Civil Discourse – Losing DOJ’s Civil Rights Division – Joyce Vance – April 23, 2025

On Tuesday, Reuters reported that leadership at the Department of Justice has reassigned “about a dozen senior career attorneys” in the Civil Rights Division to perform perfunctory tasks usually assigned to lower level attorneys, like responding to FOIA requests.

Three senior career attorneys who managed offices that handled cases involving excessive force and other abuses by police, voting rights, and the rights of people with disabilities were among the casualties of this wave of efforts by the Trump administration to disrupt the work done in the Civil Rights Division, which is frequently referred to as the crown jewel of the Justice Department. The changes have not been publicly announced by Attorney General Pam Bondi or her staff, according to Reuters.

According to other reporting, a series of memos have radically altered the mission of key sections in the Division. For instance, one for the voting section, “barely mentions the Voting Rights Act and instead says the section will focus on preventing voter fraud – which is exceedingly rare – and helping states find noncitizens on their voter rolls (noncitizen voting is also exceedingly rare).” The memo for the Housing and Civil Enforcement section neglects to mention the Fair Housing Act, which has protected people from discrimination since it was passed in 1968 and is a centerpiece of the Division’s work—but apparently, no longer.

Career employees in the Division seem shell-shocked, many of them leaving or preparing to, in hopes they will be able to continue at least some of the work that matters to them so deeply outside of government, since it seems to no longer be possible on the inside.

The Civil Rights Division was created as a result of Congress’ passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. The Division enforces federal laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, gender, sexual orientation, and other factors. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 expanded the Division’s jurisdiction to enforce anti-discrimination laws aimed at integrating public facilities, public accommodations, employment, and schools. It also enforces federal civil rights laws that protect people’s rights to be free of discrimination in employment, housing, education, voting, and access to public accommodations. In addition, it prosecutes violations of civil rights crimes like police use of excessive force and hate crimes. Its attorneys travel all across the country, frequently partnering with United States Attorneys’ offices to protect Americans’ civil and constitutional rights.

Source Links: https://joycevance.substack.com/p/losing-dojs-civil-rights-division