The Just Security Podcast: Dismissal of Voting Rights Lawsuits

Trump makes it easier for employers to discriminate, stifling equity and hurting economic growth

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has long been a cornerstone in upholding the civil rights of U.S. workers. Established under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the EEOC is a five-member, bipartisan commission appointed by the president to enforce federal laws against employment discrimination. The Trump administration, however, has taken actions that undermine the effectiveness of the EEOC through legally question…

The Just Security Podcast: Dismissal of Voting Rights Lawsuits

For nearly 70 years, the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division led efforts to protect voting rights and fight racial discrimination at the polls. But in January 2025, DOJ political appointees froze all new civil rights cases and dismissed every major pending voting rights lawsuit—prompting most career attorneys to leave the Division.  With federal challenges to restrictive voting laws now dropped in several states, the fight for voting rights falls to ind…

Biden Civil Rights Chief: Trump Anti-DEI Orders Aren’t Law

Catherine Lhamon joined the American Council on Education’s president and a student in criticizing the current federal administration’s targeting of universities over diversity, equity and inclusion. ST. LOUIS—A former leader of the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights during the Obama and Biden administrations called the Trump administration’s targeting of undefined diversity, equity and inclusion legally spurious and urged colleges a…

Discrimination cases unravel as Trump scraps core civil rights tenet

The administration is dismissing cases and unwinding settlements built on "disparate impact," which holds that even neutral policies can lead to biased outcomes.

The White House is Reversing “Disparate-Impact” Discrimination Rulings

From schools to banks, the president's crusade against "disparate impact" cases is already having an effect across the country

Discrimination cases, settlements being reviewed at Civil Rights Division headed by Harmeet Dhilloned

For decades, the federal government has used data analysis to ferret out race and sex discrimination, winning court cases and reaching settlements in housing, education, policing and across American life. Now the Trump administration is working to unwind those same cases. In recent weeks, the Justice Department backed out of an agreement with an Atlanta bank accused of systematically discouraging Black and Latino home buyers from applying for lo…