All articles tagged with #civil rights act
The Justice Department says UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine unlawfully used race in admissions for the 2023–2025 cohorts, discriminating against white and Asian American applicants in apparent violation of Title VI and the Supreme Court's Harvard decision; UCLA says admissions are merit-based and compliant, while the DOJ seeks a voluntary resolution and could pursue legal action if needed.
A federal judge dismissed the DOJ's bid to force Rhode Island to provide unredacted voter-registration records under the Civil Rights Act, marking the DOJ's fifth defeat in voter-roll cases and leaving 25 cases still pending. The court said the demand lacked a legally sufficient purpose under the CRA and did not show NVRA/HAVA violations, signaling that the DOJ may pursue updated demands or appeals in other states.
IBM will pay over $17 million to settle DOJ claims that its DEI practices violated the Civil Rights Act by considering race/sex in hiring and tying demographic targets to bonuses; IBM denies wrongdoing and says the settlement is not an admission of liability, in a move tied to the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative launched in 2025, with other companies like T-Mobile and Meta having ended DEI initiatives.
A federal judge dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit seeking Massachusetts’ unredacted voter registration records, marking the agency’s fourth defeat in 30 active voter-roll cases. The court found the DOJ failed to provide a required basis and purpose under Title III of the Civil Rights Act, rendering the demand facially inadequate. Similar challenges in California and Oregon have also failed, and a Georgia case was dismissed for improper venue with the DOJ refiled, illustrating mounting legal obstacles to the administration’s broad data-access push on voter rolls.
The Department of Justice filed five new lawsuits against Utah, Oklahoma, Kentucky, West Virginia, and New Jersey to obtain unredacted voter-roll data, including private identifiers, as part of a broader federal effort to access state election records. The suits—bringing the total to over two dozen—face state pushback over privacy and constitutional authority, amid a tense national debate on federal involvement in elections.
A federal judge dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit seeking California’s voter rolls, calling the demand unprecedented, illegal and a threat to democracy, and warned that centralizing such data could chill voter registration and turnout. The ruling sides with California officials who argued the data request overstepped federal authority and improperly used civil rights laws to amass millions of voter records. The decision halts the DOJ’s bid tied to broader federal efforts to scrub and review voter rolls ahead of elections.
The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into Duke University and Duke Law Journal over allegations of racial discrimination in their selection processes, citing potential violations of the Civil Rights Act and concerns about the use of race in admissions and hiring practices.
The U.S. government’s Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism has accused Harvard of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act through antisemitic incidents and inaction, threatening to cut federal funding if the university does not implement corrective measures. Harvard disputes the findings, citing ongoing efforts to address antisemitism and promote respectful dialogue on campus.
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals halted the Fearless Fund's grant program for Black women entrepreneurs, ruling it likely violates the Civil Rights Act of 1866 by using race in making contracts. This decision is a significant win for conservative groups challenging DEI initiatives. The Fearless Fund argued the grants are charitable donations protected by the First Amendment, but the court disagreed, reversing a lower court's decision and imposing a preliminary injunction.
The Supreme Court ruled that workers who are transferred against their will can pursue job discrimination claims under federal civil rights law, even if they are not demoted or have their pay docked. The decision revives a sex discrimination lawsuit filed by a St. Louis police sergeant who was forcibly transferred but retained her rank and pay. The ruling makes it clear that employers cannot make job decisions based on race and gender, and the case now returns to lower courts for further proceedings.
The George Floyd Memorial Scholarship at North Central University is facing a federal complaint for allegedly violating the Civil Rights Act by discriminating against non-Black students. The scholarship, which requires applicants to be Black or African American, has been accused of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Legal Insurrection Foundation filed the complaint, claiming that the scholarship's eligibility criteria unlawfully discriminates based on race. North Central University has not yet responded to the complaint.
A Pennsylvania federal appeals court has ruled that mail-in ballots without accurate handwritten dates on the envelopes are not valid, overturning a lower court's decision. The ruling, impacting the upcoming elections in the battleground state, requires voters to write the date on their envelopes as mandated by state law. Republicans welcome the decision as a victory for election integrity, while critics argue that thousands of eligible voters could lose their votes over a paperwork error. The issue of mail-in voting continues to be a contentious topic, with former President Donald Trump and others raising concerns about election integrity.
A federal appeals panel ruled that undated or incorrectly dated mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania should not be counted, setting the stage for a potential U.S. Supreme Court battle. The decision could impact the outcome of the presidential election and other races in the swing state. The ruling, which strikes down a lower court decision, has sparked debate over voter rights and election integrity, with the Republican National Committee expressing confidence in the decision while the ACLU considers its options. The issue of undated ballots has raised concerns about disenfranchisement, particularly among elderly voters, and has implications for mail-in voting trends between Democrats and Republicans.
Iowans celebrated as lawmakers rejected a bill that would have removed gender identity protections from the state's civil rights law. The bill aimed to add gender dysphoria to the definition of a disability and remove gender identity protections from the Iowa Civil Rights Act. LGBTQ rights groups and allies packed the Capitol to protest the bill, with emotional testimonies from transgender individuals and their supporters. Lawmakers who opposed the bill emphasized the importance of protecting civil rights and expressed reluctance to revisit the Iowa Civil Rights Act.
Lawmakers in Iowa announced the rejection of a bill that would have removed gender identity protections from the state's civil rights law, sparking cheers and celebrations among LGBTQ Iowans and their allies at the Capitol. The bill aimed to add gender dysphoria to the definition of a disability and remove gender identity protections from the Iowa Civil Rights Act, but all three members of the House subcommittee decided not to advance it. This decision was met with relief and support from the community, as they voiced their opposition to the bill and emphasized the importance of protecting civil rights for all individuals, including those in the LGBTQ community.