Joseph Rich Speaks to House Panel on the Dismantling of DOJ’s Civil Rights Division
WASHINGTON, March 21 LAWFUEL – US Legal News — Joseph Rich, Director
of the Housing and Community Development Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, will testify tomorrow before the House Judiciary Committee on the current state of civil rights enforcement within the Department of Justice.
“The recent firing of eight U.S. Attorneys reflects a pattern of
alarming practices by the Bush Administration’s Justice Department which
first came to light over one year ago in revelations about the
politicalization of DOJ’s Civil Rights Division,” said Rich.
As a Justice Department employee for thirty seven years, Rich will
testify that under the Bush Administration, the Civil Rights Division has
seriously strayed from its mission and purpose resulting in a loss of
public confidence in the agency’s ability to enforce civil rights laws in a fair and even-handed manner.
“Thorough congressional oversight is essential to placing Justice back on track as the principal enforcer of the nation’s civil rights laws,” said Barbara R. Arnwine, Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee.
WHO: Joe Rich Testifies Before House Judiciary Committee
WHAT: Changing Tides: Exploring the Current State of
Civil Rights Enforcement within the Department of Justice
WHEN: 10:00 a.m. Thursday, March 22, 2007
WHERE: 2237 Rayburn House Office Building
To view the hearing live go to: http://judiciary.house.gov and click on
the view live webcast link.
The Lawyers’ Committee is a nonpartisan, nonprofit civil rights
organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to
provide legal services to address racial discrimination. For more
information, visit http://www.lawyerscommittee.org.
