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Welcome to the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law’s Newsroom. This page contains our press releases, news clips and blog posts.
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Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Issues Statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s 7-2 Ruling Narrowly Siding With Owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop
WASHINGTON, DC - Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), issued the following statement Monday regardingthe U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 7-2 ruling in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v....
ATTN Daybook/Reporters June 5: 866-OUR-VOTE non-partisan Election Protection Hotline open for primary day
Problems at the Polls? Non-partisan Toll-Free Hotline (866-OUR-VOTE) Available Now Through Election Day WHAT: Election Protection, the nation’s largest nonpartisan voter protection coalition led by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, will have four...
Trump Administration Killed A Housing Discrimination Rule. Some Cities Are Following It Anyway.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development effectively suspended the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule on May 18. Some local governments said they plan to use the AFFH tool, even though HUD withdrew it, according to Thomas Silverstein, a co-counsel in the lawsuit. Some see it as a better platform, and others said they believe litigation will restore the requirement, he said.
Law enforcement, community members take part in ongoing series discussing race and policing
“It was really impossible to discuss policing without discussing race in Baton Rouge,” said Myesha Braden, director of the Criminal Justice Project for the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “Policing is not something that happens separate and apart from (the community). We want to encourage a renewed focus on collaboration.”
Dialogue on Race Louisiana and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Launch Dialogue on Race and Policing
Baton Rouge, LA –In response to heightened tensions between law enforcement and the Baton Rouge community, the Dialogue on Race Louisiana (DORLA) and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law have come together to launch a discussion series designed to build...
Letter to HUD regarding its mission statement
Download the Letter to HUD regarding its mission statement
DeVos: Schools should decide whether to report undocumented kids
In response to Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ comments, Kristen Clarke said “The suggestion that individual schools should have discretion to determine if and when to report undocumented students flies in the face of well-settled and long-standing Supreme Court precedent which makes clear that no student should be denied the right to a public education based on their immigration status.”
Investigation into Anti-Transgender Incident in California Requested by National Civil Rights Groups
WASHINGTON -- The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, one of the nation's premier civil rights organizations, and The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer civil rights organization released a letter...
Supreme Court in Epic Systems case: Employers can enforce arbitration agreements with workers
In a case involving Verona health software giant Epic Systems, a divided Supreme Court ruled Monday that businesses can prohibit their workers from banding together in disputes over pay and conditions in the workplace. “No American should be forced to sign away their right to invoke the meaningful protections afforded by our nation’s critical civil rights laws,” Kristen Clarke said.
Companies win big at U.S. top court on worker class-action curbs
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a blow to the rights of workers on Monday by allowing companies to require them to sign away their ability to bring class-action claims against management, agreements already in place for about 25 million employees. Said Kristen Clarke, “Today’s decision will make it easier for employers to escape liability for widespread discrimination and harassment.”
Letter to Attorney General Becerra from the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Human Rights Campaign
Letter to Attorney General Becerra from the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Human Rights Campaign
‘State of Constitutional Crisis’ as DOJ Bows to Trump Demand for Probe into Alleged Surveillance of His Campaign
“We are in a state of constitutional crisis when we have a DOJ acting at the behest of the president,” Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, wrote on the heels of Trump’s tweet, which capped off a prolonged Sunday Twitter rant in which the president continued to call Mueller’s probe a “witch hunt.”
Divided Supreme Court sides with businesses over workers
Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said she fears the decision will have far-reaching effects. “Today’s decision will make it easier for employers to escape liability for widespread discrimination and harassment. No American should be forced to sign away their right to invoke the meaningful protections afforded by our nation’s critical civil rights laws.”
5/23 NYC: PNC Bank, William S. Demchak, Sally Yates to be honored at Higginbotham Awards Dinner
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law to Honor PNC Bank and Chairman, President & CEO William S. Demchak 2018 Higginbotham Corporate Leadership Award Former Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates Beacon of Justice Award Student Leaders Trevon Bosley, Zion...