CHOSEN FOR:

Law enforcement agents have voluntarily agreed to undertake the hard and dangerous task of serving and protecting the people. They have been trained and taken the oath of observing the mandates of our laws and Constitution, which entitle everyone, regardless of their color, creed, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or national origin to certain Civil Rights and Liberties. Police Brutality occurs when they use excessive or unnecessary force to deal with a human being. Although brutality and abuse are often physical, they can be psychological, verbal, or sexual. Racism or sexism are often the basis of Police Brutality cases. Although, anyone can become a victim regardless of their color, creed, age, race, religion, gender or national origin. While the majority of our law enforcement agents are law abiding human beings, who understand their important role in a civilized discourse, there are a few rogues, whose ignorance, indolence and callousness pummels their oath of office, and tears the very threads of human civilization. Here at Chosen Lawyers, we represent victims of police brutality, wrongful arrests, and unnecessary shootings, beatings, tasing and other forms of abuse. We are also ready to represent Prison Inmates, who are physically and/or sexually abused and assaulted by prison guards and staff. That is because a prison sentence is designed to take one’s freedom away, but not their civil rights and human dignity. Unfortunately, there are many incompetent, morally bankrupt prison guards and staff who assault and abuse their defenseless captives physically, emotionally and sexually. Our constitution and founders of this country mandated, in no uncertain terms, that our governments have no power except for that which is bestowed upon them by the people. Thus, governments must serve the people and not rule over them; must create opportunities, not strangle them; must nurture equality and justice for all, and not trample them. Chosen Civil Rights Lawyers are ready, willing and able to Protect Your Rights, The Right Way, Right Away.

Our Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson on July 4, 1776 made a bold and beautiful promise to the people: ” …all men (human) are created equal…” Yet this declaration left people of African heritage in colonial chains of slavery for another 100 painful years. It took a new generation of progressive thinkers, and a brutal Civil War to mark the beginning of the end of an uncivilized and savage saga in our short but tumultuous history.

EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION

RECONSTRUCTION ERA AMENDMENTS

The Reconstruction Era refers to a period in our history following the Civil War in which the Federal Government attempted to pass some laws with the purpose of helping victims of slavery. For instance, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to our Constitution were designed to expand the Bill of Rights to include all people, including former slaves. The Thirteenth Amendment clearly outlawed involuntary servitude. The Fourteenth Amendment mandated the States to also comply with Privileges and Immunities of the Citizens of the United States… Thus, do not deny any Person within their jurisdictions from Equal Protection of the Laws. The Fifteenth Amendment was promulgated to prohibit the U.S. or any State in the Union from denying any United States’ Citizens the right to vote based on that person’s “race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” These Three Amendments are called the Reconstruction Amendments because they were passed during the Reconstruction Era.

RIGHTS TO PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS AND FACILITIES

The People’s struggle for equality continued into the 1960’s. On February 1, 1960, African American students were denied service at a lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina because the policy was that only white customers could sit at the counter; African Americans had to stand. The next day they returned with more students and the peaceful protest called a “sit-in” was begun… Hounded by the mob, robbed by the politicians and beaten by the law enforcement, yet these courageous people continued their peaceful protests until they achieved their goals — desegregation of public accommodation. These purposeful and peaceful protests forced the politicians to devise Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This law outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin in Public Accommodations and Facilities, such as: hotels, motels, restaurants, movie theaters, stadiums, and concert halls.

EDUCATION RIGHTS

EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was promulgated to ban discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, sex, or national origin in our workplaces. That is because injustice in hiring, firing and promotions had reached a calamitous level.

By then, the malicious advocates for prejudice had more victims. Since, more minorities have found the United States their promised-land. For instance, in 1962, Cesar Estrada Chávez co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), which changed its name to United Farm Workers (UFM) Union. Through his efforts, this Mexican-American Community Leader organized migrant farm workers in the California grape fields into a union. These farm workers consisted mainly from Hispanics and Filipino communities. These farm workers tilled the lands under scorching California sun for the family income of about $2,000 per year. In 1965, the farm workers went on strike in a movement known as “La Causa” (The Cause). In 1966, this movement led by Chávez started a 250-mile march from Delano to Sacramento to bring attention to the farm workers’ conditions. This peaceful strike lasted three years in order to achieve some of its objectives.

VOTING RIGHTS

Even the right to do our part in the process of democracy has been a colossal struggle. Eventually, the Federal Government enacted the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This law prohibits discrimination based on race in voting booths. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 contains several important provisions. Its general purpose is to protect people’s voting rights nationwide. Section 2 of this act prohibits States and Local Government from imposing any voting law that results in discrimination against racial or lingual minorities. Another provision of this important Act prohibits literacy tests and poll taxes which had been used to prevent blacks and other minorities from voting.

HOUSING RIGHTS

Housing, which is another fundamental need for human beings, has also been the subject of prejudice and hatred. It took several laws via Titles VIII through IX, which are known as the Fair Housing Act (FHA) 1968, to prohibit discrimination in the sale, financing or rental of housing, because of race, color, creed, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. In 1988, Congress enacted amendments to the Fair Housing Act that gave the Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) a large role in enforcing the law; the DOJ has the authority to litigate fair housing cases in court. And HUD is commissioned to investigate and resolve complaints of housing discrimination.

The Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA) was promulgated back in 1980. This law was devised to protect the rights of the people, who are under care of institutions, such as jails, prisons, juvenile correctional facilities, public nursing homes, mental health facilities and institutions for individuals with disabilities. This law does not create new rights. It only authorizes the Attorney General to enforce the law and intervene on behalf of institutionalized people whose rights may have been repressed or violated.

To qualify as a public institution, there are two requirements that must be satisfied:

1. An institution must be owned, operated or managed by or provide services on behalf of any state or political subdivision of the state.

2. An institution must be one of the five types of facilities described in the statute.

All this protection came into effect, because in March of 1972, a group of parents, volunteer organizations, and individual residents at a Mentally Retarded facility filed a federal lawsuit against the State of New York. Via this lawsuit, they demanded that the school conditions were hazardous to the health, safety and sanity of the residents. For instance, the residences were dirty, people didn’t have clean clothes to wear, the plumbing didn’t work, and there were not enough doctors, nurses and other needed staff to take care of them. The situation was so bad that the Deputy Commissioner of the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene in charge of the school described the institution as a “major tragedy.” After a grueling legal struggle that lasted 3 years, finally the parties involved in the lawsuit reached a settlement.

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY RIGHTS

Emma Lazarus a Jewish-American activist and poet wrote this heartfelt sonnet known as “The New Colossus” back in 1883:

“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me: I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

Yet, we’ve been discriminating against the most vulnerable people among us for centuries. Finally, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) was adopted into law. This Law prohibits discrimination against disabled people at work, in public accommodation, retail stores, theaters, health care facilities, convention centers, parks, recreational destinations, transportation services, and so on. Almost 1 in 6 Americans, an estimated 45 million people have one or more physical or mental disabilities. Individuals with disabilities continually encounter various forms of discrimination. For example, a nine-year-old girl using a wheelchair wanted to participate in a Sears, Roebuck and Co. modeling program for children. According to the girl’s mother, the Model’s Club Program instructor said that the girl could not participate in the program because they used a ramp for the models that was one foot off the ground and that the girl would not fit the profile of other children. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division investigated the complaint and entered into a settlement agreement with Sears to ensure that this girl, and any other child with a disability, would not be refused from their modeling program because of disability.

NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS

The Plight of Native Americans is another tragic epoch in our tumultuous history. To begin with, we the immigrants call Native Americans, Indians, because of Columbus’ disorientation as to where he had landed. This malicious usurpation of land and systematic eradication was so severe that the Federal Government had to promulgate the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 in order to grant the Native Americans citizenship rights in their own country. This law allowed natives to vote in state and federal elections. Native Americans are a racial minority, who were subjected to the same treacherous and callous limitations as African Americans. These systematic discriminations were so brutal that some states had three separate drinking fountains labeled “whites,” “Colored” and “Indian.”

JAPANESE AMERICAN INTERNMENT

Despite their United States Citizenship, Japanese Americans were subjected to colossal acts of atrocity by the American Government. The so-called internment of Japanese Americans in the United States took place during World War II, was ordered by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Whereas, about 120,000 U.S. Citizens of Japanese ancestry were forced to live in concentration camps and be subjected to inhumane acts, far away from their homes. In 1980, under mounting pressure from the Japanese American Citizens League, President Jimmy Carter appointed a commission to investigate and determine whether the decision to put Japanese Americans into concentration camps had been justified by the government. The Commission’s report, titled Personal Justice Denied, found little evidence of Japanese disloyalty at the time and concluded that the incarceration had been the product of racism. It also recommended that the government pay reparations to the internees. In 1988, Reagan signed into law the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which apologized for the internment on behalf of the United States and authorized a payment of $20,000 to each camp survivor. The U.S. government eventually paid more than $1.6 billion in reparations to 82,219 Japanese Americans who had been interned and their heirs.

“Privileges and Immunities” is referred to as a Clause in Article IV, Section 2 of the United States Constitution. This provision is designed to secure friendship and intercourse among the residents of the entire United States. Here is the actual clause: “The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states.” This clause protects the fundamental right of the United States citizens to travel or relocate from one State to another. Therefore, it prohibits states from discriminating against people from other states. However, the Privileges and Immunities Clause does not protect all commercial activities.

The boundaries of Civil Rights in the United States are always drawn by struggles of the people, such as: The American Civil Rights Movement, which is also known as the Civil Rights Movement has been a contentious and continuous struggle. No wonder why, many politicians still mix this subject matter with their political ambitions. Although, in theory slavery was abolished and former slaves were officially granted political rights after the Civil War, in most Southern States African Americans continued to be systematically disenfranchised, discriminated against and practically excluded from public life. By the 1950s this uncivilized marginalization became an extremely violent subject matter, which spearheaded many social movements with marches, boycotts and civil disobedience. These mainly local efforts impact our entire Union and indeed our entire World. So much so that many laws were promulgated because of the valiant stance of the people. Here are the main laws transpired by Civil Rights Movements:

TITLE I—VOTING RIGHTS

This title outlawed unequal application of voter registration requirements. While Title I did some positive changes in our social discourse, it did not eliminate literacy tests, which mainly affected the poor of all races, but mainly African Americans and other Racial Minorities. Title I also did not address law enforcement repression and brutal violence against minority voters. While the Act did require that voting rules and procedures be applied equally to all races, it did not abolish the concept of voter “qualification”. It accepted the idea that citizens do not have an automatic right to vote but would have to meet standards beyond citizenship. This lingering problem was outlawed by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which eliminated most voting qualifications beyond citizenship.

TITLE II—PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS

This law prohibits discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, or national origin in hotels, motels, restaurants, theaters, and all other public accommodations engaged in interstate commerce. Although, a vague exemption to this law gave private clubs the ability to continue their discrimination against people, based on arbitrary differences.

TITLE III—DESEGREGATION OF PUBLIC FACILITIES

This law bans state and municipal governments from denying access to public facilities based on characteristics, such as: race, religion, color or national origin.

TITLE IV—DESEGREGATION OF PUBLIC EDUCATION

This law prohibits discrimination in our public schools and it authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to file suits to enforce it.

TITLE V—COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS

The United States Commission on Civil Rights was designed to be an independent commission enacted in 1957. It is supposed to investigate, report and make recommendations regarding Civil Rights matters.

TITLE VI—NONDISCRIMINATION IN FEDERAL PROGRAMS

This law bans discriminatory acts based on race, religion, color or national origin within programs and activities that receive federal funding. If a recipient of federal funds is found to violate Title VI, it may lose its federal funding.

TITLE VII—EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Title VII of the Act, codified as Subchapter VI of Chapter 21 of Title 42 of the United States Code bans discrimination by employers on the basis of race, religion, color, creed, sex or national origin. However, Title VII only applies to and covers employers with fifteen (15) or more employees for each working day in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year: as written in the Definitions section under 42 U.S.C. SS 2000e(b). This Title also prohibits discrimination against an individual because of his or her association with another individual of a particular race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, such as by an interracial marriage. The EEO Title VII has also been supplemented with legislation prohibiting pregnancy, age, and disability discrimination. In very narrowly defined situations, an employer is permitted to discriminate on the basis of a protected characteristic, where the trait is a bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ), and reasonably necessary to the normal operation of that particular business or enterprise. To justify the otherwise discriminatory act, an employer must prove three elements: 1) a direct relationship between the protected trait and the ability to perform the duties of the job, 2) the BFOQ relates to the “essence” or “central mission of the employer’s business”, 3) and there is no less restrictive or reasonable to resolve the matter.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Under Title VII sexual harassment is considered discrimination based on sex. And same-sex harassment is also considered to be discrimination under Title VII.

GENDER STEREOTYPING

Title VII also prohibits discrimination related to non-conformity of gender stereotypical behavior.

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which is branded as the most important federal law, was inspired by the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title I of the ADA bans employment discrimination by private employers on the basis of disability. Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in public accommodations.

After the revolution of the American People against British Colonialists, Thomas Jefferson, a visionary leader/lawyer who had drafted the Declaration of Independence, recommended the creation of the Bill of Rights. Pursuant to his recommendation, the United States’ Congress designated and approved the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution as the Bill of Rights. It is important not to confuse Civil Rights, Civil Liberties and the Bill of Rights. Civil Rights is about Equality under Law. Whereas, Civil Liberty is about personal freedoms protected by the Bill of Rights. In other words, people have the right to do or not to do certain activities, even if others like or dislike them. For instance, the 1st Amendment of the Bill of Rights gives everybody the right to Free Speech, with few exceptions, this is a Civil Liberty protected by our Bill of Rights. For the first 90 years since its creation, the Bill of Rights only applied to the Federal Government. However, the Fourteenth Amendment’s incorporation clause extended the application of the Bill of Rights to State Governments as well. Here is the entire Bill of Rights:

FIRST AMENDMENT

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

SECOND AMENDMENT

A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

THIRD AMENDMENT

No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

FOURTH AMENDMENT

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

FIFTH AMENDMENT

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

SIXTH AMENDMENT

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

SEVENTH AMENDMENT

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

EIGHTH AMENDMENT

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

NINTH AMENDMENT

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

TENTH AMENDMENT

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

Civil Liberties are a set of entitlements guaranteed to all residents of the United States and not just citizens. These rights are a matter of fundamental law, which guarantee some personal freedoms. For instance, the 1st Amendment of the Bill of Rights gives everyone a personal freedom to exercise any religion (some exceptions apply) or have no religion at all. This Right is a Civil Liberty. The phrase “Civil Liberty” in the United States was first used by James Wilson, a Pennsylvania State Politician, back in 1788. However, the concept of Civil Liberty dates back to as far as 2500 years ago, when Cyrus the Great codified human understanding, tolerance, courage, compassion and, above all, human liberty in his famous Baked-Clay Cylinder or even further to The Code of Hammurabi. In the U.S., Civil Liberties are defined and guaranteed by the Bill of Rights together with the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution. The 13th Amendment prohibits slavery and involuntary servitude; the 14th Amendment bans the application of any law that would abridge the “privileges and immunities” of U.S. citizens or deprive any person of “life, liberty or property or property…without due process of law.” The 14th also bans that any person be denied “Equal Protection” of Law. And the 15th Amendment guarantees the right of all U.S. citizens to vote. The term “Civil Right” often is a reference to one or more of constitutionally mandated “Civil Liberties” in context with governmental obligation to protect certain classes of people from violations of such. For instance, the government is obligated to protect racial minorities from racial discrimination.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit Social Welfare Group and the ACLU Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit Public Charity. Both organizations are nonpartisan politically. They are solely commissioned to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in The United States by the Constitution and other Federal and State Laws of the United States. For more info, please click here: https://www.aclu.org

Human Rights are a series of inherent entitlements mandated by the International Law, for all human beings, regardless of race, color, creed, gender, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status. These Rights include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of expression, the right to work and education, and many more. Every human being is entitled to these rights, without discrimination.

The International Human Rights outlines a set of universal obligations that all Governments have toward the people within their boundaries. These obligations include civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights enjoyed by the people. The United Nations defines, delineates, promotes and helps member states to carry on their responsibilities. The foundations of this universal body of law are the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which were adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1945 and 1948. It is important to know that the United Nations’ standard for Human Rights has been an evolutionary process. Each generation has a moral responsibility to guard these minimal rights and expand it to protect the rights of vulnerable groups, such as minorities, children and people with disabilities. To know more about International Human Rights, please click HERE. https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/index.html

Hate crimes are crimes committed based on the victim’s race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. The first law prohibiting such wrongful acts was the Civil Rights Act of 1968. This Federal Law prohibited willful injury, intimidation, or interference with another person based on their race, color, religion, or national origin. Subsequent Federal Laws such as the “Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994” expended the level of penalties for hate crimes and widened the protected classes against hate crimes. Another Federal Law referred to as The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, expanded once again the protection of Hate Crime Laws to include sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability. As you can see, struggles of the people brought about the fundamental rights and liberties that we are entitled to. However, manifestation of these rights is an intergenerational duty, which each one of us is duty bound to safeguard from inroads of governments, corporations and diabolical bullies. We must also expand the boundaries of our rights on all fronts, especially in the predatory financial disparity that this country and the world is suffering from. Some fear mongers would have us believe that America is doomed to an inevitable decline. We must reject this manufactured prophecy, if we want to bring peace to our minds, innovation, creativity and prosperity to our lives. This ominous fate will befall us only, if we do nothing. So, let’s muster our courage and creative energy to begin a new era of justice and equality under the Law. Let us renew our determination, hone our wisdom, strengthen our resolve and demand the application of justice for all. Let us guard our sacred constitutional rights, which were written by visionary leaders and sealed by the blood of the people.