Sharron Cohen's case against the Air Force was one of the SPLC’s first major civil rights lawsuits. It turned into a landmark victory in the struggle for women’s rights, altering the legal landscape for women fighting to end gender-based discrimination.
This week, the state that created the blueprint for vicious anti-immigrant laws is going to court. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that will decide the constitutionality of Arizona's anti-immigrant law, SB 1070. The court's decision is far greater than a single state's issue.
The Southern Poverty Law Center sent a letter today to the Jefferson County Board of Education in Alabama demanding that the board repeal a policy banning male students from wearing earrings or potentially face a federal lawsuit.
Yesterday, Alabama legislative leaders in the House proved they have learned nothing from their mistakes and that they don’t care at all about the pain and suffering of all Alabamians. They have rushed through a so-called reform bill that will do nothing to alleviate the economic and humanitarian crisis that is gripping our state because of HB 56 – Alabama’s draconian anti-immigrant law. This law harms the economy, runs counter to our fundamental principles of faith and returns Alabama to its dark past of racial hatred and division.
The SPLC came to Arizona to discuss the state's reputation as the epicenter of anti-immigrant hate and as a site of disturbing extremist activity. In 2010, Arizona passed a vicious anti-immigrant law that has served as a blueprint for similar laws in other states where lawmakers are exploiting the nation's anti-immigrant climate.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, in an open letter to members of the Louisiana House, outlined the fiscal and human dangers of House Bill 850, which would allow the state to accept offers for the private purchase and operation of Avoyelles Correctional Center.
The Southern Poverty Law Center and community members urged county leaders at Florida's Hillsborough County Juvenile Justice Task Force meeting today not to adopt juvenile detention policies similar to those of Polk County, where an SPLC lawsuit has been filed against the sheriff who houses children charged as juveniles in an adult jail.
The Southern Poverty Law Center is part of a coalition of civil rights groups challenging misguided state laws in Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. Frustration with Congress’ failure to reform the nation’s immigration policy is not sufficient reason for states to create a patchwork of policies that throw lives into disarray and sow fear, bigotry and confusion in communities.
Xenophobia and a desire to find a scapegoat for these hard economic times will spur more anti-immigrant legislation. And there’s no shortage of lawmakers unwilling to hear other viewpoints. But there are still people unwilling to allow their state to be governed by fear.
The Southern Poverty Law Center urged Louisiana lawmakers to oppose a bill that bans state contracts from providing anti-discrimination protections to vulnerable populations that include LGBT people and English language learners – provisions that threaten to stifle economic growth and harm the state’s school children.
