WHITE HOUSE -- October 22, 2021 Briefing Room Statements and Press Releases
Yesterday, senior officials from the White House and the Department of Justice met with Black leaders of Civil Rights organizations to discuss police reform. The meeting is part of broader outreach and engagement by the Biden-Harris Administration with members of the civil rights and law enforcement communities, members of Congress, and victims’ families to define a path forward on meaningful police reform, including through executive actions.
Officials from the Biden-Harris Administration taking part in the meeting included Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice, Senior Advisor Cedric Richmond, White House Counsel Dana Remus, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. The administration officials stressed the President’s belief that this moment demands action to hold accountable law enforcement officers who violate their oaths, and that we cannot be deterred by individuals who are trying to block progress.
The civil rights leaders underscored the urgency for action given the lack of progress in Congress, and proposed a number of ideas for advancing meaningful reforms through executive actions, including to advance accountability for police misconduct, and to improve data collection about interactions between police and individuals. The leaders stressed to Administration officials that federal law enforcement should serve as a model and that steps should be taken to encourage reforms at the state and local levels.
The meeting participants included:
Melanie Campbell, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation
Joi Chaney, National Urban League
Alicia Garza, Black Futures Lab
Wade Henderson, Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
Damon Hewitt, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Sherrilyn Ifill, NAACP Legal Defense Fund
Derrick Johnson, NAACP
Janice Mathis, National Council of Negro Women
Jesselyn McCurdy, Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
Rashad Robinson, Color of Change
Rev. Al Sharpton, National Action Network
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