Norton to Reflect on the Summer of 1964 and Lessons of the Civil Rights Movement at the USPC African American History Month Event
WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) will speak at the U.S. Parole Commission's (USPC) 21st annual African American History Month program, entitled "Civil Rights in America: 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act," today at 12:30 p.m., at 90 K St. NE, 3rd floor. The program will begin at 11:00 a.m. and is open to the media. During her remarks, Norton will reflect on the Summer of 1964, the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which she administered as chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and lessons of the civil rights movement for today. The other featured speaker is USPC Chair Isaac Fulwood, former D.C. Chief of Police, who Norton recommended to the USPC in 2004.
"This year's Black History Month commemoration at the U.S. Parole Commission takes on special meaning," said Norton. "Most of our men and women on parole or supervised release are African American. It has been a special pleasure to work closely with Chairman Fulwood and the Commission to help ensure their future and the safety of our city. Chairman Fulwood has been a national leader in spearheading much-needed state-of-the-art reforms to prevent recidivism. I am particularly pleased to be with Chairman Fulwood and the Commission this year, when, after years of struggle, we were able to get Congress to approve a significantly longer reauthorization for the Commission than ever before."
Last November, President Obama signed a bill reauthorizing the USPC for five years, ensuring continuation of the agency with jurisdiction over D.C. Code felons on parole and supervised release. The five-year reauthorization was a significant breakthrough. Congress had previously insisted on only two- or three-year reauthorizations. Norton pressed for a minimum five-year reauthorization, but she wants the USPC to be permanently authorized, the usual case for federal law enforcement agencies, considering that the USPC has continuing responsibilities for D.C. Code felons as well as a smaller number of federal offenders. Because the District was the only local jurisdiction carrying the cost of incarcerating and supervising felons upon release, the federal government, in 1997, assumed the cost of these state functions. Norton worked closely with the House and Senate Judiciary committees on the reauthorization bill because of the USPC's responsibility for D.C. Code felons.
Norton said that the action that may be the most important to help ensure the productive reentry of prisoners into civil society was last year's Federal Communications Commission (FCC) order that has brought prison phone rate fairness to incarcerated individuals and their families throughout the United States. As Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Prison Telecomm Reform Working Group, Norton led this effort. A press conference featuring two D.C. residents, Martha Wright, and her grandson, Ulandis Forte, the lead plaintiffs for families nationwide in both the court case and the FCC petition, announced the CBC response, written by Norton, to the FCC proposed rulemaking to resolve the issue of exorbitant rates charged to prisoners and their families. Last August, the FCC ordered reasonable phone rates, as the CBC, the families of incarcerated individuals and reform organizations have long sought. Norton said that the FCC order is a critical ingredient of the successful reentry of prisoners here and elsewhere, because evidence has long shown that more than any other factor, contact and communication with family and loved ones or a support system reduces recidivism and leads to successful reintegration of offenders into civil society.
Published: February 26, 2014