The Southern Poverty Law Center today filed a federal class action suit to stop the "shockingly inhumane" treatment of children at a juvenile detention center and to force officials to provide sanitary facilities and mental health treatment to young people confined there.
A new intelligence assessment by the Department of Homeland Security warns of extremist recruitment fueled by the faltering economy, the election of Barack Obama and fears about Latino immigration — factors the Southern Poverty Law Center has previously cited as underpinning the growth of hate groups and extremist activity.
The Southern Poverty Law Center is encouraging school districts across the country to use federal stimulus money to establish Positive Behavior Supports (PBS) in their schools — an innovative approach to discipline that reduces student misbehavior and improves achievement and attendance.
Residents of 25 states and three other countries will take a stand against the sexual exploitation of farmworker women and other low-wage female immigrant workers in April as part of the "Bandana Project," a partnership between the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and community groups, universities and other advocacy organizations to raise awareness and educate these women about their rights.
A Latina factory worker in North Carolina was brutally assaulted by the plant manager after she had earlier reported his sexual harassment to officials of the yarn company that employed her, according to a federal court complaint filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Students with learning disabilities in Kentucky's second-largest school district have been subjected to harsh discipline but have been routinely denied the services they need to succeed in school, according to a complaint supported by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
SPLC President Richard Cohen and Mark Potok, editor of the Intelligence Report, will host a live webcast at 2 p.m. (EDT) on March 18 to discuss the SPLC's recently released annual count of hate groups.
Nearly 30 members of Congress joined veterans of the civil rights movement, clergy and others at the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery on March 7 to honor the martyrs whose names are inscribed there. About 200 people took part in the ceremony.
The number of hate groups operating in the United States continued to rise in 2008 and has grown by 54 percent since 2000 — an increase fueled last year by immigration fears, a failing economy and the successful campaign of Barack Obama.
A recent federal appeals court ruling in an SPLC lawsuit involving fees paid by foreign guestworkers illustrates the need for reform of a program that results in widespread exploitation, workers and their advocates said.
