By Cara Moore Lebonick | National Archives News ST. LOUIS, November 4, 2024 — On the 100-year anniversary of race riots erupting in the predominantly Black-populated and affluent Greenwood District

The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a civil pattern or practice investigation into the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department (MPD). The investigation will seek to determine whether there are systemic violations of the Constitution or federal law by MPD. The investigation will focus on MPD’s use of force and its stops, searches and arrests, as well as whether it engages in discriminatory policing.

From the National Archives and Records Administration: Archivist of the United States Dr. Colleen Shogan announced earlier today [June 17]that the National Archives plans to place the Emancipation Proclamation on permanent display in the Rotunda of the National Archives Building in Washington, DC. “When President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, he […]

A federal grand jury in Louisville, Kentucky, returned two indictments that were unsealed today, and the Department of Justice filed a third charging document today, in connection with an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old woman who was shot and killed in her Louisville home on March 13, 2020, by police officers executing a search warrant.

Spurred by a growing grassroots movement during the mid-20th century, Congress passed landmark legislation to protect Americans’ civil rights, to end discrimination, and to ensure access to the ballot. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 focused on access to public accommodations and equal employment. Despite its far-reaching provisions, the bill did not fully address barriers to voting in America, leading to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The narratives in this exhibit tell the stories of these important pieces of legislation.

Findings from the Minnesota Department of Human Rights April 27, 2022

How racial barriers play in the experiences of Mexican Americans has been hotly debated. Some consider Mexican Americans similar to European Americans of a century ago that arrived in the United States with modest backgrounds but were eventually able ...

This is a study of black employment in the private sector as reported by those employers who are required to and did file EEO-l Employer Information Reports to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.* A major purpose of this study is to measure the penetration and occupational position of blacks in the EEO-l universe since 1969 and determine how the relative status of blacks has changed over the past five years. A second purpose is to estimate black employment gaps that exist when black experiences in the workforce are measured against black expectations based upon fair-share employment levels. A third purpose is to calculate the economic loss to black workers which is associated with employment discrimination. A fourth purpose is to project the time when employment gaps will close.

Judge Lydia K. Griggsby said it’s the “honor of my career” to sit on the federal bench in Baltimore and serve the community “that raised me and nurtured me as a young girl.” She is the first woman of color to serve as a district judge for the U.S. District Court of Maryland.

"The House Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy Committee approved the bill as amended on a party-line 10-7 vote Friday and sent it to the House Floor. There is no Senate companion"

"SB 2 creates a system to investigate and revoke or suspend peace officer certification for serious misconduct SB 16 increases transparency over peace officer misconduct records The Governor also signed legislation strengthening policing responsibility and accountability guidelines raising eligibility standards and banning harmful techniques"

"In a unanimous vote the Louisville Metro Council has banned the use of 'No-Knock'warrants after passing Breonn's Law an ordinance which also sets guidelines for the execution of all search warrants by Louisville Metro Police officers and requires active body camera whenever a warrant is served."

"In May and June 2020 protests erupted nationwide after the publication of video footage of a Minneapolis police officer pressing his knee into the neck of George Floyd leading to his death. That incident and its aftermath have sparked heightened interest in Congress' ability to implement reforms of state and local law enforcement."

"Nationwide protests in response to the publication of video footage of a Minneapolis police officer pressing his knee into the neck of George Floyd leading to his death have generated renewed interest in the issue of reforming the policing practices of state and local officials. As discussed in more detail in this companion sidebar several existing federal laws seek to prevent and redress constitutional violations by state and local law enforcement officials. However because the Constitution generally grants states the authority to regulate issues of local concern—which includes policing and criminal law—Congress is limited in its ability to legislate on matters related to state and local law enforcement—limits that may inform any new laws Congress seeks to enact on this evolving issue. This Sidebar begins with an overview of Congress’s authority to enact legislation and the limits on those powers. It then discusses in more detail two of the enumerated powers—congressional powers that are found within the Constitution—that may be most relevant when Congress legislates on matters relating to state and local law enforcement."

"U.S. Census Bureau Delivers Data for States to Begin Redistricting Efforts"

"For the first time in four years the estimated number of violent crimes in the nation increased when compared with the previous year's statistics according to FBI figures released today."

"Three Georgia men were indicted today by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Georgia and charged with hate crimes and the attempted kidnapping of Ahmaud Arbery. The indictment also charges two of the men with separate counts of using firearms during that crime of violence."

"Today the FBI released Hate Crime Statistics 2020 the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program's latest compilation about bias-motivated incidents throughout the nation. The 2020 data submitted by 15136 law enforcement agencies provide information about the offenses victims offenders and locations of hate crimes."

"New Policy Limits Circumstances in Which Federal Law Enforcement Can Use Chokeholds and 'No-Knock' Entries"