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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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5th Circuit Grants Intervention to Black Farmers to Defend Critical USDA Debt Relief Program
(Washington, D.C.) — Black farmers can now defend the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) debt relief program after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit reversed a district court ruling denying them the right to intervene in the Miller v....
In New Report, Lawyers’ Committee Recommends the Confirmation of Supreme Court Nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson
(Washington, D.C.) — The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law released a report on Monday evaluating Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson and recommending that she be confirmed by the Senate. In the report, which reflects a thorough review of...
With House Passage of the CROWN Act, Black Natural Hairstyles Move Closer to Federal Protection
(Washington, DC) –The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2022 (CROWN Act), which would prohibit racial discrimination based on a person’s hair texture or hairstyle commonly associated with a...
2020 Census Undercounted Black, Latino and Indigenous People By Hundreds of Thousands Limiting Our Power
(Washington, DC) - The Census Bureau announced Thursday that the 2020 census significantly undercounted the country’s Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities. Non-white Hispanics were overcounted slightly. The 2020 census undercounted the country’s population by...
Longtime Leader of Proud Boys Enrique Tarrio Charged with Conspiracy for Role in Jan. 6 Attack
(Washington, DC) - On Tuesday, longtime leader of the Proud Boys, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, was indicted on conspiracy for the Jan. 6 Capitol attack last year, according to recent reports. The following is a statement from Damon Hewitt, president and executive director...
Lawyers’ Committee Applauds the Selection of Maya Wiley to Head The Leadership Conference
(Washington, DC) - The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights on Tuesday named Maya D. Wiley, a longtime civil rights attorney and activist, as its new president and CEO. The following is a statement from Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the...
Civil Rights Leaders Reflect on 57th Anniversary of Bloody Sunday
Washington, D.C. (March 6, 2022) – Leading civil rights organizations issued the following joint statement to reflect on the anniversary of Bloody Sunday and to urge Congress to remain focused on protecting the fundamental right to vote for the American people: “As...
Emmett Till Antilynching Act Passed House with Overwhelming Bipartisan Support
Bill brings the nation one step closer to adopting the first federal anti-lynching legislation (Washington, DC) – Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act in an overwhelming bipartisan vote (422-3), legislation which would...
Senate Fails to Advance Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA)
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, the U.S. Senate failed to advance the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), a bill that would protect the right to abortion nationally, and block medically unnecessary restrictions and bans on abortion care. WHPA, which passed the U.S....
President Biden Makes History by Nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as the First Black Woman to serve on the Supreme Court
(Washington, D.C.) — President Joseph R. Biden announced his first nominee to the Supreme Court on Friday, fulfilling a campaign promise to appoint the first Black woman to the high court. The nominee, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, has served on the U.S. Court of...
Lacks Family Deserves Justice After Decades of Medical Exploitation
(Washington, D.C.) — Multi-billion-dollar biotechnology company Thermo Fisher Scientific (TFS) has wrongfully profited from cervical cells that were taken from Henrietta Lacks without her knowledge and consent, according to an amicus brief filed Tuesday by the...
Ahmaud Arbery’s Killers Found Guilty of Hate Crimes
(Washington, D.C). - Earlier Tuesday, a federal jury convicted three white men for committing hate crimes and attempting to kidnap Ahmaud Arbery in February 2020. The three men are already serving life sentences in prison after being convicted of murder after a trial...
Civil Rights Groups To Biden DOJ: Stop Using 100-Year-Old Racist Precedents In Court
A group of 13 civil rights organizations sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland last week, calling on the Department of Justice to stop using a series of racist, century-old Supreme Court precedents in its court arguments. The letter ― signed by the...
Do You Support Affirmative Action in College Admissions?
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two cases, one involving Harvard and the other the University of North Carolina, that could reshape college admissions. Both schools are being accused of race-based discrimination in their admission practices. In the coming year,...
Former Minnesota Police Officer Kim Potter Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison
(Washington, D.C.) - A Minnesota judge sentenced former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter, convicted of two counts of manslaughter in December, to two years in prison Friday, far less than the sentencing range that prosecutors recommended. Potter fatally shot Daunte...