Black Muslim Man Deserves New Trial →

Black Muslim Man Represented By Racist, Islamophobic Attorney Deserves New Trial  Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC), the Commonwealth's highest court, on behalf of eight racial justice organizations, urging the SJC to order a new trial for a Black Muslim man whose court-appointed attorney expressed...

Tyre Nichols, Terrence Coleman & Reina Morales →

The images of police brutality in Memphis are harrowing. Nearly three years after George Floyd's murder, we are still living with unmitigated structural and institutionalized violence against Black people. In Boston, we are not immune. In our own backyard, we have unchecked violence and neglect affecting people of color. At Lawyers for...

Boston Police Denies Right to Counsel →

Boston Police Denies Right to Counsel to Community Group Concerned About Disappeared Latina  January 26, 2023 Since the disappearance of Reina Carolina Morales Rojas, Latinos Unidos en Massachusetts (LUMA) has been urging law enforcement officials to investigate the matter with immediacy. Reina has been missing since November 26, 2022, but...

Botched Police Investigation in East Boston Reinforces Racial Disparities →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) urges the City of Boston and the Boston Police Department (BPD) to investigate the disappearance of Reina Carolina Morales Rojas. To provide zealous police protection to all residents regardless of race, class, or national origin, the City needs to conduct an independent audit surrounding issues of diversity,...

Federal Investigation Into Discriminatory Business Practices At Logan Airport →

Civil Rights Advocates Demand Federal Investigation Into Discriminatory Business Practices At Boston’s Logan Airport Massport and JCDecaux Depriving Minority-Owned Businesses of Equal Contracting Opportunity Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) asked the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to launch an investigation into discriminatory business practices at Logan Airport.  The federal complaint outlines Massachusetts Port...

LCR’s Civil Rights Summit →

LCR’s Civil Rights Summit November 4, 2022 Lawyers for Civil Rights held a Civil Rights Summit on November 4, 2022, convening powerful attorneys and community partners for strategic and catalytic thought partnership to advance civil rights in the current legal landscape, including changes in the composition of the Supreme Court....

Launching the Lauren Sampson Fellowship →

Lawyers for Civil Rights Launches Lauren Sampson Fellowship Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) is committed to honoring the memory and legacy of our colleague Lauren Sampson. We are proud to announce the creation of a legal fellowship dedicated to deepening and expanding Lauren’s impactful work from housing to climate justice and...

Immigrants File Federal Class Action Against Florida’s Governor →

Federal Class Action Challenges the Fraudulent Scheme Victimizing Nearly 50 Vulnerable Immigrants in Martha’s Vineyard September 20, 2022 Boston – Today, Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) filed a federal civil rights class action lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Secretary of Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, the State...

Legal First Responders for Migrants in Martha’s Vineyard →

Lawyers for Civil Rights is providing free legal support to the immigrants who were recklessly expelled from Texas and Florida. In response to this unprecedented event, LCR rapidly mobilized to deploy attorneys and staff to Martha's Vineyard. On the ground since early Thursday morning, LCR has helped to coordinate free...

Response to Orange Line Shutdown →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) has issued a letter to federal authorities voicing opposition to public statements by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) regarding Greater Boston’s Orange Line shutdown. LCR recently pointed out that the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) violated federal law by failing to conduct a service equity analysis before...

Illegal and Discriminatory Orange Line Closure →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) has requested federal intervention and oversight in connection with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) improper shutdown of the Orange Line.  As a federally-funded entity, the MBTA is prohibited from conduct that has an unjustified impact based on race, color, or national origin. The Federal...

Defending Diversity in Higher Education in the Supreme Court →

Civil Rights Lawyers File Supreme Court Brief Supporting Affirmative Action on Behalf Of Harvard Students and Alumni  The brief, filed in support of the respondents in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, uplifts how Harvard's race-conscious admissions policy leads to a diverse campus that benefits all students. The Lawyers’ Committee...

Federal Suit Against Police for Racially Profiling Black Man in Arlington, MA →

Arlington Police Department Racially Profiles Young Black Man Walking Home Federal Civil Rights Lawsuit Filed to Address Racial Profiling and Excessive Force Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) and pro bono counsel, Stephen Hall of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of Donovan Johnson, a 20-year-old Black man and a...

LCR’s Legal Warriors at Lav Law →

Lawyers for Civil Rights at the 2022 Lavender Law Conference  LCR’s legal warriors and our pro bono partners will be presenting on a wide range of cutting-edge civil rights and intersectional issues at the upcoming Lavender Law Conference hosted by the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association in Los Angeles. This is where...

State Law Inhibits Municipal Supplier Diversity →

New Research Finds State Law Inhibits Municipal Efforts to Increase Supplier Diversity  Over the next five years, cities and towns in Massachusetts will have over $7 billion to spend from the federal recovery and infrastructure bills. However, Massachusetts municipalities are poorly-positioned to invest these dollars equitably, due to constraints imposed...

Race/Gender Gaps in Boston’s Municipal Workforce →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) issued an open letter to Mayor Michelle Wu outlining findings based on public records disclosures from four Boston agencies: the Boston Police Department (BPD), Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC), Boston Water and Sewer Commission (BWSC), and Boston Public Works Department (BPWD). LCR submitted public records...

Condemning Lax Sentencing in East Boston Hate Crime →

Lax Sentencing in East Boston Hate Crime Endangers Spanish-Speaking Community The East Boston District Court has failed to meaningfully sentence Stephanie Armstrong in connection with the heinous attack on a Latinx mother and minor in East Boston. This follows on the heels of the lax sentencing of another white assailant,...

Emergency Relief Sought Against the Military to End HIV Discrimination →

Emergency Relief Sought Against the Military to End HIV Discrimination   Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) filed a preliminary injunction in Doe v. Austin, a federal civil rights lawsuit challenging the U.S. military’s discriminatory policies against people living with HIV. This motion seeks emergency relief to return a young Latinx man living with...