The Southern Poverty Law Center filed a federal civil rights complaint today alleging that the Florida Department of Education is discriminating against black and Hispanic students by adopting a plan that sets lower academic expectations for students of color.
In what is believed to be a first in Alabama, a judge in Mobile County, Alabama has granted standard visitation rights to a lesbian mother without any overnight restriction on unmarried partners.
A federal appeals court upheld a lower court’s decision to block sections of South Carolina’s anti-immigrant law today, allowing an SPLC case challenging the law to continue and to potentially block a section of the law that allows police to act as immigration agents and demand an individual’s “papers.”
The SPLC praised Alabama’s top public school official for taking action today to ensure students are not blocked or discouraged from enrolling because they lack a Social Security number, a U.S. birth certificate or a parent with a state driver’s license.
A judge has denied a New Jersey organization’s motion to dismiss an SPLC lawsuit that accuses the group of consumer fraud for offering conversion therapy services – a dangerous and discredited practice that claims to convert people from gay to straight.
The SPLC and a coalition of civil rights groups announced today the filing of 28 open records requests to ensure a provision of Georgia’s anti-immigrant law is not being used by law enforcement to racially profile residents or to detain people solely to check immigration status.
The SPLC has reached an agreement to improve equal access to Louisiana’s Jefferson Parish Head Start program, which had prevented impoverished Latino preschoolers from enrolling – a violation of federal laws and regulations. (en Español)
In an e-mail (pdf) to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Derek Black – the son of a former Alabama Klan leader who operates the world’s largest racist web forum – explains why he is renouncing the white nationalism he has promoted on his radio show. He now calls the ideology “principally flawed” and “an entrenched desire to preserve white power at the expense of others. (Continue to full post by Mark Potok...)
"They always get away." These were the words George Zimmerman uttered as he followed and later shot Trayvon Martin – words that reflected his belief that Trayvon was one of "them," the kind of person about to get away with something.
An agreement with Mobile County Public Schools in Alabama will reduce out-of-school suspensions for minor misbehavior and provide alternative forms of discipline – steps that will resolve a 2011 federal lawsuit filed by the SPLC on behalf of seven students.
City aldermen in a small Mississippi town have denied a business license to a lesbian who wants to reopen a bar catering to the LGBT community. The SPLC is demanding that the board reverse its discriminatory decision or face a lawsuit.
The immigration bill passed by the U.S. Senate contains important and long-sought reforms but fails to protect guest workers from abuse and exploitation.
