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The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of |
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PART II -- INFORMATION RELATING TO ARTICLES 2 TO 7 Since its Civil War, the United States has worked to develop the proper configuration of constitutional, statutory and voluntary cooperation to transform race relations from conditions of political and economic domination by the White, landed gentry to legal and actual parity for all U.S. residents. Because the relevant laws derive from specific historical and social circumstances over a lengthy period, they have taken shape in a manner which does not directly parallel the specific articles of the Convention. Moreover, some aspects of this body of law, and of the national political structure, caused the United States to condition its adherence to the Convention on a few precisely crafted reservations, understandings and declarations. Given these facts, it is useful to preface the discussion of the specific articles with the following background information. A. Prohibition of Racial Discrimination Existing U.S. Constitutional and statutory law and practice provide strong and effective protections against discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity or national origin in all fields of public endeavor and provide remedies for anyone who, despite these protections, becomes a victim of discriminatory acts or practices anywhere within the United States or subject to its jurisdiction. Especially since the landmark 1954 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education, the notion of racial equality has been fundamental to the Constitutional and statutory law of the United States. 1. United States Constitution The constitutional protections against racial discrimination are contained in the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, all of which were ratified in a five-year period following the conclusion of the Civil War in 1865, and in the Fifth Amendment, which since 1954 has been construed to forbid the Federal government from engaging in racial discrimination. (a) Thirteenth Amendment. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery. Section 2 of the Amendment authorizes Congress to enforce the prohibition of slavery through "appropriate legislation." The Amendment has been interpreted broadly, not only to abolish slavery, but also to permit Congress to eliminate the "badges and incidents of slavery," i.e., those vestiges of custom, practice and private action that were the legacy of slavery. Jones v. Alfred H. Mayer Co., 392 U.S. 409, 440 (1968). As set forth below, civil rights statutes have been enacted pursuant to this interpretation of Section 2 of the Thirteenth Amendment. The Thirteenth Amendment and legislation implementing its commands are fully consistent with the Convention and substantially further its goals. (b) Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. The part of the Fourteenth Amendment that speaks to racial discrimination is the Equal Protection Clause, which provides that "[n]o State shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Equal protection strictures apply to the Federal government through the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Bolling v. Sharpe, 347 U.S. 497 (1954). The Fourteenth Amendment was enacted in the period immediately after the end of the U.S. Civil War, a time at which federalism issues were much at the forefront of the nation's juridical consciousness. The drafters of the Fourteenth Amendment intended that its prohibition on States' making or enforcing "any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States," would protect the fundamental rights of U.S. citizens, particularly civil rights, from state encroachment. However, for almost one hundred years after the enactment of the Fourteenth Amendment, the federal courts refused to apply its principles to state-sponsored racial discrimination and de jure segregation. Thus, this kind of un-equal treatment was the rule, rather than the exception, all over the United States until the middle of the Twentieth Century. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court, for the first time, applied the Fourteenth Amendment's requirements of "equal protection under the law" against the states and ushered into U.S. law the idea that state-sponsored segregation was antithetical to the country's fundamental principles. See Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954). Since Brown, the U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment as a "direction that all persons similarly situated should be treated alike." Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Inc., 473 U.S. 432, 439 (1985). In essence, it precludes governments from adopting unjustifiable legal distinctions between groups of people. Plyler v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202, 216-219 (1982). Over time, the Supreme Court has made plain that distinctions based on race or national origin are inherently suspect, and thus are rarely justifiable. McLaughlin v. Florida, 379 U.S. 184, 192 (1964). When challenged in court, such distinctions are subject to "strict scrutiny," the most exacting standard of constitutional review. Under strict scrutiny, a classification violates the Equal Protection Clause unless it is necessary to promote a "compelling state interest" and is "narrowly tailored" to achieve that interest. Palmore v. Sidotti, 466 U.S. 429, 432 (1984). In practice, most racial or ethnic classifications fail to satisfy those standards. Bernal v. Fainter, 467 U.S. 216, 219 n.6 (1984). Strict scrutiny applies not only to laws that specifically categorize individuals on the basis of race or ethnicity, but also to ostensibly neutral laws that are enforced only against certain racial or ethnic groups. Personnel Administrator v. Feeney, 442 U.S. 256, 277 (1979) (citing Yick Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356 (1886)). Even where racial or ethnic classifications are not at issue, strict scrutiny applies to legal distinctions that the Supreme Court has determined interfere with the exercise of certain fundamental rights. Under this strand of equal protection doctrine, the Supreme Court has invalidated discriminatory measures in the areas of voting, Harper v. Virginia State Board of Education, 383 U.S. 663 (1966), inter-state and foreign travel, Aptheker v. Secretary of State, 378 U.S. 500 (1964), and access to the judiciary, Griffin v. Illinois, 351 U.S. 12 (1956). In short, the Equal Protection Clause, as interpreted by the Supreme Court is consistent with the enumerated guarantees of Article 5 of the Convention. (c) Fifteenth Amendment. The last of the post-Civil War era Amendments, the Fifteenth Amendment provides that the right to vote "shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." This amendment, in conjunction with the Fourteenth Amendment, is the basis of some of the federal legislation protecting the right of individuals to vote and to participate in the political process free from discrimination based on race or ethnicity. For the first few years after the enactment of the Fifteenth Amendment, Blacks in the United States exercised their right to vote in strong numbers in the South. However, because of a combination of forces (e.g., the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, often acting with the complicity of local law enforcement) and the imposition of restrictive voting qualifications in many southern states (such as the poll tax and literacy tests, often administered in a discriminatory manner), Blacks in the South were once again locked out of the electoral process. In the years between 1876 and the mid-1960s, neither Congress nor the federal courts took action to combat the efforts by Southern states to prevent Blacks from participating in the political process. However, after years of struggle, lead by the efforts of Martin Luther King, Jr. and others, in 1964 the country ratified the Twenty-fourth Amendment to the Constitution prohibiting the requirement of payment of a poll tax as a qualification for voting for federal offices, and in 1965 the U.S. Congress enacted the Voting Rights Act which made real the Fifteenth Amendment's prohibition against discrimination in voting. This Constitutional and statutory framework is consistent with the voting guarantee among the rights recognized by Article 5 of the Convention. 2. Federal Legislation Since the Civil War, Congress has adopted a number of statutes designed to supplement and expand upon the prohibitions of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments in an effort to eliminate racial discrimination in a broad range of governmental, economic and social activity. (a) The 1866 and 1871 Civil Rights Acts. These post-Civil War, Reconstruction Era statutes prohibit racial discrimination in both the civil and criminal arenas. As codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 1981-85, racial discrimination is prohibited in the making and enforcement of private contracts, including employment, education, health care and recreational facilities (sec. 1981) and in the inheritance, purchase, sale or lease of real and personal property (sec. 1982). They also create a cause of action for civil damages against anyone who under "color of law" subjects another to unlawful discrimination (sec. 1983), as well as those who conspire to deprive individuals of their federally secured rights (sec. 1985). Similar prohibitions apply in the criminal context, including the prohibition against conspiracies (public or private) to "injure, oppress, threaten or intimidate" any person in the exercise of any Constitutional or other federally protected right (18 U.S.C. sec. 241); and against the willful deprivation of rights under "color of law" (18 U.S.C. sec. 242) (used most frequently to prosecute law enforcement officials for acts of excessive force). With its review of The Slaughter-House Cases, 83 U.S. (16 Wall.) 36, in 1873 the U.S. Supreme Court had its first opportunity to examine the scope of the Reconstruction amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and thereby establish the extent of the Federal government's authority to legislate in the area of civil rights. In rejecting a Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendment challenge to a Louisiana statute granting a monopoly to engage in the slaughterhouse business in New Orleans, the Court concluded that neither the Thirteenth Amendment nor the privileges and immunities or due process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment could be interpreted to create a prohibition against discrimination by the States against groups of their citizens. Such a reading, the Court held, would "radically [change] the whole theory of the relations of the State and Federal governments to each other and both of these governments of the people." The Supreme Court's opinion in the Slaughter-House Cases substantially slowed the momentum to provide federal civil rights protections during the Reconstruction Era. Based on the Court's reasoning, numerous statutes enacted for the protection of the newly freed slaves were invalidated. This judicial dismantling of Reconstruction Era legislation was accompanied by a collapse in the political coalition behind the Reconstruction movement. The result was a hodge-podge of state civil rights protections, many of which were either weak, non-existent, or rarely enforced. It was not until the mid-twentieth century and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when strong, comprehensive federal protection for civil rights was established. (b) The Civil Rights Act of 1964. Often described as the most important civil rights legislation in U.S. law, this statute prohibits discriminatory acts involving public accommodation (Title II), education (Title IV), federally-funded programs (Title VI) and employment (Title VII). This legislation has been repeatedly amended in the years since 1964. See, e.g., Pub.L. 102-166 (1991) (establishing the burden of proof in Title VII disparate impact cases, prohibiting the discriminatory use of test scores, refining the definition of an unlawful business practice, and extending coverage to U.S.-controlled foreign corporations); Pub.L. 92-261, sec. 2(2) (1972) (extending the statute to state and local government employers, eliminating the exemption for the employment of individuals engaged in the educational activities of non-religious educational institutions, and extending its coverage to applicants for employment or membership in organizations); see also Glass Ceiling Act, Pub.L.102-166, Title II (1991) (establishing a commission to study issues related to the under-representation of women and minorities in management and decision-making positions in business). (i) Title II of the Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 2000a, prohibits discrimination on the basis of "race, color, religion or national origin" in places of "public accommodation," which are defined to include establishments affecting commerce that are hotels, motels and other lodging, restaurants and other places serving food, theaters, concert halls, sports stadiums and other places of entertainment or exhibition and gasoline stations. (ii) Title IV, codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 2000c et seq., provides for the orderly desegregation of public schools and for non-discriminatory admissions to public colleges and universities. (iii) Title VI, codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 2000d et seq., provides that no person in the United States shall be excluded from participation in, or denied the benefits of, any federally-funded or assisted program or activity on account of race, color or national origin. This provision has had a particularly salutary effect in the continuing efforts to eliminate de jure school and housing segregation. (iv) Title VII, codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 2000e et seq., is the primary federal statute addressing discrimination in employment. Subject to certain exceptions, it prohibits discrimination on the basis of, inter alia, race, color and national origin in hiring, compensation, conditions of employment and dismissals by employers (defined as those that employ more than fifteen employees), labor organizations and employment agencies affecting commerce. In addition, employers are prohibited from engaging in intentional discrimination on the basis of race by 42 U.S.C. section 1981. Complaints under Title VII are initially filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Those complaints filed against state or local government employers can be referred to the Department of Justice for enforcement in federal court. In 1991, Congress amended Title VII to provide additional remedies for intentional discrimination in the workplace. (c) The Voting Rights Act of 1965. Among the most fundamental rights in any democratic system is the right to participate freely in the government of one's country without discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin. In the United States, the Fifteenth Amendment, ratified in 1870, prohibits denial or abridgement of the right to vote on account of race, color or previous condition of servitude. While in the northern, non-slave-holding states, Blacks frequently (but not uniformly) were already enfranchised, the Fifteenth Amendment and legislation adopted at that time to enforce it did not lead to the permanent enfranchisement of Blacks in the former slave-holding states. In response to the Fifteenth Amendment, many states, through a combination of physical and economic coercion and through the use of state legal systems, almost totally excluded Blacks from the political process in several southern states by the end of the 19th century. Through the work of civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King, Jr., the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and others, a nation-wide political movement created a sea-change in the country by the middle of the 20th Century. As a result, through a series of lawsuits decided by the Supreme Court of the United States, Civil Rights Acts enacted by the United States Congress in 1957, 1960, and 1964, and especially the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Blacks and other racial and ethnic minorities have gained the right to vote free from racial discrimination in every part of the United States. The Voting Rights Act has been extended or strengthened by Congress on several occasions (1970, 1975, 1982, and 1992) and has been interpreted or amended to protect all racial or ethnic minority groups, including language minorities. The Act authorizes the United States Attorney General and private parties to bring lawsuits in federal court to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment to ensure that minority voters are afforded an equal opportunity to elect their candidates of choice to state, local, and federal office. The Act also bans the use of literacy tests and other tests and devices which had been applied in a discriminatory manner to disqualify eligible minority applicants from being able to register to vote. In addition to general provisions banning discriminatory practices that apply to the entire nation, the Act has specialized mechanisms that apply to areas of the country with the most severe history of discrimination against Blacks. This part of the Act requires federal pre-approval for any proposed changes in voting laws and practices to prevent the implementation of new discriminatory laws and practices; authorization of federal observers to monitor elections to assure that minority voters are permitted to vote free from discrimination or intimidation, and that their votes are actually counted; and the provision of bilingual voting information and assistance is required in certain areas of the country. (d) The Fair Housing Act. This statute, originally enacted as Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and amended by the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, is codified at 42 U.S.C. sec. 3601-19. It prohibits discrimination on the grounds, inter alia, of race, color, religion, or national origin in the sale or rental of housing as well as in other real estate related transactions (i.e., lending, insurance, and appraisal practices) and brokerage services. Exceptions are provided for private clubs, single family dwellings and owner-occupied boarding houses with no more than three other family units, except when the owner uses the services of real estate brokers or others. It also includes a criminal provision, 42 U.S.C. sec. 3631, which makes it a federal crime for any person to use force or the threat of force willfully to injure, intimidate, or interfere with, or attempt to injure, intimidate or interfere with any person because of his or her race, color, religion, sex or handicap, and because he or she is exercising federally protected housing rights. This statute is used, for example, to prosecute cross-burnings and other racially-motivated threats and violence directed at people in their homes. (e) Civil Rights Act of 1968. One of the statutes promulgated under this Act was 18 U.S.C. sec. 245, a criminal statute which, inter alia, prohibits any person from using force or willful threats to injure, intimidate, or interfere with, or attempt to injure, intimidate or interfere with any person because of his or her race, color, religion or national origin, and because he or she is engaging in certain federally protected rights, including rights related to education, employment, and the use of public facilities and establishments which serve the public. (f) Protection of Religious Property. Passed in 1988, and amended in 1996, 18 U.S.C. section 247 makes it a crime to deface, damage or destroy religious property because of the race, color, or ethnic characteristics of any individual associated with that property. This statute has been used, for example, to prosecute racially-motivated church arson, and the painting of anti-Semitic graffiti on and within a Jewish synagogue. (g) American Indian Religious Freedom Act, 42 U.S.C. sec. 1996. Enacted in 1978, then amended in 1996, this Act resolves that it shall be the policy of the United States to protect and preserve for the American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut and Native Hawaiian the inherent right to freedom to believe, express and exercise their traditional religions, including, inter alia, access to religious sites, use and possession of sacred objects and freedom to worship through ceremonial and traditional rites. Federal agencies are directed to evaluate their policies and procedures to determine if changes are needed to ensure that such rights and freedoms are not disrupted by agency practices. The courts have interpreted this act to require that the views of Indian leaders be obtained and considered when a proposed land use might conflict with traditional Indian religious beliefs or practices, and that unnecessary interference with Indian religious practices be avoided during project implementation. (h) Protection of Traditional Rights in American Samoa, 48 U.S.C. sec. 1661(a). In 1929 the Congress accepted and ratified the cessions of Tutuila and Aunu'u (1900) and Manu'a (1904) by the islands' traditional leaders and thereby confirmed that the Federal government would "respect and protect the individual rights of all people dwelling in Tutuila and Aunu'u to their lands and other property" and "no[t] discriminat[e] in the suffrages and political privileges between the present residents of said Islands [Manu'a] and citizens of the United States dwelling therein, and also [recognize] . . . the rights of . . . all people concerning their property according to their customs." (i) Equal Credit Opportunity Act, 15 U.S.C. sec. 1691 et seq. The Equal Credit Opportunity Act makes it unlawful for any creditor to discriminate in a credit transaction on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or source of income (e.g., public benefits). Enforcement has focused on all aspects of the lending process from marketing to underwriting and pricing. For example, in 1997 the U.S. Department of Justice filed and settled a case alleging that Albank of New York engaged in so-called "redlining" by refusing to take mortgage loans from areas with significant minority populations. The settlement included an agreement by the bank to provide $55 million dollars at below market rates to previously redlined areas. Cases have been brought on behalf of Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, women and the elderly both in major metropolitan areas such as Boston and Los Angeles and in less populated areas such as Mississippi and South Dakota. (j) Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 includes a provision, 42 U.S.C. sec. 14141, that authorizes the Department of Justice to file suit to enjoin a pattern or practice of unconstitutional or unlawful conduct by a state or local law enforcement agency. Misconduct that may be addressed includes discriminatory police practices, use of excessive force, false arrests, and improper searches and seizures. (k) Anti-discrimination Provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. sec. 1324b. This law was enacted in 1986 in response to concerns that employers, faced with sanctions against knowingly hiring unauthorized immigrants, would refuse to hire people they perceived to be foreign based on their accent or appearance. The law prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination with respect to hiring, firing, or referral or recruitment for a fee. The law also prohibits unfair documentary practices with respect to employment eligibility verification. All U.S. citizens and nationals and work-authorized immigrants are protected from national origin discrimination and unfair documentary practices. U.S. citizens and nationals, permanent residents, asylees, refugees, and temporary residents are protected from citizenship status discrimination (l) Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1970, 16 U.S.C. sec. 1704. This Act requires assurances of nondiscrimination in employment within the State Youth Conservation Corps in order for states to receive funds to cover Youth Conservation Corps projects. (m) Emergency Insured Student Loan Act of 1969, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1078(c)(2)(F). This act requires adequate assurances that the loan guaranty agency will not engage in any pattern or practice which results in a denial of a borrower's access to loans under this part because of the borrower's race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disabled status, income, attendance at a particular eligible institution within the area served by the guaranty agency, length of the borrower's educational program, or the borrower's academic year in school. (n) Higher Education Act of 1965, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1011 et seq. This law provides funds to higher education institutions and prohibits the schools from using these funds in programs or contracts with discriminatory provisions barring students on the basis of race, national origin, sex, or religion. Through subsequent amendments, particularly those made in 1992 and in 1998, the Act has added programs which provide insurance assistance to historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic serving institutions, and tribal colleges, and which encourage youth from disadvantaged backgrounds to gain early awareness and readiness for post-secondary education, e.g. through the "Gear-Up" program, which funds partnerships of high-poverty middle schools, colleges and universities, community organizations, and businesses. (o) Bilingual Education Act of 1967, 20 U.S.C. sec. 7401 et seq. This statute was enacted to ensure equal educational opportunities for all children and youth, through developing and funding programs to assist limited-English proficient children meet the same standards for academic performance expected of all children. (p) The Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1703. This law requires the provision of equal educational opportunities in all public schools, whether or not they are federally funded, and it prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, color, or sex; including the failure to take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede equal participation in instructional programs. (q) Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 20 U.S.C. sec. 6301 et seq. This Act provides federal aid to elementary and secondary schools, reinforcing the civil rights protections included in the 1964 Civil Rights Act. In particular, it provides for services to meet the special education needs of educationally deprived children, especially those children from low-income families. (r) Federal Family Education Loan Program, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1087-1(e)(3). This Act provides special allowance payments for loans financed by proceeds of tax-exempt obligations. It prohibits denial of a borrower's access to loans under this part because of the borrower's race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, handicapped status, income, attendance at a particular eligible institution, length of the borrower's educational program, or the borrower's academic year in school. (s) Improving America's Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. sec. 7502(b)(4). This Act applies to any federally assisted education program. It prohibits exclusion of students on the bases of surname or language-minority status. This Act also made far-reaching changes in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to enable schools to provide opportunities for children to meet challenging State content and performance standards. (t) Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Act of 1976, 15 U.S.C. sec. 719o. This Act provides funding for delivery of Alaska natural gas. It requires implementation of affirmative action policies to prevent discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex or religion in the issuance of certificates, permits, rights-of-way, leases, or other authorizations under this Act. (u) Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974, 15 U.S.C. sec. 775. This Act also addresses funding for the delivery of Alaska natural gas. It requires implementation of affirmative action policies to prevent discrimination in programs given certificates, permits, right-of-ways, lease, or other authorizations under this Act. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, or religion. (v) Federal Non-nuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 1974, 42 U.S.C. sec. 5919(v). This Act provides funds for developing new non-nuclear energy options. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, or religion. (w) Energy Conservation in Existing Buildings Act of 1976, 42 U.S.C. sec. 6870. This Act provides weatherization assistance for low-income persons. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, or any other factor specified in any federal law prohibiting discrimination. (x) Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 31 U.S.C. sec. 6711. This Act provides funding for crime prevention through education treatment, substance abuse or job programs. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, and disability. (y) Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (Title I), 42 U.S.C. sec. 5309. This Act authorizes the Community Development Block Grant. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, and disability. (z) Home Investment Partnerships Act/National Affordable Housing Act of 1975, 42 U.S.C. sec. 12832. This Act provides funding to increase affordable housing (including rental housing) for very low-income Americans. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, and disability. (aa) Mining and Mineral Resources Institutes Act of 1984, 30 U.S.C. sec. 1222. This Act sets out recommendations regarding funding for mining and mineral resources research institutes. The Act stipulates that funding is to be provided without regard to, or on the basis of, race, sex or religion. (bb) Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act of 1973, 43 U.S.C. sec. 1651(note). This Act provided funds for the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. It requires the implementation of affirmative action policies to prevent discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion in the issuance of certificates, permits, rights-of-way, leases or other authorizations under the Act. (cc) Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43 U.S.C. sec. 1747(10). This Act provides loans to states to relieve social/economic impacts from certain mining. It prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (dd) Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments, 43 U.S.C. sec. 1863. This Act provides funds under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (ee) 48 U.S.C. sec. 1708. This section addresses conveyances of certain submerged land of U.S. territories and prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, religion and ancestry in making such conveyances. (ff) Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 42 U.S.C. sec. 3789d. This Act provides funding for state and local justice system improvements. It prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (gg) Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974, 42 U.S.C. sec. 5672. This Act, enacted to provide federal assistance to juvenile justice programs nationwide, incorporates the non-discrimination provisions of 42 U.S.C. sec. 3789d, which prohibit discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (hh) Justice Assistance Act of 1984, 42 U.S.C. sec. 10504. This Act provides assistance for emergency law enforcement and incorporates non-discrimination provisions at 42 U.S.C. sec. 3789d, which prohibit discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (ii) Victims of Crime Act of 1984, 42 U.S.C. sec. 10604. This Act provides assistance for emergency law enforcement and incorporates non-discrimination provisions at 42 U.S.C. sec. 3789d which prohibit discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, and religion. (jj) Workforce Investment Act of 1998, 29 U.S.C. sec. 2938. This Act provides funding for employment, training, literacy, and vocational rehabilitation programs. It prohibits discrimination on the bases of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, and political affiliation or belief. (kk) Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, 22 U.S.C. sec. 2314(g). This Act provides for foreign assistance. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, sex, or religion against U.S. persons participating in the furnishing of this assistance. (ll) Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1968, 23 U.S.C. sec. 140. This Act provides employment assurances for the receipt of funds for the federal-aid highway systems. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, or religion. (mm) Federal Transit Act, 49 U.S.C. sec. 5332. This Act provides funds for mass transportation programs and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, or age. (nn) Airport and Airway Improvement Act, 49 U.S.C. sec. 47123. This Act provides funds for airport and airway improvements and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, or religion. (oo) Domestic Volunteer Service/Volunteers in Service to America Act of 1973, 42 U.S.C. sec. 5057. This Act provides funds to foster and expand voluntary citizen service in communities throughout the nation in activities to help the disadvantaged. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, political affiliation, or disability. (pp) National and Community Service Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. sec. 12635. This Act provides federal assistance for national service as job or education training and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, or political affiliation. (qq) General Education Provisions Act, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1228a. This statute directs the Secretary of Education to require an applicant for assistance under an applicable program administered by the Department to describe in the application the steps the applicant proposes to take to ensure equitable access to, and equitable participation in, the project or activity to be conducted with such assistance by addressing the special needs of students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries in order to overcome barriers to equitable participation, including barriers based on gender, race, color, national origin, disability and age. 3. Federal Executive Action The President has executive authority to direct the activities of federal agencies in furtherance of the Constitution and laws of the United States. In exercise of this authority, the President has issued executive orders that prohibit discrimination in federal programs and that encourage diversity in the federal workplace to the extent that such actions are consistent with federal law. For example:
4. State Anti-Discrimination Measures Most states, and many large cities, have adopted their own statutory and administrative schemes for protecting individuals from discrimination in fields actively regulated by state and local governments. For example, state constitutions and statutes typically protect individuals from discrimination in housing, employment, public accommodations, government contracting, credit transactions and education. As a result, a particular discriminatory act might well violate federal, state and local law -- each having its own sanctions. States may also provide protections which differ from or exceed the minimum requirements of federal law. Where such protections exist, state or municipal law also provides judicial or administrative remedies for victims of discrimination. This re-enactment of similar or expanded protections at the state and local level serves several important purposes. First, this process involves a broad range of legislators at all levels of government taking positive steps toward the elimination of racial discrimination. This is important both for the specific legislative action that results, and for the increased local participation in the effort to eradicate race-based inequalities and racial intolerance. Thus, the effort to eliminate racial discrimination occurs at the most basic political level. Second, the process usually involves the creation of a state or local agency for the administrative enforcement of the protections involved. This frequently involves the appointment of a local commission with the power to investigate complaints and to enforce the legislation in question. Accordingly, enforcement offices are made available at locations closer to, and more accessible by, the affected individuals. Since local officials may more fully understand underlying issues and complexities in individual cases, adjudication of cases by them may yield better public understanding. For example, the Florida Commission on Human Relations was established in 1969, with the enactment of the Florida Human Rights Act, for the purpose of enforcing Florida's anti-discrimination laws. The Commission is both a policy-making and community organization and an enforcer of anti-discrimination laws. The Commission is authorized to investigate and seek the resolution of discrimination complaints -- in housing, employment, public accommodations and private club membership -- through administrative and legal proceedings. In Alaska, the State Commission for Human Rights, is responsible for enforcing the Alaska Human Rights law, which makes it unlawful to discriminate in employment, housing, public accommodations, finance and credit, and state political practices in all cases on the basis of race, national origin, religion, sex, color, and physical or mental disability, and in some cases, on the basis of age, pregnancy, marital status, parenthood, and changes in marital status. Moreover, many municipalities have established agencies to monitor and enforce anti-discrimination legislation. In San Francisco, the Employment, Housing and Public Accommodations Division of that city's Human Rights Commission implements the San Francisco Charter and Administrative Code, which prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Division staff investigate and mediate complaints involving allegations of discrimination and non-compliance, as well as prepare and promote community programs aimed at reducing or eliminating inequalities and educate the community regarding the principles of equal opportunity. With regard to equal employment, there are 121 designated Fair Employment Practice agencies created by state and local jurisdictions which investigate charges of race discrimination under work-sharing agreements with the EEOC pursuant to Section 706 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These are identified at 29 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1601.74. There are also a number of Tribal Employment Rights organizations which investigate charges of discrimination on or near Indian reservations pursuant to work-sharing agreements with the EEOC. Examples of state laws prohibiting race discrimination in employment are: the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, Cal. Gov. Code ¤ 12940; the New York Human Rights Law, N.Y. Exec. Law ¤ 296; and the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act, Tex. CA Labor ¤ 21.051. In subsequent reports to the Committee, the United States intends to discuss in greater detail state and local measures taken to prevent racism and racial discrimination. As with protections at the federal level, these measures are complex and comprehensive, therefore requiring a more detailed discussion than was possible here. [more] [end of document]
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