Civil Rights

The San Fernando Valley Sun has been raising a public debate between us, the principal of Cleveland High, and LA School Police Dept Interim Chief Bowman. They've already written 3 pieces in a series. We need you to send letters to the editors because...

Jazmin Martinez, a senior at Manual Arts High School, blogs about being searched in a round-up with an auditorium full of students for being tardy. She writes about the need to end the racialization of the "war on drugs" by creating forms of prevention, intervention and ultimately decriminalizing drug usage in her blog, Prevention Beyond Just "Say No".

After weeks of nervous speculation, a victory against a court system that fails time and time again to convict and sentence police officers for murder. For Black people in particular, this perpetual lack of legal re-dress for one of the oldest problems impacting our community has created deeply entrenched pain, fear and anger. No matter the social status, economic class or skin tone, almost every Black person in America has experienced a nervous moment whenever a cop came near. This is not because we are a community of cowards. rather it is because...

The first pre-trial hearing for Johannes Mehserle - the Ex-BART officer who shot and killed Oscar Grant on New Years Day 2009 - brought out a tapestry of emotion and activity. The Foltz Criminal Justice Center was abuzz with scores of brave protestors, media representatives, and agents of the legal system all taking part in the early morning rush.
It was an amazing scene considering that the hearing itself was rather basic and bland. The biggest developments of the day included...

In January, the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) of Chicago was proud to take part in the TRPT's National Advocacy Day for Civil Rights. We met with the staff of Senator Durbin and Senator Burris, as well as the staff of Representatives Davis, Gutierrez, Jackson, Jr, Lipinski, and Quigley. Because senators’ number one priority right now is jobs, we stressed...

Just yesterday, CNN ran a top story in their legal news section that features our Community Rights work against truancy tickets and pre-prison conditions in schools: "But one thing is sure: Alexa's case isn't the first. At schools across the country, police are being asked to step in..."