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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.

We have subject matter experts on civil rights issues ready to handle inquiries from journalists on such issues as voting rights, criminal justice, economic justice, fair housing, educational opportunity, racial justice matters and more.

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Facebook Now Reportedly ‘Reviewing’ Its Distinction Between White Nationalism and White Supremacy

Facebook Now Reportedly ‘Reviewing’ Its Distinction Between White Nationalism and White Supremacy

Civil rights groups like Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law wrote Facebook a letter on September 6 explaining that its policy on white nationalism was “misguided, inconsistent, and dangerous.” Now it appears that policy is being reviewed by Facebook.
Update, 2:28pm: Facebook just sent Gizmodo the following statement:
We regularly meet with the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, as well as other groups, to maintain an open dialogue on a variety of issues, including our policies on hate speech. We’ve received a letter from the Lawyers’ Committee and are reviewing the specific policy referenced.

The ugly double standard over Kavanaugh’s so-called youth

Given this history, there is a real question of whether Kavanaugh is a credible witness and whether the Senate has enough information to evaluate his character and fitness to serve as a Supreme Court justice. The Senate will fail in its duties if it does not provide the opportunity for a full and fair hearing, informed by an FBI investigation.
At the end of the day, as Sen. Charles Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, once said, the Supreme Court can do just fine with eight justices until a full and fair confirmation proceeding results in the confirmation of a ninth justice. Under the circumstances, a confirmation of Kavanaugh without such a full hearing will forever taint his appointment and the administration that condoned and supported a sham proceeding.

Why companies are turning to ex-cons to fill slots for workers

Screening out ex-offenders can also subject employers to liability for policies that have a disproportionate racial impact, said Dariely Rodriguez, director of the economic justice project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “Employers have an obligation not to discriminate,” Rodriguez said. “They have an obligation to root out bias.”

Baton Rouge leaders plan police chief advisory council after citizen recommendations

Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul and Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome plan to form a citizen council to advise and support the police chief in another effort to improve community-police relations and boost law enforcement transparency. The idea flows from a summer dialogue series on race and policing, led by the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, a national nonprofit working to secure equal justice, and Dialogue on Race Louisiana, a local nonprofit working to eradicate racism, where community members and leaders — including local law enforcement — discussed how racism has continued to influence law enforcement efforts and policy.

Challenge to Texas Judicial Elections Shot Down

Ezra Rosenberg, LUPE’s attorney at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington, D.C., found a silver lining in the order. “While we are disappointed the court ultimately found that party politics played a greater role than race in these elections, the court’s opinion recognizes that Latinos had suffered from discrimination in ways that have hampered their ability to be elected to these courts. We hope that this case has shed light on this unfortunate history of discrimination,” he said in a statement.Rosenberg said he needs to thoroughly review the ruling and consult with his clients to decide whether to appeal.

Voters Have to Remain Vigilant to Make Sure They Are on the List

“The sad truth is there are jurisdictions around the country that have made it more difficult for people to vote at each and every stage of that process,” said John Powers, counsel in the Lawyers’ Committee’s Voting Rights Project. “Voters have to remain vigilant to make sure that they are on the list, and may have to take additional steps, even though they haven’t done anything to take themselves off the list, if they haven’t voted in a while.”

What Cory Booker’s ‘Spartacus’ moment at the Kavanaugh hearing accomplished

Kristen Clarke, president of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said Booker’s effort to make public “confidential emails” highlighted how “shrouded in secrecy” the confirmation process has been even if the emails did not contain a smoking gun that undid Kavanaugh’s nomination. Clarke said the point was they had been classified to keep Democrats from bringing them up, even thought they contained no information that merited secrecy. “I think this morning was a game-changer. What other information is in the hundreds of thousands of documents that haven’t been turned over? There is a looming feeling there is something they’re hiding.”

ICE Requests Millions of North Carolina Voting Records

Voting rights groups denounced the subpoenas as a voter suppression scheme aimed at communities of color.
“Federal officials’ decision to issue subpoenas to 44 counties across North Carolina seeking vast amounts of voting records is a clear attempt to intimidate and suppress minority voting rights,” tweeted Kristen Clarke, executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

Social Media Campaign: #WhyWeKneel

The #WhyWeKneel campaign is designed to take advantage of the momentum created by recent developments by steering the conversation away from the National Anthem and toward the injustices faced by communities of color. #WhyWeKneel will run for the entire first weekend...