PORTLAND, OR – Portland faces a potential federal investigation after a civil rights complaint filed with the Justice Department aimed at the city’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) agenda alleges violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
America First Legal, which describes themselves as “a nonprofit law firm founded to unapologetically and boldly defend the rights of everyday Americans,” announced the filing of the federal civil rights complaint on October 20th. Sharing the news on social media platform X, the nonprofit claims that both the city and the police bureau are engaging in “illegal race-based discrimination across city policies.”
The complaint filed by America First Legal (AFL) ties back to an October 3rd announcement from Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, where the Justice Department official said her office was investigating Portland’s “highly questionable police practices” which suggested police in the city were actively engaging in viewpoint discrimination.
According to AFL, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) is engaged in far more than simple anti-conservative bias, alleging the police force has been infected by the city’s broader DEI agenda under an established office tasked with bringing “Citywide Racial Equity Goals” to fruition.
“Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of race or national origin by entities receiving federal funding,” AFL noted in their announcement, adding, “Despite this, the City of Portland - through its Office of Equity and Human Rights - has imposed ‘Citywide Racial Equity Goals’ that direct city agencies, including the Portland Police Bureau, to make race a central factor in their policies and decision-making.”
Will Scolinos, who authored AFL’s complaint to the Justice Department, expanded on metastatic nature of Portland’s “equity” endeavors, writing, “In Portland, leftwing bureaucrats have embedded ‘equity’ principles throughout the government, including at the [Police] Bureau where ‘lived experience’ and ‘equitable outcomes’ take priority.”
Some of the questionable goals AFL points to, which are outlined under Portland’s Office of Equity and Human Rights, are commitments to employ a “racial equity framework” alongside a “racial equity lens when changing policies, programs, and practices.”
Another area of contention outlined by this Office of Equity and Human Rights is detailed under their second “equity goal,” which promises to “strengthen outreach, public engagement, and access to City services for communities of color and immigrant and refugee communities, and support or change existing services using racial equity best practices.”
While Scolinos admits in the filing that Portland had announced intentions to scale back their DEI initiatives, referring to Mayor Keith Wilson’s executive order this past July aimed at restructuring various programs dependent on federal funding, the attorney argues that the unwillingness to deviate from the listed equity goals leaves Portland in violation of Title VI.
“Although the City of Portland has stated that it will retreat from some of its most egregious diversity, equity, and inclusion (‘DEI’) policies and comply with federal [policies] to keep its federal funding,” AFL’s complaint reads, “it has also stated that the above Citywide Racial Equity Goals and Strategies ‘have not changed.’”
From whom the PPB hires to how they police communities are impacted by this equity agenda, AFL says, pointing to how the bureau “has publicly committed to injecting race into decisions affecting policing.” In Scolinos’ opinion, “Americans of all creeds rely on law enforcement to enforce the law without regard to race. If you have two standards of justice, you have none. The law is the only standard we need.”
America First Legal, which describes themselves as “a nonprofit law firm founded to unapologetically and boldly defend the rights of everyday Americans,” announced the filing of the federal civil rights complaint on October 20th. Sharing the news on social media platform X, the nonprofit claims that both the city and the police bureau are engaging in “illegal race-based discrimination across city policies.”
The complaint filed by America First Legal (AFL) ties back to an October 3rd announcement from Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, where the Justice Department official said her office was investigating Portland’s “highly questionable police practices” which suggested police in the city were actively engaging in viewpoint discrimination.
According to AFL, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) is engaged in far more than simple anti-conservative bias, alleging the police force has been infected by the city’s broader DEI agenda under an established office tasked with bringing “Citywide Racial Equity Goals” to fruition.
“Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of race or national origin by entities receiving federal funding,” AFL noted in their announcement, adding, “Despite this, the City of Portland - through its Office of Equity and Human Rights - has imposed ‘Citywide Racial Equity Goals’ that direct city agencies, including the Portland Police Bureau, to make race a central factor in their policies and decision-making.”
Will Scolinos, who authored AFL’s complaint to the Justice Department, expanded on metastatic nature of Portland’s “equity” endeavors, writing, “In Portland, leftwing bureaucrats have embedded ‘equity’ principles throughout the government, including at the [Police] Bureau where ‘lived experience’ and ‘equitable outcomes’ take priority.”
Some of the questionable goals AFL points to, which are outlined under Portland’s Office of Equity and Human Rights, are commitments to employ a “racial equity framework” alongside a “racial equity lens when changing policies, programs, and practices.”
Another area of contention outlined by this Office of Equity and Human Rights is detailed under their second “equity goal,” which promises to “strengthen outreach, public engagement, and access to City services for communities of color and immigrant and refugee communities, and support or change existing services using racial equity best practices.”
While Scolinos admits in the filing that Portland had announced intentions to scale back their DEI initiatives, referring to Mayor Keith Wilson’s executive order this past July aimed at restructuring various programs dependent on federal funding, the attorney argues that the unwillingness to deviate from the listed equity goals leaves Portland in violation of Title VI.
“Although the City of Portland has stated that it will retreat from some of its most egregious diversity, equity, and inclusion (‘DEI’) policies and comply with federal [policies] to keep its federal funding,” AFL’s complaint reads, “it has also stated that the above Citywide Racial Equity Goals and Strategies ‘have not changed.’”
From whom the PPB hires to how they police communities are impacted by this equity agenda, AFL says, pointing to how the bureau “has publicly committed to injecting race into decisions affecting policing.” In Scolinos’ opinion, “Americans of all creeds rely on law enforcement to enforce the law without regard to race. If you have two standards of justice, you have none. The law is the only standard we need.”
For corrections or revisions, click here.
The opinions reflected in this article are not necessarily the opinions of LET
Comments