DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE TO SPONSOR COMMUNITY FORUM ON
FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHTS PROTECTIONS IN HOUSTON, TX

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice will host a community forum on civil rights protections in Houston, Texas. The event, scheduled for September 26, 2002, will highlight civil rights protections under federal law in areas such as voting, employment, education, housing, and hate crimes.

The forum, organized by the Civil Rights Division's National Origin Working Group, is part of the Department's ongoing efforts to educate local communities about civil rights protections. "This forum will ensure that individuals victimized by ethnically-motivated discrimination and violence know about their civil rights and protections under the law," said Ralph F. Boyd, Jr., Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. "Violence and discrimination based on a person's national origin are un-American and will not be tolerated," added Boyd.

The forum, open to the public, will bring together officials from the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and various other federal agencies. They will address discrimination based on national origin, as well as information on how to file a complaint.

The details of the forum are as follows:

WHEN:Thursday, September 26, 2002

7:00 PM – 9:00 PM (Doors open at 6:30 PM)

WHERE:Hilton Hotel, University of Houston

Alumni Hall (Room S-104)

4800 Calhoun Street

Houston, Texas 77204

The program will include presentations by the participants, followed by a question and answer session. Complaints forms and other relevant materials in different languages will be available. Spanish and Vietnamese language interpreters will be present at this forum.

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