Readout of Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke’s Trip to Louisiana

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division traveled to Louisiana as part of the division's civil rights tour to engage with stakeholders in underserved communities and reaffirm the department’s commitment to protecting the civil rights of all Americans.

On Monday, Assistant Attorney General Clarke along with U.S. Attorney Brandon Brown for the Western District of Louisiana met with approximately 20 community stakeholders in Tallulah, Louisiana. Tallulah is in Madison Parish, which has one of the highest poverty rates in the state. The meeting focused on a range of civil rights issues, including equitable education, voting rights and reentry efforts. The community leaders expressed their gratitude for the Justice Department’s willingness to engage with rural communities.

That afternoon, she traveled west to Grambling, Louisiana, to visit Grambling State University where she met with President Richard Gallot Jr. and participated in a fireside chat for students to hear their civil rights concerns, to discuss their paths as attorneys and to encourage the students to consider careers in civil rights.

For her last stop, Assistant Attorney General Clarke traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana. On Tuesday, she met with U.S. Attorney Brown’s “Focusing on the Future” Community Advisory Group to hear about racial justice issues in Shreveport, including, education, prison conditions and criminal civil rights prosecutions.

Later that afternoon, she met with the staff for the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana and thanked them for their dedicated service and commitment to protecting civil rights. 

In the coming weeks, Assistant Attorney General Clarke will continue meeting with stakeholders in underserved communities with the next stop in Memphis, Tennessee, in early April.