Today, April 21, 2021, the Senate confirmed Vanita Gupta as Associate Attorney General, an important role that oversees, among other things, the Civil Rights Division, Natural Resources Division, and the Office of Violence Against Women.
L4GG's Statement on the Conviction of Derek Chauvin
Derek Chauvin has been found guilty on all counts of murder and manslaughter in the death of George Floyd. We commend the state of Minnesota for holding Chauvin accountable.
But as lawyers, we must stand for something more than holding murderers accountable after the fact.
We must demand justice, which will require deep systemic change.
1400+ Lawyers from all 50 States, DC, & Puerto Rico Call on Senate to Confirm Vanita Gupta & Kristen Clarke
Today, L4GG the nation’s largest network of attorneys committed to upholding human rights and equal justice for all, submitted an open letter, signed by more than 1,400 attorneys representing 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico to the Senate Judiciary Committee, calling on them to confirm Vanita Gupta for the position of Associate Attorney General, confirm Kristen Clarke for the position of Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, and to support other nominees who have experience leading the fight for civil rights.
VIEW THE LETTER HERE: https://l4gg.org/Support-Gupta-Clarke
The letter was sent ahead of Clarke’s nomination hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, tomorrow, Wednesday April 14, and argues that Donald Trump’s administration worked to undermine civil and human rights on a number of different fronts, and to repair the damage done, the nation needs leaders at the Department of Justice who have experience fighting against injustice. After years of leading the fight for civil rights at two of the nation’s premier civil rights organizations, Gupta and Clarke are exactly the experienced leaders that our country needs. The letter also included signatures from more than 400 non-attorney advocates.
“The legal community is banding together at this moment to support the nominations of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke because the future of our nation is at stake,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s president Traci Feit Love. “We call on every Senator who believes in equal justice under the law to help heal our country from the scourge of white supremacy by taking a stand for civil rights and voting to confirm Gupta and Clarke.”
“We applaud President Biden’s leadership in nominating these two civil rights experts to important positions at the Department of Justice,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s Vice President of Policy and Strategic Engagement Adam Fernandez. “I have worked with both Gupta and Clarke and am a civil rights attorney myself. Working in civil rights is about ensuring all people have equal access to justice regardless of their background. Gupta and Clarke’s dedication to civil rights and their expertise makes them uniquely qualified to lead the Department of Justice, and we hope they are the first of many nominees to positions across the Administration and the courts that share their credentials.”
Biden’s nominees a good first step toward achieving diversity on the federal bench, but more diversity is needed.
We applaud, with reservation, the Biden Administration for nominating a diverse set of candidates for the federal judiciary. Almost every demographic group in the nation is underrepresented in the federal courts, and the Trump Administration widened that gap by disproportionately nominating white men to the judiciary. This led, among other things, to the re-segregation of courts like the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. If confirmed, the Biden Administration’s nominees would do much to alleviate historic underrepresentation on the courts, by prioritizing the nominations of people of color, specifically African and Asian Americans.
“We cannot be ostriches with our heads in the sand” - L4GG on MSNBC
This past Saturday night, Charlene D’Cruz, Director of Project Corazon’s Border Rights Program, joined The Week with Joshua Johnson on MSBNC to talk about the current situation at the border.
Charlene discussed how four years of draconian immigration policies at the border have led to a recent increase in crossings and called on the Biden Administration to revoke Title 42, the public health law that is currently blocking asylum seekers from invoking their internationally-recognized legal right to flee persecution and seek asylum.
Watch an exclusive clip from that interview here.
As always, we rely on generous donations from supporters like you to serve as many asylum seekers as possible at the Matamoros / Brownsville Port of Entry.
Take a Stand Against Anti-Asian Violence and Systemic Racism
We at Lawyers for Good Government stand united with the Asian American community in the fight against systemic racism and gender-based violence. We grieve with the families of the eight people, including six Asian women, who were killed at spas in North Georgia, and we call on the L4GG community to take a stand in support of the Asian American community. We must center the needs of those most directly impacted while denouncing misogyny, white supremacy, and systemic racism in all its forms.
Action 1: Add Your Name to this Letter from Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Stand in solidarity to denounce the misogyny, white supremacy, and systemic racism that motivate violence against Asian American communities and other communities of color.
Note: We’ve signed on to this letter as an organization and we encourage you to add your name to the individual sign-on.
Additionally, the deadly shooting in Georgia has solidified for us why we need experienced civil rights leaders like Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke at the Department of Justice as soon as possible. Last week’s confirmation hearing for Vanita Gupta was contentious, andjust this morning, Senator Cornyn (R-TX) used language calling Gupta potentially “the most dangerous nominee.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to move on Gupta’s nomination next week. Kristen Clarke’s hearing has not yet been scheduled.We must keep up the pressure so that the Senate knows we are behind these nominees.
ACTION 3: Make sure you're set to receive SMS alerts about this confirmation fight and other actions by texting 404-382-9644.
Thank you all for your work and support so far.
With warm regards,
Traci
Traci Feit Love
President & Executive Director
Lawyers for Good Government
How to Protect Democracy & The Rule of Law
There are two things every person who cares about democracy and the rule of law should be focused on right now: strengthening our democracy through voting rights, and healing our country from the scourge of white supremacy.
Here’s how you can get involved.
CIVIL RIGHTS/ Vanita Gupta & Kristen Clarke: The nominations of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke to the DOJ are historic for our nation. If we want to heal our country from the scourge of white supremacy, we need people who have devoted their lives to fighting injustice leading the way. More than 1,300 of you have joined our letter supporting their nominations, but we need each and every one of you to stand up in this moment.
ACTION 1: Join our letter supporting Gupta and Clarke and share with your family and friends.
ACTION 2: Join today’s Digital Day of Action to #ConfirmClarkeandGupta between 1-2pm ET. Click here to access the digital toolkit.
VOTING RIGHTS/ For the People Act: Right now, we have a real chance to rescue our democracy and reshape our country by passing the HR1, the For the People Act, the most sweeping democracy bill in a generation. If enacted, The For the People Act will:
Protect and strengthen our sacred right to vote, especially in Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities.
Combat corruption by passing pro-ethics measures to clean up our government.
End the dominance of big money in politics so the people's voice can be heard.
The For the People Act is likely to come to the House for a vote THIS WEEK.
ACTION 3: Call Your Member of Congress now at 1-888-246-5947 to urge them to pass the For the People Act today.
Thank you in advance for your collective work on these issues. I’m grateful to have you in this fight with me.
Traci
Traci Feit Love
President & Executive Director
Lawyers for Good Government
Help us Protect Civil Rights, Welcome Asylum Seekers, & Promote Environmental Justice
This week, you can: 1) help repair the damage of the Trump administration by joining our sign-on supporting two civil rights leaders nominated to serve in Biden’s DOJ; 2) welcome asylum seekers who have been stuck living in camping tents in Mexico for months or even years by supporting Project Corazon; and 3) volunteer to establish a right to water in Michigan or enforce treaty rights to natural resources in Wisconsin. Highlighted bullets indicate an action you can take now.
Support Civil Rights Nominees to the DOJ: Today, during Merrick Garland’s confirmation hearing, Senator Mike Lee made contemptible and disingenuous attacks against civil rights leaders Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke. We’ve seen these kinds of attacks on civil rights leaders during nominations fights before, and it’s why we are doubling down on our efforts to support the nominations of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke. More than 900 of you have already signed our support letter that we will send to the US Senate Judiciary Committee before their confirmation hearings. It’s imperative that our community indicate collective support for these civil rights leaders now.
Join our sign-on letter here. Please share with friends, colleagues, and family members as well.
Welcome Asylum Seekers: Friday was the first day of new registrations and processing for asylum seekers in the MPP program. Families who have been waiting months or even years, stuck living in camping tents after being abandoned on the streets of Mexican border cities like Matamoros and Tijuana, are finally getting a chance at safety. Our team is on the ground in Matamoros providing support for registering in the system and advocating for the most vulnerable asylum seekers, those with medical conditions or disabilities, for example, to be admitted as soon as possible.
Help Establish a Right to Water in Michigan and Enforce Tribal Treaty Rights in Wisconsin: L4GG is embarking on two new environmental justice efforts where we need pro bono volunteers.
First, we’re working with community groups in Michigan to help establish a right to water, and need attorneys (experienced FOIA attorneys and Michigan-licensed attorneys preferred) to conduct research into affordability of water in the metro Detroit area and implementation of the lead and copper rule throughout the state.
Second, we’re partnering with the Midwest Environmental Associates and the Ojibwe tribes in Wisconsin to help enforce treaty rights under the USSC Culverts case. We need pro bono support to conduct case law research and prepare a legal memorandum.
If you have the requisite experience and are interested in volunteering for either of these efforts, please email Jillian Blanchard, Director of L4GG’s Climate Change Program at climatechange@L4GG.org. Note: L4GG Foundation cannot provide malpractice insurance for these matters.
With gratitude,
Traci
Traci Feit Love
Founder & President
Lawyers for Good Government Foundation
Victory: CBP admitted our clients to safety
Deaf and unable to communicate in standard sign language, Andres arrived in Brownsville in March 2020 fleeing persecution in his home country of El Salvador. He had traveled to the U.S. with his sister Alessandra and his 1-year-old niece. With Andres’ disability, Alessandra is the only person in the world with whom he can converse.
Andres, Alessandra, and baby Maria* were detained by ICE for over a week before being placed into the “Migrant Protection Protocols” program and unceremoniously dumped onto the streets of Matamoros. They were not given any food, water, or services from the American or Mexican governments. They were simply told to wait until the US was ready to hear their asylum claim. So they joined the thousands of others waiting for months and even years in the refugee camp in Matamoros.
Click here to donate to help the thousands of asylum seekers waiting in Matamoros.
Fearing for his safety due to his disability, Andrews never left the Matamoros encampment. The past 11 months living in a tent with a toddler and only his sister to communicate with has been hard, to say the least.
Last week, L4GG’s Project Corazon filed a parole request for Andres and his family, advocating with Customs and Border Patrol for his immediate release into the US.
Late Friday night, our request was granted.
Project Corazon Director Charlene D’Cruz and coordinator Karla Rosario rushed to the border to receive Andres, Alessandra, and Maria and welcome them into the United States. They took them to HEB for a fresh meal and thanks to generous donors, we were able to put them in a hotel for the night and pay for their transportation. Andres, Alessandra, and Maria are now in Oklahoma with their family, where they’ll wait until their asylum claim is heard.
We are so thrilled at the outcome of Andres’ case, an outcome that couldn’t have happened without the help of our industrious volunteers and our generous donors.
We are currently working to request humanitarian parole for the most vulnerable of the asylum seekers in our system, and hope to have new success stories to share.
If you’d like to enable us to help future clients like Andres, please donate to support our programs directly. Hotels in Brownsville cost an average of $96 a night and flights an average of $305.
Can you donate $96 or $305 to us today?
Note, if you can’t support us financially, we also appreciate pledges of miles to our travel fund.
With gratitude,
Traci
Traci Feit Love
Founder & President
Lawyers for Good Government Foundation
*Pseudonyms used to protect the identities of our clients.
L4GG + 12,000 Supporters Call For Trump's Removal & Impeachment
On January 7, 2021, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) submitted an open letter, signed by more than 6,500 attorneys representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, to the offices of Vice President Mike Pence, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, calling on them to uphold their oaths of office, invoke the 25th Amendment, and remove Donald Trump from his presidency immediately.
In total, more than 12,000 lawyers and other supporters joined the letter calling for Trump and other complicit lawmakers to be held accountable for the violent insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The letter calls for protecting the rule of law and democracy, reminding those in power that a sitting president cannot be allowed to incite violence or interfere with the peaceful transition of power to a new administration. Elections have consequences, and the American people have spoken and voted President Donald J. Trump out of office. His refusal to acknowledge and respect the will of the people, and support of those who violently attacked the Capitol on January 6, is an unprecedented and unlawful authoritarian power grab.
The letter demands:
Vice President Pence must immediately convene the Cabinet and vote to declare Donald John Trump unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and assume the powers and duties of the office of Acting President, in order to allow for the peaceful transition of power.
Members of Congress must put aside their partisanship and immediately impeach and remove Donald John Trump from office and disqualify him from ever again holding future office.
In the weeks and months ahead, Congress and the Executive Branch must enact a truth commission to investigate the unlawful activities of any person who contributed to these profoundly damaging crimes and to make referrals to law enforcement where appropriate.
“The president’s words and actions are profoundly damaging and represent an immediate threat to our republic and the rule of law,” said Lawyers for Good Government’s president Traci Feit Love. “Those given the power to respond by our Constitution have a duty to take action immediately, using the full force of their office to protect the United States of America from a president who has incited a violent attack on the Capitol.”
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