Civil Rights & Voting Rights Task Force

Oppose Racial and Religious Discrimination

• Advocate for the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the National Security Agency, and other federal agencies to limit bias-based profiling practices among its components and to include data collection and evidence-based research on racial profiling.
• Encourage the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice to address outstanding national and border security loopholes in the Department of Justice’s 2014 profiling guidance.
• Support legislation, such as the End Racial Profiling Act, that eliminates law enforcement practices of singling out people for heightened scrutiny based on their race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin.
• Require clarification on the collected evidence and research to ensure law enforcement officers rely on evidence-based approaches rather than untested and unproven “hunches” by supporting legislation such as the SAFE Justice Act and the Youth Promise Act.
• Encourage law enforcement officers to include community-based policing principles such as a representative police force or a police athletic league. 
• Denounce racial and religious discrimination affecting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), including incidents related to post-9/11 backlash, China-bashing, and xenophobia.

• Support robust hate crimes and bias-based bullying protections, such as the Safe Schools Improvement Act, and strengthen anti-discrimination policies.

• Object to committee hearings and other legislative efforts that isolate and target specific religious or ethnic communities, including the American Muslim community, for heightened scrutiny.

• Support workplace religious freedom legislation and oppose religious discrimination in employment with government funding. 
• Support workplace equality efforts for minorities, such as “ban the box” for employment applications.
• Support efforts to end faith-based workplace segregation.

Protect Voting Rights

• Support legislation, such as the Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Voter Empowerment Act, which protects the ability of individuals to exercise the right to vote.
• Monitor and advocate against voter identification requirement legislation and proof of citizenship bills at the state and federal levels.

• Support efforts to remove barriers to the voting process along with restoring voting rights to individuals with a conviction.

• Promote access to ballot language assistance for persons with Limited English Proficiency.

Promote Language Access

• Support efforts that help prevent discrimination against persons with Limited English Proficiency and ensure these individuals have access to critical governmental services.