was going to college money or not but I applied to scholarships and grants and had free tuition by junior year when I moved off campus. I struggled academically the first few years to stay focused since I had a new freedom and had to balance life on my own, but I had a real solid community at SJSU that helped me make It through.

When it came time to apply to law school I studied for the LSAT, but I struggled getting a high score. I took the LSAT 3 times, not knowing much about the exam and honestly not focused the first 2 times since I was still in college. I took the LSAT for the last time in 2020 and got a solid 150, which is not great but it was good enough for me. I applied to multiple law schools and didn’t get accepted into any. So I waited another year and applied to more and I got into two law schools, waitlisted at a few. I was so set on being at a top school that I felt weird about being accepted to low rank law schools but I realized its not about the rank when God is on my side and I took a leap and moved to Orlando, FL for 3 years.

Law school was tough. Like tough tough. That 1L year was like an academic culture shock, sometimes reading 100 pages of dense text in a night and not understanding a word. I also developed a new anxiety in law school, likely also a result of the pandemic, but I was afraid to speak. That’s something I was never afraid to do, I hosted events and spoke in front of large crowds my whole life and now I felt mute. My voice would shake and I would stutter through case briefs, but I pushed through. All of a sudden I was comparing myself to all these people who were all smart and minimizing my own intelligence. But my dad told me about how Moses chose his brother Erin to speak to the people of Israel because of his stutter and how God uses the imperfect because it requires us to rely on him. I also don’t want to miss my blessings to speak what God has for me by giving that role to someone else.

Many nights of reading and studying, I didn’t believe in myself and I wanted to give up but my community did not let up on me! They did this with me and now I’m in the first in my family to get a JD. I didn’t plan on moving to FL or taking gap years but sometimes the journey is not what you envision. It didn’t look like what I wanted it to but I wouldn’t change a thing. I let go of my own plans and accepted God’s.

I did it for God. I did it for my Black brothers. I did it for my Black culture. I did it for my family and friends. I did it for the marathon, And the one who inspired it all…Trayvon Martin.

my law school motto : “Double up. Never let a hard time humble us” – Nipsey Hussle

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am an attorney at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and I mainly work in family law. I work in self-help so I don’t litigate at the moment and don’t have a client base. I am still a new attorney so I am adjusting and learning the ropes. Eventually, I do plan to work in civil rights as that is my passion.

I’m most proud of my faith as a christian and my blackness. I feel that even in family law the need is still present for underrepresented groups of people to get the legal help they need. I was the only black attorney in my workgroup when I first started, but I am still the youngest. I am eager to learn and adjusting well in my field. I love helping those who can’t help themselves and I’m glad to be a friendly and helpful face and people need assistance with their legal problems.

No matter what, I’m still myself. I’m still a Black woman who grew up walking to Stevens burgers on Normandie and El Segundo with my brother and cousins. I don’t act like I’m above anyone else, I did the work and anyone can with God on their side.

What does success mean to you?
Success to me is a purpose driven life, meaning a life where we chase our purpose on earth and try our best to fulfill it, even with the ups and downs, struggles, and all.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @lauryncrawf

Image Credits
JD grad pics – @jrods_creations
White suit – @jonjonmac