civil rights News

Trump Curtails Protections Around Diversity, LGBTQ Rights

The United States will recognize only two sexes, male and female, that are unchangeable, President Donald Trump ordered on Monday as he moved to quickly end a range of policies aimed at promoting racial equity and protecting rights for LGBTQ+ …

Vermont School District Settles With US Over Racial Harassment Allegations

A Vermont school district’s inadequate response to serious and widespread harassment of Black and biracial students has led to a settlement agreement with the federal government, the U.S. Justice Department said Wednesday. The department’s Civil Rights Division and the Vermont …

Malcolm X’s Daughters Sue CIA, FBI and NYPD Over Civil Rights Leader’s Assassination

Three daughters of Malcolm X have accused the CIA, FBI, the New York Police Department and others in a $100 million lawsuit Friday of playing roles in the 1965 assassination of the civil rights leader. In the lawsuit filed in …

Family of Man Fatally Shot Sues West Hartford Police, Seeks Federal Probe

The family of a man fatally shot by a Connecticut police officer as he tried to flee in a stolen car while being attacked by a police dog has filed a wrongful death lawsuit and called Wednesday for a federal …

New Jersey Reports Spike in Incidents of Bias in 2023

Reports in New Jersey of incidents of bias — like antisemitism and anti-Black behavior among others — climbed by 22% last year, according to preliminary data released Thursday by the attorney general. Attorney General Matt Platkin’s office released the unofficial …

Teacher Who Held Mock Slave Auction in 4th Grade Class Settles Lawsuit for $75K

A New York teacher who staged a mock slavery auction of Black students in her fourth-grade classroom will pay $75,000 to settle claims on behalf of a 10-year old boy whose mother said he was emotionally damaged by being forced …

NYU Langone Doctor Sues Over Firing for Posts Backing Israel

A doctor who ran a cancer center at NYU Langone Health filed a lawsuit claiming he was fired for social media posts relating to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. Dr. Benjamin Neel, the director of the Laura …

Justice Department Launches Probe of Trenton Police Department

The Justice Department (DOJ) announced it has has opened a civil rights practices investigation into the Trenton, New Jersey police department. Officials said the investigation will seek to determine “whether there are systemic violations of the Constitution and federal law” …

Biden Administration Opens Investigation Into Harvard University’s Legacy Admissions

Opening a new front in legal battles over college admissions, the U.S. Department of Education has launched a civil rights investigation into Harvard University`s policies on legacy admissions. Top colleges` preferential treatment of children of alumni, who are often white, …

Protester Sues Police for Over Arrest Near Maine Home of Federalist Society’s Leo

A demonstrator arrested outside the home of conservative legal activist Leonard Leo contends police violated his First Amendment rights. Eli Durand-McDonnell, 24, of Bar Harbor, contends in a federal lawsuit filed Thursday that two police officers singled him out among …