Lawyers Committee For Civil Rights Under Law

Programs: Voting rights project- the lawyers' committee remained at the forefront of efforts to ensure every american is provided equal access to the ballot box. The election protection coalition, led by the lawyers' committee, is the nation's largest nonpartisan voter protection program. With the pro bono support of our board members and law firms, we fielded over 117,000 calls from voters across the country by way of our election protection hotline (866-our-vote), the 888-ve-y-vota (led by naleo educational fund) and 888-api-vote (led by apiavote and asian americans advancing justice). Election protection, with over 100 partner organizations, launched on the ground support on election day in 28 states through legal volunteers (led by the lawyers' committee) and grassroots poll monitors. The lawyers' committee's voting rights project also uses a diversity of tools to litigate cases on behalf of traditionally disenfranchised voters. We fought back against texas's restrictive and burdensome photo id law, as well as north carolina's monster voter suppression law, which cut early voting opportunities, eliminated pre-registration opportunities for 16- and 17-year olds, and eliminated same-day voter registration. In georgia, we fought efforts to purge registered voters from the rolls and were successful in blocking officials in macon-bibb county, georgia, who sought to move a polling site out of a black church and into the local sheriff's office. As well, in july, the lawyers' committee filed a motion for preliminary injunction, arguing that the maricopa county, arizona officials should be required to produce election administration plans, and obtain judicial approval of those plans, ahead of the august 30, 2016 primary election and the november 8, 2016 general election.

public education and general legal -general legal oversees the legal work of the lawyers' committee, including attorneys, court cases, and pro bono activities. The lawyers' committee also leverages public education and national visibility to educate and inform the public and policy makers about our critical work and relevant civil rights issues.

fair housing and community development project -the fair housing and community development project (fhcdp) fights housing discrimination by working to enforce the fair housing act and promote greater opportunity for low-income people of color by ensuring equitable, inclusive development, and access to crucial resources and meaningful housing choice. The fhcdp participated in the negotiation of a historic community benefits agreement. The agreement will provide tens of millions of dollars and technical assistance to six underserved communities in baltimore, maryland. The fair housing and community development project was also victorious in several litigation matters. For example, the united states court of appeals for the second circuit confirmed that the village of garden city in long island intentionally discriminated under the fair housing act, the united states constitution, and other civil rights statutes when it enacted an exclusionary zoning ordinance in 2004 in the face of race-based opposition to the prospect of affordable housing. In another case, in response to a title vi civil rights complaint, the federal highway administration reached a landmark agreement with the texas state highway agency worth tens of millions of dollars in mitigation and relocation funding for the residents of a corpus christi, texas, neighborhood created by jim crow segregation. The lawyers' committee was instrumental in securing this in-depth conciliation agreement.