Carli Pierson is one of those journalists who went to law school and returned to journalism. Her mother still tells people she's a lawyer. Carli now works as an editor and opinion contributor at USA TODAY. Before that, Carli was an opinion writer and USA Today Editorial Board member. She recently finished a legal consultancy with Equality Now, an international feminist organization working to eliminate sexual violence and discrimination against women and girls. Carli has a BA in Islamic World Studies, a JD with a concentration in international law, is a NY-licensed attorney and sometimes consults, writes and edits on law and human rights issues. Before law school, Carli worked in radio and TV broadcast journalism. If she's not writing or editing, she's probably reading, cooking, playing with her kids or walking her dogs.