Black women leaders applaud Biden’s appointments of Clarke and Gupta to DOJ

WASHINGTON — President-elect Biden nominated Vanita Gupta to serve as associate attorney general and Kristen Clarke to serve as assistant attorney general for civil rights. Marcela Howell, president and CEO of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, issued the following statement in support of these appointments:

“We applaud President-elect Biden’s appointments of Vanita Gupta and Kristen Clarke to serve in top position in the Department of Justice. Both of these women are outstanding attorneys and stalwart advocates for human and civil rights.

“The new leaders of the Department of Justice face a herculean task, as the country continues to grapple with systemic racism within the criminal justice system and ongoing attacks against voting and other civil rights. Black women and their families have suffered immensely under the Trump administration’s Department of Justice, which proactively worked to gut civil rights protections while ignoring blatant law enforcement abuses against people of color — including police violence resulting in the deaths of countless Black people.

“In Our Own Voice praises President-elect Biden’s selection for putting seasoned civil rights advocates and women of color in top leadership positions. We encourage him to continue to appoint more women of color — especially Black women — to other high-level positions.”