Today LDF joined with a broad coalition of civil rights organizations to applaud the launch of the Department of Justice’s National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice. The initiative will enlist a team of criminal justice researchers to study racial bias in law enforcement in five U.S. cities and will focus on training to reduce bias and ensure fairness in law enforcement.
The coalition noted that two of the recommendations it had put forth in an August 18 Unity Statement have already come to fruition: an independent and comprehensive investigation by the DOJ of Michael Brown’s shooting death and the use of body-worn cameras by Ferguson police officers. Notably, five additional groups, including the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, and more than 340 independent signatories, have signed on to the August 18 Unity Statement, which was sent to the White House and DOJ.
Read the latest coalition statement here:
