Have a question about our comment policies? © Copyright © The Afro-American Newspaper Company. “If you’re going to study the relationship between law enforcement and the community, your process has to have integrity, because integrity is essential to building trust.”, Jim Pasco, executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, which was also integral in the creation of the commission, declined to discuss its lack of civilian members because his organization was not involved in selecting the members.

Founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the country, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is the largest and most pre-eminent civil rights organization in the nation.

“President Trump should have never moved forward with a Supreme Court nomination during an ongoing election. Our nation has lost its north star for justice tonight. Experts from various subject areas have read short statements to the commissioners, who sometimes ask questions of the speakers.

So the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, known as the LDF… Today, Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) issued the following statement regarding President Trump’s nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the United States Supreme Court: “President Trump’s decision to announce a nominee to fill the seat of the late justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is unacceptable. Trump signs order creating national commission to study police and justice system.

Terry Cunningham, deputy executive director of the IACP, said in December he hoped the commission would be diverse. Washington, DC — Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP issued the following statement tonight on the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: The NAACP family is devastated by the passing tonight of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But in the last sentence of a seven-page memo implementing the commission, Barr wrote that the commission “is not intended to be subject to … the Federal Advisory Committee Act.”. He said the commission was “a unique opportunity to develop a blueprint for improving the way in which we do our jobs” and “to improve relationships and cooperation with the community, which would be to everyone’s advantage.”. Police groups have pushed for a similar group, and President Barack Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing in 2015 recommended a “national crime and justice task force.” Both the Johnson and Obama commissions included police and civilian members. When Attorney General William P. Barr put together a long-awaited national commission to study policing in America in January, all 18 commissioners were members of law enforcement, with no members from the defense bar, civil rights organizations or academia. NAACP LDF Clevleand Water Lein Data. When President Bill Clinton nominated her to the Supreme Court, he called her the “Thurgood Marshall of gender equality law.”. “Yet, now that the President shares their partisan affiliation, many of those same Senators have reversed course — promising to vote on President Trump’s nominee even though the general election is already underway.

Our constitutional democracy depends on those in power acting with principle. Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. Subsequent meetings have been held by teleconference due to the coronavirus pandemic. Follow LDF on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

All rights reserved. For the Senate to disregard a rule it created just four years ago because of partisan considerations demeans both the Senate and the Court, and it is an assault on the rule of law itself. We encourage you to visit https://t.co/6ELgpq5rND to join the new #NAACP Community and apply for grants. Email. “We are also well aware that the strength of our core civil rights principles hangs in the balance with an even more conservative court. Attorney General Barr launches presidential commission on law enforcement, “It has been abundantly clear since its inception,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, the LDF’s president, that the policing commission “was created to perpetuate the false notion that law enforcement is under attack, which Attorney General Barr and President Trump have frequently espoused as a justification for undermining measures to promote police accountability.”. Email icon.

Barr has indicated he does not think that law applies to the policing group. But after the pandemic hit, the policing commission moved up the deadline for submission of public comments, from May 31 to April 30. The audio and transcripts of 14 such meetings have been posted to the commission’s website, though not the February meeting. The FACA also requires that interested persons be permitted to “file statements with any advisory committee,” and the commission has allowed members of the public to file written statements. The federal committee act also requires such commissions “to be fairly balanced in terms of the points of view represented” so that they “will not be inappropriately influenced by the appointing authority or by any special interest.” The LDF lawsuit repeatedly invokes this part of the law to criticize the makeup of the policing commission, noting there are no criminologists, no public health or mental health or recovery practitioners, no civil rights or community leaders, and no labor, business or religious group representatives. Our mission is to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons. We couldn’t agree more. The President of the United States has refused to commit to the peaceful transfer of power should he lose the election, celebrated attacks on journalists and protesters, encouraged his supporters to vote more than once, and defended white supremacist terrorists. The commission then announced 15 working groups, but those, too, were made up of nearly all police officials or prosecutors. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund Herbert Lehman Scholarship Program awards are $2,000 per year, over four years, for a total of $8,000 - provided funds are available. The commission is “lacking in accountability and transparency,” she added. They are violating pretty much every provision of FACA.” She noted that the government has 60 days to respond to the complaint and said she hopes that Bates would move the case quickly after that. Forgot your password? Read LDF’s guide, Count Me In: Census Guide 2020, here.

The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. PRESS ROOM: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.® Does It Again and... 1963 Church Bombing Survivor Seeks Apology, Restitution, Census Bureau: Higher Percentage of Black Children Live with Single Mothers, Ghana Welcomes African Americans Back Home. Together, @helloalice and the @NAACP are proud to announce their long-term partnership to ensure #BusinessForAll for #NewMajority small business owners. The only place to buy Officially Branded Products of the NAACP on the world wide web. Tekashi 6ix9ine Makes Money Rapping the N-Word. The LDF is seeking a permanent injunction to prevent the commission from meeting or issuing any reports.

“The intended goal is clear,” the LDF wrote, “recommendations that will give more power and protection to law enforcement, reinvigorate tough-on-crime measures, and cut down on the rights of citizens.”, The suit cites the FACA violations as reasons for Judge Bates to enjoin the commission from meeting or acting. The trajectory of this country – for generations to come – could very well be determined by the Senate’s actions at this critical juncture. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP.

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), first passed in 1972, governs “any committee, board, commission … established or utilized by the President in the interest of obtaining advice or recommendations for the President.” The act requires that all such meetings shall be open to the public and that notices of each meeting shall be published in the Federal Register, which the commission has not done. “The Commission has operated in a way that has largely shut the public out from meaningful participation,” the LDF argued.

We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Review our. Forgot your password? This is another example of blatant #votersuppression! A number of civil rights and defense groups said they were not consulted before the commission was announced. This privacy policy has been compiled to better serve those who are concerned with how their ‘Personally identifiable information’ (PII) is being used online. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. A presidential commission launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 helped lead to such innovations as the 911 emergency number and improved police training. And she has said she could ‘not defend’ the statement by another Justice that the oath he ‘took to support the Constitution and laws of the United States’ must govern the resolution of all cases regardless of his personal views. During this public health emergency, the fight to defend our civil and human rights has never been more critical. NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund – also referred to as the NAACP-LDF was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but separated in 1957 to become a completely separate entity. “That gives the commission the credibility that it needs to create a living, breathing document.” He said Thursday that he stood by that statement, that “to get the best solutions, we need to hear from folks that don’t always agree with us,” but the IACP was not involved in selecting members of the commission. These cookies do not store any personal information. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. He’s Not Black. So the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, known as the LDF, is asking a federal judge to halt the commission’s work. We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Nation’s Premier Civil Rights Organization. Early and absentee votes are already being cast for the November general election — and nominating a candidate for a lifetime appointment to this nation’s highest court during this electoral period undermines the democratic process and is a disservice to the American public.