Justice Department Must Maintain Disparate Impact Protections →

Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) met with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Office of Management and Budget to express serious concern surrounding an eleventh-hour attempt by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to revise Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Although the agency was unable to...

Volunteer for Election Protection →

Are you interested in getting involved this election cycle? Do you want to help protect the right to vote? Volunteer for non-partisan Election Protection! Please register at: bit.ly/electionprotection2018  

“I don’t care whether they are standing outside of a school, or a church…” — Bristol County Sheriff →

Last night, one of our legal warriors stood up against bigotry and hate in our own backyard. The Bristol County Sheriff is reckless and dangerous. He makes us all unsafe. Watch as he advocates hunting down immigrants: "I don't care whether they are standing outside of a school, or a church, or wherever they are." At...

Federal Surveillance Targets Foreign-born and Naturalized U.S. Citizens →

Today, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice and the Greater Boston Latino Network raised discrimination concerns surrounding the Department of Homeland Security's efforts to track the social media accounts of racial and ethnic minorities, including U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents. Surveillance procedures that target foreign-born and...

Justice Department Challenges Diversity at Harvard →

Our response to the Justice Department's recent opposition to affirmative action and diversity in higher education featured in the Boston Globe: If Jeff Sessions believes in so-called states’ rights, he can start by respecting states’ efforts to promote diversity in their own colleges. That’s what the Supreme Court did again...

Boston Globe Calls for Action on Exam School Diversity →

The Boston Globe Editorial Board calls for "more urgency" in closing Boston Latin’s diversity gap, citing the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice: “There is simply nothing meritorious about a public school admissions policy that favors those who can pay for private test preparation,” said Matt Cregor, the...

Rejected Ride-Hailing Drivers Have Little Recourse in Mass. →

Massachusetts, the first state to conduct comprehensive background checks of ride-hailing companies, barred 8,206 drivers for Uber and Lyft in Massachusetts, according to the Boston Globe.  There is virtually no way for the vast majority of dismissed drivers to overturn their rejections, including those with relatively minor traffic violations or...

Do Courts Set A Double Standard? →

"The Take with Sue O'Connell" featured a discussion on January 5, 2017, with Oren Sellstrom of The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice and Julia Huston of Foley Hoag concerning Massachusetts' courts and whether they fail the test of minority hiring and freedom of information:  

Rights Group Sues Court Offices After Bias Alleged →

CIVIL RIGHTS LAWSUIT SEEKS RECORDS SHOWING IMPACT OF TRIAL COURT EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES ON DIVERSITY Citing Importance of Transparency and Accountability in Light of Probation Department Scandal, Suit Filed Directly With Supreme Judicial Court In a public records lawsuit filed directly with Massachusetts’ highest court on December 14, 2016, the Lawyers’...

Boston Public Schools’ Report Highlights Racial Bias at Boston Latin School →

Boston Public Schools’ Report Highlights Racial Bias at Boston Latin School BOSTON, MA - Yesterday, the Boston Public Schools’ Office of Equity released the findings of its second round of investigation into the racial climate at Boston Latin School.  The breadth of this investigation is commendable, covering over 100 reported...

Celebrating 48 Years of Civil Rights Advocacy →

Forum: Black in Boston Public Schools – June 11th →

The Lawyers' Committee is proud to join a host of civil rights and religious groups in co-sponsoring the BLACK IN BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS forum on Saturday, June 11th (9am-2pm) at Greater Love

Launching the Edward J. Barshak Fund for Justice →

[embed]http://iframewidth=560height=315src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/VdXOl3K36okframeborder=0allowfullscreen/iframe[/embed]

Lawyers’ Committee Applauds Unanimous Supreme Court Decision Upholding “One Person, One Vote” →

In a unanimous decision issued today in Evenwel v. Abbott, the United States Supreme Court upheld the principle of “one person, one vote” and ruled that states may redistrict on the basis of total population. Challengers had sought a ruling requiring states to redistrict based on voter-eligible population, a narrow...

Changes in Boston City Council’s Committees →

The Bay State Banner featured an article on recent changes in the Boston City Council.  The Audit and Oversight Committee, which paid special interest to the level of diversity in the city’s hiring practices, was dissolved. "Continued attention on bringing and maintaining diversity in law enforcement and firefighting is of...

Making the Case for Independent Prosecutors in Police Shootings →

In the aftermath of the Tamir Rice shooting, the Lawyers' Committee made the case for independent prosecutors in connection with police misconduct. As our Executive Director, Ivan Espinoza-Madrigal, discussed on the Boston news show, City Line: "Every day, police officers and police departments work closely with prosecutors. Some people believe...

MCAD Rules That Boston Police Department Discriminates Against Black Recruits →

Boston, MA – In a ruling with far-reaching implications for diversity in the Boston Police Department (BPD), the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) has found that BPD discriminates against Black recruits in the Training Academy, disciplining them more harshly than White recruits.  MCAD has ordered BPD to “cease and desist”...

Setting the Record Straight: Students of Color Belong in Top Schools →

Setting the Record Straight: Students of Color Belong in Top Schools A Statement from the Executive Director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice Black people don't belong in top schools - that's what I heard from Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia during oral argument in the...