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Defending Democracy (Lawyers’ Committee Newsletter February 2025)

Within days of taking office, President Trump issued executive orders that roll back critical civil rights protections, dismantle diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives, weaken criminal justice reforms, and restrict voting rights. These actions threaten the fundamental principles of equality and justice, disproportionately harming communities of color, workers, and vulnerable populations. Learn more on how the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is committed to fighting back.

Awards Spotlight

Honored to share that our recent voting rights ad has been recognized among the winners of the 2025 Writers Guild Award! Special shoutout to our creative partners at Time of Day Media who secured the win for outstanding achievement in an On-Air Promotion for their collaboration as writers on this incredible project.
View the video from our Be a Voter series now: Be a Voter Series Video.

Official Statements & Press Releases

  • Civil Rights Groups Sue Trump Administration to Challenge Anti-DEI Executive Orders on Behalf of Nonprofit Serving Diverse Group of Women in the Skilled Trades | February 26, 2025 | Read more
  • Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Urges Senators to Oppose Nomination of Linda McMahon for Secretary of Education | February 20, 2025 | Read more
  • New Lawsuit Challenges Big Tech Firm Meta for Discrimination in Advertising Higher Education Opportunities | February 11, 2025 | Read more
  • Lawyers’ Committee Statement on the Metropolitan AME Church Being Granted the Proud Boy Trademark | February 7, 2025 | Read more
  • Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Issues Statement on Confirmation of Pamela Bondi| February 4, 2025 | Read more

Chavis Jones Joined Roland Martin Unfiltered To Discuss Our Recent Lawsuit Against Meta

On February 21, 2025, Chavis Jones, counsel for the Educational Opportunities Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, appeared on Roland Martin Unfiltered to discuss our recent lawsuit against Meta.

Damon Hewitt Joined Rev. Al Sharpton On Politics Nation

On February 16, 2025, Lawyers’ Committee President and Executive Director Damon Hewitt joined Rev. Al Sharpton on Politics Nation to discuss the mounting attacks against DEI and the work that the Lawyers’ Committee is doing to push back.

‘There Is a Lot of Advocacy Underway … We Can’t Retreat’

Demelza Baer on the Legal Fight for Civil Rights | Demelza Baer, director of public policy at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, credits her mom with inspiring her to work for civil rights and social justice. “She taught me and my sisters how important it is to fight for your rights and the rights of the people in your community,” she told Ms.

This foundational lesson—merging the personal and the political—led Baer to become a passionate advocate for the disenfranchised. Read the full interview: MsMagazine (Feb 11)

Key Stories Shaping The Legal and Policy Landscape (February Roundup)

With lawsuits ranging from challenging anti-diversity executive orders to AI bias and digital discrimination, February has been a crucial month for civil rights litigation and advocacy. Here are some of the key stories shaping the legal and policy landscape:

 Racial Discrimination & Workplace Justice

  • Tesla Board Promises to ‘Do Better’ to Protect Workers Against ‘Violence, Intimidation’ As Racial Discrimination Lawsuits Mount, Company Stock Price Drops and Elon Musk Loses Over $100B In Net Worth: Musk’s ties to the Trump administration may have cost him over $100B as Tesla deals with lawsuits over workplace racial discrimination. Atlanta Black Star (Feb 28)
    • “This is a complete abdication of responsibility,” Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, told CNN. “The DOJ was created to help protect Americans’ civil rights and to enforce civil rights laws. … And we all know that justice delayed can be justice denied,” he said, adding that “the pace and volume” of cases filed over the last four years “tells us there are problems all over the country that need addressing.”
  • Meta Accused Of Digital Redlining By Targeting Black Users With More For-Profit College Ads Than Their White Counterparts: AfroTech (Feb 13)

Anti-Diversity Policies & Legal Battles

  • Chicago Women In Trades Files Lawsuit Challenging Trump’s ‘Anti-Diversity’ Executive Orders: Legal challenges claim that federal executive orders restrict DEI programs. Chicago Women in Trades is being represented by a team of civil rights lawyers from the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. It is also receiving pro-bono counsel from Crowell & Moring LLP, along with the National Women’s Law Center, LatinoJustice PRLDEF and Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights. Book Club Chicago (Feb 27)
  • Trump Admin. Warns Schools: End Race-Based Programs or Risk Losing Funds: Institutions face potential funding cuts for implementing race-conscious policies. Education Week (Feb 18)
    • The letter is a “vast and unjustified expansion” of the Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision, said Sumayya Saleh, associate director of educational opportunities project for the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “The letter is simply wrong that school programs advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion are presumptively illegal,” she said. “While the decision that this letter relies on was a blow to affirmative action at higher education institutions, its ruling is really quite limited and still allows for institutions to use other lawful means to advance diversity and equity, whether at the college level and certainly in the K-12 level, which that case is not even about.”

Voting Rights & Democracy

  • New Senate seat possible after court ruling requires lawmakers to create new majority-Black districts: A ruling requires lawmakers to create additional Black-majority voting districts. NBC/ABC Hattiesburg (Feb 11)
    • “It preserves the majority-Black district for Senate District 34 while also adding an additional Black district that’s anchored in the Hattiesburg area,” said Jennifer Nwachukwu with the Lawyers Committee For Civil Rights Under Law.

 AI, Civil Rights, & National Security

  • The Threat That Unregulated AI Poses to Civil Rights and National Security: Legal advocates warn that unregulated AI exacerbates discrimination. Sacramento Observer (Feb 13)
    • The threat that unregulated AI poses to Civil rights and National Security“ is a top priority of the Lawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law according to its President and Executive Director, Damon Hewitt.

 Racial Justice

  • Far-right group Proud Boys loses legal naming rights to Black church it vandalized: A Black church wins a lawsuit revoking the group’s trademark. The ruling recognized a lawsuit filed last year by the Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison law firm and the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, on behalf of the church that asserted the far-right militia had not paid up. The Guardian (Feb 4)

Legal & Economic Equity

  • New Fellowship for Law Graduates Affected by Federal Hiring Freeze: Dechert launches an initiative supporting students impacted by government cutbacks. The 2024 class of Dechert Impact Fellows are currently working with the Houston Volunteer Lawyers, The Legal Aid Society of New York, The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, The Human Trafficking Legal Center, The Center for Reproductive Rights and Calvert Impact. The 2025 program will start in October. Law Fuel (Feb 25)

Additional Headlines of Note

  • Trump Marks Black History Month While Undermining Diversity: New York Times (Feb 20)
    • Damon Hewitt, the president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said that the event was like “rubbing salt in the wound.”
    • “What he seems to be celebrating is the support he believes he received from Black supporters, so again, it’s about him, not about us,” Mr. Hewitt said. “It’s like a cruel joke.”
  • Justice Department Deletes Federal Police Misconduct Database: The Washington Post (Feb 20)
    • Damon Hewitt, the president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said when Biden signed the order in 2022: “once [the George Floyd Act] was sabotaged, the administration stepped up as much as it could via executive action.”

The fight for equity and justice continues, with ongoing legal battles and policy changes shaping the future.

Career Opportunities

Come join our team!

  • Counsel/Senior Counsel | Apply Now
  • Digital Communications Coordinator | Apply Now
  • Director, Criminal Justice Project | Apply Now
  • Director, Digital Justice Initiative | Apply Now
  • National Director, Protecting and Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiative | Apply Now
  • Senior Education Policy Counsel/Education Policy Advisor | Apply Now
  • Senior Media Coordinator |Apply Now
  • Staff Writer | Apply Now

Events (March)

  • Women’s History Month (March)
  • Lawyers’ Committee Townhall (Online): “Executive Dis-Order: How the Trump Administration is Weaponizing Executive Orders to Dismantle Civil Rights.” Townhall | March 4th, 2025 – 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM (EST)
  • Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee – 60th Anniversary | March 6th, 2025 – March 9th, 2025

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The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to mobilize the nation’s leading lawyers as agents for change in the Civil Rights Movement. Today, the Lawyers’ Committee uses legal advocacy to achieve racial justice, fighting inside and outside the courts to ensure that Black people and other people of color have the voice, opportunity, and power to make the promises of our democracy real. The Lawyers’ Committee implements its mission and objectives by marshaling the pro bono resources of the bar for litigation, public policy, advocacy and other forms of service by lawyers to the cause of civil rights.