Dear LA Civil Rights Family -
Over the weekend, we blended the joy of victory with the tradition of remembrance. On Friday, the City of Angels commemorated our Los Angeles Dodgers 2024 World Series Championship with celebrations, including a parade - which started at LA City Hall! After celebrating LA's latest triumph, we highlighted more of the diverse mosaic of Los Angeles with el Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, a vibrant cultural holiday when families honor dearly departed loved ones.
As we uplift Día de los Muertos, we also recognize November as Native American Heritage Month and pay tribute to Indigenous communities’ rich ancestry and traditions. Over the past year, our staff has learned directly from Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian Commission, local Tribal Nations, and ancestral groups to recommend ways the City may continue to honor Indigenous people and propose a land acknowledgment. To celebrate Native American Heritage Month in your community, check out the Department of Cultural Affairs' Calendar and Cultural Guide.
As we acknowledge the past and rally behind our current champions, I'm reminded of the diverse community members and activists, who fought tirelessly for the right to vote. They knew the importance of civic engagement and political representation within our systems. Now, we are less than 24 hours away from Election Day 2024, and I encourage all Angelenos to vote. This is your chance to make your voice heard. Be the representation that matters! To make casting your vote easier, our partners at the County of Los Angeles created resources, including their Human Relations Commission's Stop Hate. Vote Campaign, an easy one-stop voting resource guide, and voter accessibility information. Every voice matters, and every vote is essential to achieving our goals of building a better LA For All!
Keep the faith and keep the fight,
Capri Maddox, Esq.
Executive Director
LA Civil Rights Department
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Your Civil Rights & Civic Participation Day | |
Image Description: Photo of Councilmember Tim McOsker and LA Civil Rights staff holding LA For All signs | |
This past Saturday, LA Civil Rights joined Councilmember Tim McOsker, his Council District 15 staff, and the community for "Your Civil Rights & Civic Participation Day."
During this event, we presented an overview of our department, including an explanation by the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit on how to file a discrimination claim, details of how residents of the "1-5" influenced upcoming projects funded through the $8.5 million L.A. REPAIR Participatory Budgeting Pilot Program, the history of our award-winning, anti-hate campaign,"LA For All," and an overview of the Reparations Report Executive Summary prepared by California State University, Northridge, Mockingbird Analytics, and our Reparations Advisory Commission. The City Clerk's Office also shared vital information on voting access and other city services.
Thank you to everyone who came out to engage with us!
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Floating Justice: The Port of Los Angeles Welcomed Team LA Civil Rights | |
Image Description: Photo of LA Civil Rights and Harbor Department staff standing on a boat in the Port of Los Angeles | |
Last week, LA Civil Rights took a field trip to the Port of Los Angeles, also known as "America's Port." The Port's Executive Director Gene Seroka, and his Harbor Department staff welcomed our team to the busiest container port in North America! The Port has sustained its #1 ranking for more than two decades with record volumes for containerized trade. The Port maintains an efficient, sustainable supply chain, adopting new technologies to improve the reliability, predictability, and efficiency of the flow of cargo across global seaborne trade.
The Port was recently awarded an unprecedented $412 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Ports Program to support a zero-emission (ZE) transition. The Port and its private sector partners will match the grant with an additional $236 million, bringing the total new investment in ZE programs to $644 million.
LA Civil Rights looks forward to partnering on environmental and social healing projects with the Port and the NAACP Vice President Joe R. Gatlin, who also joined us on the tour.
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Eradicating Hate: Locally and Globally | |
Image Description: Group photo of the Eradicate Hate Global Summit participants | |
Last month, our Director of Civic Engagement and Human Rights, Joumana Silyan-Saba, co-chaired a subcommittee working group aimed at understanding remedies for reducing hate outside of the legal system at the Eradicate Hate Global Summit. The Summit was born out of the 2018 attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue, which killed 11 people, and is one of the largest multi-disciplinary convenings of experts and leaders, who are committed to eradicating all forms of hate-fueled violence.
During the Summit in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Joumana also engaged with policymakers, practitioners, and academics from the United States, Canada, and Europe on shared best practices in the field. Key speakers included Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, White House Homeland Security Advisor, Gabrielle Giffords, and Major Garrett. Thank you to the Summit's President Brette Steele and Board Co-Chairs Laura Ellsworth, Mark Nordenberg, and the entire courageous team for confronting hate head-on.
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Image Description: Group photo of participants at the Espress'O Self: Coffee, Community, & Conversations event | |
Despite efforts to reduce hate crimes and discrimination, hate incidents targeting people for their sexual orientation or gender identity are rising, according to FBI reports. More than 1 in 5 of any type of hate crime is now motivated by anti-LGBTQ+ bias. In the spirit of eradicating hate and creating an #LAForAll, LA Civil Rights' LGBTQIA+ Community Liaison, Carla Ibarra, moderated a panel conversation at our first ever, Espress’O Self: Coffee, Community, & Conversations event. Espress’O Self was a beautiful blend of stories and insights from LGBTQIA+ leaders and officers, who shared inspiring personal coming-out stories, while fostering understanding and solidarity within the community.
This event was held at the LAPD Academy Café in Elysian Park and featured Transgender Advisory Councilmember Jazzmun Crayton, Trans Wellness Center Associate Director Mariana Marroquin, and Sergeant Jules Sohn.
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Later this month, our Transgender Advisory Council, in collaboration with the Council District 11 Office of Councilwoman Traci Park, will host this year's Transgender Day of Remembrance - a night of solidarity, remembrance, and belonging as we come together in community to honor the lives of transgender individuals who lost their lives to anti-trans violence. Register for the event here. | |
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Pathways to
Legal Careers
| Image Description: Group of students holding LA For All signs at a pre-law event |
Last week, Executive Director Capri Maddox went back to school as the Keynote Speaker at the USC's Black Pre-Law Student Association's Social Impact Law Career. She shared details on law school and how she uses the law to fight hate and discrimination. She will return to USC to present at the Agents of Change (AOC) Speaker Series. This program is particularly special to us because, since 2021, LA Civil Rights staff has hosted and mentored over 20 AOC interns.
Pre-law programs, like AOC, are so important because despite making up 13.4% of the population, only 5% of all lawyers are African American, and nearly all people of color are underrepresented in the legal profession. If you know someone interested in learning more about law school or becoming an attorney, please share our LACR Pre-Law Resource Guide and help them register for our upcoming virtual, LA Law Day event.
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Facing Job Discrimination? | Image Description: Flyer for the LA Civil Rights Enforcement Unit and contact information, more details below |
If you or someone you know has experienced discrimination in a private-sector commerce, education, employment, or housing setting, filing a claim is as simple as 1, 2, 3 and cost-free:
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Scan the QR code or visit LACivilRightsClaim.com
- Call us at 213-978-1845
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Email CRE@lacity.org
Thanks to SB 1340, LA Civil Rights has more ways to protect workers. Now, any type of work discrimination can be handled by LA Civil Rights Investigators.
Once a claim is filed, one of our staff members will respond within 1-3 business days.
For more information, visit our LAisForEveryone.com.
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LA Civil Rights Department
www.LAisforEveryone.com
201 N. Los Angeles St., Suite 6
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 978-1845
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