Prior JCDP Chair Paulie Brading asks you "Please join me in writing a letter to the Ways and Means Chairs to add a Civil Rights Enforcement Unit to the Department of Justice". Respond by Friday, May 15th (Posted May 11, 2009)
Subject: Write a letter for Attorney General John Kroger on Civil Rights Enforcement
Please join me in writing a letter to the Ways and Means Chairs encouraging adding a Civil Rights Enforcement Unit to the Department of Justice. We have until Friday the 15th of May to get our letters completed and emailed. My goal is to get 100 letters sent from Southern Oregon. No Oregonian should face discrimination because of their sexual orientation, their disability, their gender, their age or race.
If you do write a letter please let me know so I can keep count. Send this on to your personal email list or to members of organizations you feel would support the restoration of the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit.
Best,
Paulie
TALKING POINTS:
Attorney General’s Civil Rights Enforcement Unit
We need to act. The problem is, right now, we do not have the legal resources we need to guarantee the civil rights and civil liberties of our citizens. The Oregon Department of Justice used to have a civil rights enforcement unit, but back in the 1980s, the funding for this unit was eliminated. Today, as a result, there is not a single attorney at the Department devoted to civil rights and civil liberties enforcement work. This is unacceptable.
Each day, Oregonians face discrimination because of their race, their age, their gender, their disability, or their sexual orientation. Illegal wiretapping robs our right to privacy. Wanton disregard for the American’s with Disabilities Act leaves entire neighborhoods inaccessible to every Oregonian. Servicemen and women are unlawfully denied their jobs when they return from serving our country.
To fix this problem, the Oregon Department of Justice proposes allocating $994,139 to fund the restoration of the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit at the Oregon Department of Justice. . This unit will consist of two attorneys and one investigator to combat discrimination based on age, race, gender, gender identity, disability or sexual orientation. This unit will also fight to protect important constitutional rights, promote environmental justice, preserve reproductive freedom, and defend the employment rights of Oregon's veterans.
This is a simple but powerful tool that can help Oregon become a more fair, equitable and just state. To do the work, we urge the State Legislature to create and fund an civil rights enforcement unit at the Oregon Department of Justice.
This unit will:
* expose discriminatory financial exploitation
* stand up for reproductive rights
* protect persons with disabilities
* preserve civil liberties
* promote environmental justice
* defend the employment rights of Oregon's veterans
Other things to know:
- There are currently no full time civil rights attorneys at the Oregn Department of Justice
- Starting the unit would cost about 1 million dollars over two years – or about $500,000 per year.
- That would fund 2 prosecutors and 1 investigator
WAYS AND MEANS CHAIRS
Senator Margaret Carter
Party: D District: 22
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1722
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE., S-209, Salem, OR, 97301
Email: sen.margaretcarter@state.or.us
Senator Joanne Verger
Party: D District: 5
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1705
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE., S-401, Salem, OR, 97301
Email: sen.joanneverger@state.or.us
Representative Peter Buckley
Party: D District: 5
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1405
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, H-286, Salem, OR, 97301
Email: rep.peterbuckley@state.or.us
Representative Chip Shields
Party: D District: 43
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1443
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, H-276, Salem, OR, 97301
Email: rep.chipshields@state.or.us