75 Groups: Barr’s Nomination is Threat to Civil Rights
December 20, 2018
For Immediate Release
Contact: Shin Inouye, 202.869.0398, [email protected]
WASHINGTON – The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and 74 civil rights, religious, and progressive groups sent a letter to the Senate expressing serious concerns about William Barr’s nomination to be U.S. Attorney General. William Barr’s track record raises serious concerns about his willingness to vigorously enforce our nation’s civil rights laws.
As the nation’s top law enforcement officer and leader of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Attorney General is responsible for safeguarding our civil rights. That is a core and enduring mission of the Justice Department, and the Senate must ensure that anyone serving as our Attorney General is committed to that mission and to our country’s ongoing progress toward equal justice. It is non-negotiable.
The groups write in part:
“Civil rights must remain a top priority for members of the Senate Judiciary Committee when Mr. Barr comes before them for his confirmation hearing in the new year. Mr. Barr bears the burden of demonstrating he will not continue the civil rights rollbacks we have seen during this administration. In addition, senators must secure assurances that Mr. Barr will recuse himself from the Russia investigation in light of his past comments, in order to prevent an appearance of impropriety.
“At a time when the United States has a president who emboldens and enables forces of hate and division in the country; at a time when the Justice Department and the entire administration have embraced an anti-civil rights policy agenda; and when vulnerable communities across this nation are deeply terrified – of profiling, deportation, and even murder – people in America deserve better. They deserve an Attorney General who will vigorously enforce our federal civil rights laws and fight discriminatory barriers for the most vulnerable among us.”
The letter can be read in its entirety here.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.