For over five decades, the Southern Poverty Law Center has worked to build a more just and equitable America, ensuring that all people — especially Black and Brown communities — can thrive. Through litigation, community mobilization and advocacy in Washington and across the Deep South, we advance policies that protect civil rights, provide opportunity and confront systemic injustice. We are proud to work with Congress and officials from both parties to ensure that the rights guaranteed by the Constitution are realized for all people throughout the country. This commitment drives our focus on several issue areas, including our four core priorities:
The ability to elect our leaders and shape the future of our communities is fundamental to American democracy. Yet today, that core principle is under attack. The Supreme Court’s erosion of the Voting Rights Act, coupled with a wave of anti-voter laws at the state level, has made it harder for many Americans — especially in the Deep South — to vote. At the same time, under-resourced election administrators and outdated infrastructure further threaten Americans’ ability to cast their ballots. Congress must protect and expand voting rights while providing election officials with the resources they need.
Restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and establish a new baseline national standard to ensure access to the ballot.
Reject any legislation that creates new barriers to voting and disenfranchises eligible voters.
Authorize substantial and consistent funding for election administration, including $825 million in FY26.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision changed the landscape of voting rights in the Deep South as we know it.
Conduct rigorous oversight of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division to ensure faithful enforcement of existing voting rights laws and prevent the misuse of federal resources to undermine these laws or restrict voting, especially for Black and Brown communities.
Reject any legislation that gives a president or administration the power to investigate, shut down or silence nonprofit tax-exempt organizations based on a unilateral accusation of wrongdoing.
Support and fund the Census Bureau to address undercounts, improve data quality and ensure a fair and accurate 2030 Census, while also resisting efforts to exclude non-citizens from apportionment counts or undermine the American Community Survey.
Maintaining Critical Oversight
As a co-equal branch of government, Congress plays an important role in holding presidential power accountable. Through hearings, the power of the purse and legislative authority, Congress ensures no president is above the law and that the rights of all Americans are protected. “Advice and Consent” also gives senators the power to prevent the confirmation of unqualified individuals to lead agencies or serve on the federal bench.
Exercise rigorous oversight of executive branch actions to prevent illegal overreach, including efforts to bypass Congressional powers, violate civil and human rights, misuse appropriated funds or weaken essential federal offices and staff.
Rigorously vet all executive and judicial nominees to ensure they are qualified, ethical, committed to civil rights and dedicated to serving all Americans, not just a president or a political party.
Eradicating Poverty
America is the wealthiest nation in the world, yet nearly 37 million people live in poverty. In the South, where deeply rooted racism and economic inequality intertwine, the problem of poverty is particularly pronounced. Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana have some of the highest poverty rates in the nation. It is important to remember that the poverty experienced by millions of Americans is a policy choice. During the pandemic, when Congress expanded investments in critical programs like the Child Tax Credit, housing support, Medicaid and SNAP, millions of families were lifted out of poverty, and the child poverty rate dropped by nearly half. Congress must build on this progress by fully investing in policies that lift more families out of poverty.
Pass legislation to ensure wealthy individuals and corporations pay their fair share in taxes.
Expand the Child Tax Credit, Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, Dependent Care Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit for more working-class families.
Pass a Farm Bill reauthorization to modernize the food and farm system, fully invest in farmers and ranchers, and protect and strengthen SNAP and other vital nutrition supports to address hunger in the U.S.
The Southern Poverty Law Center examines how cuts to programs essential to the social safety net will affect people at the ground level across the Deep South in its six-part series.
Reject efforts to defund or impose additional barriers to social safety net and anti-poverty programs.
Reimagine the TANF program to ensure benefits are spent directly to support needy families without prohibitive barriers.
Pass legislation that funds affordable housing, prevents the criminalization of individuals experiencing homelessness, and addresses systemic land loss and wealth extraction in Black and Brown communities.
Block efforts to dismantle the Department of Education and ensure that education is accessible to all children.
Investing in the Social Safety Net
Too many Americans are struggling to stay afloat, paying more for everything from food, utilities and rent. Americans deserve a budget that puts people first by protecting access to healthcare, strengthening our social safety nets and ensuring that every American has a fair shot at economic stability.
Reject any budget or appropriation that cuts funding for essential services — such as healthcare, education, food assistance and other critical programs.
Fully fund social safety net programs that help lift more people out of poverty and allocate adequate resources to provide economic mobility, protect civil rights and strengthen election administration.
Combating Hate and Extremism
For over 50 years, the SPLC has tracked extremist groups to expose their bigotry. Recent political polarization, disinformation and rising racial, ethnic and religious tensions have led to the highest number of hate crimes on record in the U.S. Domestic intelligence agencies have classified racially motivated violent extremists and anti-government groups as the most lethal domestic terrorist threats to our country. Congress must condemn white supremacist and bigoted speech and prioritize policies that take a holistic, integrated approach to address the root causes of extremism and interrupt radicalization.
Pass legislation to improve law enforcement hate crime reporting by conditioning federal funding for large state and federal agencies on accurate reporting of credible hate crime data to the FBI.
Reject efforts to restrict or condition funding for colleges and universities unless the institution adopts restrictions on its academic freedom and a narrow, speech-limiting definition of antisemitism.
Reject efforts to eliminate diversity and equal opportunity programs and efforts to restrict the teaching of accurate history or banning select books in schools – initiatives which tacitly endorse discrimination and hate against Black and Brown communities.
This fourth installment of this SPLC report offers an evolving assessment of the threats and harms that find continued life through Confederate symbols, “Lost Cause” narratives and ideologies of white supremacy.
Authorize funding for federal, state and local programs to promote democracy and civics education as well as digital, media and information literacy initiatives, with a focus on teaching truth through inclusive education
Attacks on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives undermine the principle that every American, regardless of race or background, deserves a fair shot at the American Dream. They aim to weaken civil rights protections, end anti-discrimination enforcement and limit opportunities for millions of people — including women, Black and brown people, LGBTQ+ individuals, Americans with disabilities and veterans. Congress must support diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives, which make our country, democracy and economy stronger.
Ensure that critical civil rights offices remain intact and enforce civil rights laws equally, while also collecting and publishing demographic data.
Technology is ingrained into every part of American life. The rise of A.I., algorithms and automated decision-making systems can influence policies on housing, hiring, benefits and more. However, it has also driven the spread of misinformation and disinformation online. While these technologies can offer real benefits, without safeguards, they risk exacerbating discrimination and causing harm.
Conduct rigorous oversight to establish and enforce guardrails that will ensure that these technologies are used transparently, adhere to and protect civil rights laws, prevent discrimination against historically marginalized communities, and advance equity and opportunity for all.
Reimagining the Criminal Legal System
Throughout our history, the U.S. criminal legal system has driven racial and economic injustice, resulting in structures that deny people opportunities, legal equality and human dignity, particularly in the Deep South. Over the past three decades, the prison population in the U.S. has grown dramatically, with the South seeing an alarming 127% increase, thanks, in part, to the over-policing of Black communities. Congress can pave the way to justice by holding police accountable, ending draconian laws and reimagining public safety.
Reform civil asset forfeiture, a mechanism that allows law enforcement to take a person’s property and use that money to pad police budgets, by ensuring indigent property owners have appointed legal counsel, requiring clear evidence that the person was involved in criminal activity, and closing the equitable sharing loophole.
Free, comprehensive, and open data would be an important deterrent to future policing-for-profit schemes in Alabama.
Pass legislation to end discriminatory policing, hold law enforcement accountable, restrict harmful practices, abolish qualified immunity and mandate disaggregated data collection on police-community interactions.
Eliminate sentencing disparities, mandatory pretrial detention and mandatory minimums for drug offenses that disproportionately impact Black and Brown people.
Decriminalize cannabis by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, expunge records for federal marijuana convictions, and invest in business opportunities for individuals in communities impacted by the “War on Drugs.”
Create a Community Safety division within the Department of Health and Human Services to support violence interruption, behavioral health, housing security and other community safety programs.
Fund grants for deploying mental health professionals for calls involving people suffering from mental health and substance abuse and fund mental health and trauma-informed services in schools.
Conduct oversight to ensure that law enforcement agencies that receive federal funding are adhering to basic minimum standards by not engaging in racial discrimination, violating the rights of people they are sworn to protect and serve, or engaging in excessive force, discriminatory harassment, false arrests, coercive sexual conduct, and unlawful stops, searches or arrests.
Pass legislation to end discriminatory policing, hold law enforcement accountable, restrict harmful practices, abolish qualified immunity and mandate disaggregated data collection on police-community interactions.
Eliminate sentencing disparities, mandatory pretrial detention and mandatory minimums for drug offenses that disproportionately impact Black and Brown people.
Decriminalize cannabis by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, expunge records for federal marijuana convictions, and invest in business opportunities for individuals in communities impacted by the “War on Drugs.”
Create a Community Safety division within the Department of Health and Human Services to support violence interruption, behavioral health, housing security and other community safety programs.
Fund grants for deploying mental health professionals for calls involving people suffering from mental health and substance abuse and fund mental health and trauma-informed services in schools.
Conduct oversight to ensure that law enforcement agencies that receive federal funding are adhering to basic minimum standards by not engaging in racial discrimination, violating the rights of people they are sworn to protect and serve, or engaging in excessive force, discriminatory harassment, false arrests, coercive sexual conduct, and unlawful stops, searches or arrests.
Supporting Immigrant Justice
The spread of xenophobia and disinformation has allowed lawmakers to exploit the demonization of immigrants to push a radical agenda that threatens civil rights, civil liberties and America’s identity as a nation shaped by immigrants. Reforming our immigration laws to create a humane, functional system that reflects our values is an economic, racial and criminal justice imperative.
Reject legislation or actions that advance inhumane measures, such as mass deportation, family separation, privately run for-profit immigrant detention, racial and ethnic profiling, mass surveillance, the criminalization of immigrants and the deputization of local police to pursue immigrants.
Enact immigration policies that value immigrants and refugees; promote family reunification; ensure humane, non-discriminatory enforcement; support programs like Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), humanitarian parole, and protections in sensitive locations; and fund legal representation for immigrants.
Advancing International Human Rights
Human rights have long been a key part of U.S. foreign and domestic policy. However, recent actions taken by the current administration threaten that legacy. This administration has withdrawn from the U.N. Human Rights Council, defunded a UN refugee agency, renounced legal commitments under the 1951 Refugee Convention and ordered a review of all ratified treaties for potential withdrawal. Despite this unprecedented assault, Congress can protect these commitments by reaffirming U.S. leadership and preserving the legal framework that upholds human rights at home and abroad.
Strengthen U.S. human rights commitments by overseeing compliance with U.N. treaties.
Support laws that align with international standards.
Ensure federal agencies implement treaty requirements and recommendations.
