ACLU, Color of Change, Free Press Call for Release of DHS “Race Paper”

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union joined Color of Change, Free Press, and over 35 other organizations to call for the release of the unredacted Department of Homeland Security memos known as the “Race Paper” and the “Growing Frequency of Race-Related Domestic Terrorist Violence.”

Memos like these inform the activities of law enforcement officials at all levels of government. The organizations raised concerns with potential biases and inaccuracies reflected in the “Race Paper,” which could result in unconstitutional law enforcement activities throughout the county that disproportionately impact activists, protesters, and communities of color.

Neema Singh Guliani, ACLU legislative counsel, said:

“It is past due for DHS to release the so-called ‘Race Paper’ to the public. We have a right to know whether the department is improperly using race or constitutionally protected speech as an indicator that someone may be seen as violent or a threat to national security.

“Given our country’s sordid history of improperly monitoring activists and communities of color, and the recent release of the FBI’s flawed ‘Black Identity Extremist’ report, there is ample reason to be concerned that the government is once again using inaccurate ‘intelligence’ analysis to justify wrongly characterizing peaceful protesters as safety threats.”

The letter is available online here:
https://www.freepress.net/sites/default/files/2018-05/race_paper_coalition_letter.pdf