Politics. On Point.

Members of civil rights groups met with Attorney General Jeff Sessions at the Department of Justice Tuesday with a list of concerns they say were meant to put Sessions “on notice.” "The meeting was two-fold", said Wade Henderson,  president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights .  We met with Sessions "to present the agenda of national civil rights organizations and to discuss with the AG our expectations for his responsibility to the American people to address issues of national concern regarding civil and human rights", he said. Civil rights groups met with the press after meeting with Attorney General Jeff Sessions Tuesday at the Department of Justice. Pictured are: Marc Morial, National Urban League. From left to right:  Rev. Al Sharpton, National Action Network; Wade Henderson,  Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel of the NAACP’s Legal Defense and Educational Fund (hidden);   Kristen Clarke, president & exec...

President Obama met with Faith and Civil Rights leaders Thursday at the White House where the group discussed issues important to the African American community. Attendees included Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Attorney Benjamin Crump of the National Bar Association and members of Black Lives Matter. Representative John Lewis and civil rights activist C.T. Vivian, who received a  Presidential Medal of Freedom  from President Obama in 2013, also attended the meeting. The president said the group discussed criminal justice reform, the work of grassroots organizations like Black Lives Matter, and creating a schools-to-college-to-jobs-pipeline in an effort to eliminate the school-to-prison pipeline. (Today, the administration launched two campaigns, in partnership with MBK , to address and eliminate chronic student absenteeism).   After their meeting with the president a few attendees met with reporters along the White House driveway. Reverend Al Sharpton of The...

From  DOJ press release . Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced today that the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the city of Ferguson, Missouri, alleging a pattern or practice of law enforcement conduct that violates the First, Fourth and 14 th  Amendments of the Constitution and federal civil rights laws. “Today, the Department of Justice is filing a lawsuit against the city of Ferguson, Missouri, alleging a pattern or practice of law enforcement conduct that violates the Constitution and federal civil rights laws,” said Attorney General Lynch.   “The residents of Ferguson have waited nearly a year for their city to adopt an agreement that would protect their rights and keep them safe.  They have waited nearly a year for their police department to accept rules that would ensure their constitutional rights and that thousands of other police departments follow every day.  They have waited nearly a year for thei...

From the White Press Office NEW YORK, NY – Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch today announced $41 million in grant awards to 20 jurisdictions to eliminate or reduce the number of untested sexual assault kits across the country.  Today’s announcement is being announced as part of an unprecedented partnership with the New York County District Attorney’s Office (DANY) – whose own grant program is contributing $38 million to the cause for a total of $79 million to eliminate the backlog reaching 43 jurisdictions in 27 states across the country. “Rape kits are an essential tool in modern crime fighting — not only for the victim, but, for the entire community. Studies show we solve up to 50 percent of previously unsolved rapes when these kits are tested. When we solve these cases, we get rapists off the streets. For most survivors, seeing their rapists brought to justice, and knowing that they will not return, brings peace of mind and a sense of clos...

Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced a  Correctional Education Guidance Package  aimed at helping states and local agencies strengthen the quality of education services provided to America’s estimated 60,000 young people in confinement every day. This guidance package builds on recommendations in the  My Brother’s Keeper Task Force report  released in May to “reform the juvenile and criminal justice systems to reduce unnecessary interactions for youth and to enforce the rights of incarcerated youth to a quality education.”  Today’s guidance package is a roadmap that states and local agencies can use to improve the quality of educational services for confined youth. “In this great country, all children deserve equal access to a high-quality public education - and this is no less true for children in the juvenile justice system,” said Attorney General Holder.  “At the Department of Justice, we are work...

Days after Attorney General Eric Holder announced that he is resigning his pos t (for reasons many are uncertain of), Holder spoke during the Congressional Black Caucus' panel on voting rights. Holder was the first African American, and longest tenured Attorney General in U.S. history. He has agreed to stay in his post until a successor has been named.  The Department of Justice, which Holder heads, is leading the investigation in Ferguson, Missouri where eighteen year-old Michael Brown was murdered by Darren Wilson of the Ferguson police department. Residents are in awe of Holder's resignation and have become increasingly concerned that justice may not prevail without Holders leadership in ensuring a fair and honest investigation. Holder announced his resignation as the nation celebrates the 50th anniversity of the Civil Rights Act. His remarks during the CBC Voting Rights panel are below. Thank you, Representative [Marcia] Fudge, for those kind words – and than...

Eleven days after another police officer murders another unarmed African American male, tensions continue to run high amid calls for peace and a halt to the unrest by Ferguson officials, residents, and even President Obama. The family and Ferguson residents want justice for eighteen year-old, Michael Brown , who was shot, execution style, by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson . Brown's body lay in street for several moments, with no attempts to revive him, and no ambulance dispatched to the crime scene. A posting and picture of Darren Wilson from his father's Facebook page. Witnesses took to their camera phones to record their account of the incident.  See also [ Reporter talks to Ferguson residents to get on-the-ground response .  Multiple videos]. Many say Brown and a friend were approached by Wilson who pulled Brown into the police car and as Brown struggled to get away, Wilson shot him.   It was still unclear why the two men were approached b...

12 Cities and Counties Receive Grants as Part of New Evidence-Based Prevention Initiative Riding on last week's presidential signing of the Violence Againist Women Act, Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder announced grants to twelve programs across the country to target the urgent need to reduce domestic violence homicides. On average, three women a day die as a result of domestic violence. In total, the Department of Justice will award $2.3 million to twelve sites across the country as part of the new Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Demonstration Initiative (DVHP Initiative). The DVHP Initiative, created by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), helps state and local jurisdictions reduce domestic violence homicides by effectively identifying potential victims and monitoring high-risk offenders. The DVHP Initiative is modeled after programs in Massachusetts and Maryland, where the use of coordinated teams of law enforce...

The Obama Administration awards “Vets to Cops” hiring grants as part of Veterans Job Corps initiative. The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) today announced funding awards to over 220 cities and counties, aimed at creating or saving approximately 800 law enforcement positions.  The grants will fund over 600 new law enforcement positions and save an additional 200 positions recently lost or in jeopardy of being cut due to local budget cuts.  All new law enforcement positions funded in the COPS 2012 Hiring Program must be filled by recent military veterans who have served at least 180 days since September 11, 2001.  In his State of the Union Address, President Obama called for a new Veterans Jobs Corps initiative to help put veterans back to work on a range of projects that leverage skills developed in the military, including first responder jobs. In February, the President announced that preference for this year’s COPS and S...

You've read what speaker Nancy Pelosi said about Congress holding Attorney General Eric Holder in comtempt for not releasing requested documents to the House Oversight Committee. And you've heard what House Speaker John Boehner had to say . Attorney General Eric Holder talks to reporters on the Hill. Now, read what members of heads of several Congressional caucuses have to say. Chairman Emanuel Cleaver, II   - Congressional Black Caucus "This is a sad day in the history of the United States Congress. Today, we see the great lengths to which some of my colleagues will go in an attempt to discredit the Attorney General--a member of President Obama's Administration--as we near the 2012 election. For over 15 months, Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice has cooperated with the Committee’s inquiry.  The Obama Administration is now rightfully asserting executive privilege over the narrow subset of documents that remain at issue--the same process...