We will have with us later today two representatives. We understand in this building that can be a challenge. Fingers crossed we will have both congressional representatives with us. We also have several former commissioners with us. Thank you very much. Two fellow commissioners on the eeoc, thank you for coming. I understand that susan eisenhower, the granddaughter of president eisenhower, who in 1957 signed the commission into existence thank you for that. For joining us. John gore, acting assistant attorney general for civil rights at the United States department of justice, and cameron quinn, the officer for civil rights and Civil Liberties at dhs and also a former Virginia StateAdvisory Committee member for civil rights in virginia. We have several people who have traveled from california, illinois, and missouri to be with us. Thank you for coming from afar and thank you to everyone in our staff who has been with us today. You make sure we do the work we need to do. Thank you to our staff director, our general counsel team, and to the same person who is, in addition to the acting director at the office of civil rights evaluation, and to the stellar team in that office who write our civil rights reports. Thank you to the office of management, including budget and finance, the clearinghouse division, and human resources, who keep us paid, who keep us in operation, and to keep us in Effective Response to the many people who come to us with concerns. And thank you to Heather Heyers mother for gracing us with your presence today so shortly after the tragic events last august in charlottesville that elevated you to the National Prominence in honor of her memory. I was devastated, as i know we all were, by the events last august that brought us to that moment, but i am proud please. Will you stand . [applause] i am, as i mentioned, devastated by what led us to that moment, but i am very proud of the u. S. Commission on civil rights for responding unanimously as a condition to both honor Heather Heyers legacy and to call on the nation to rededicate itself to work in her path of justice. So, thank you for joining us today as we commemorate that moment and reminding us what it is we need to do together as a nation. What i know unites all of us in this room is a deep passion for civil rights and a commitment to giving voice and vision to what works and what we need to do to improve and satisfy our nations ideals. The u. S. Commission on civil rights in 60 years has influenced every aspect of federal law. I think that is an enormous record. I hope we will honor that legacy as we press forward into our seventh decade. I know we will hear more about that in our Panel Discussion shortly. I will leave it there at the moment and simply say that i am honored and committed to being your eyes and ears along with others. A couple of people had lastminute emergencies that have taken them away from this moment, but i know they wanted to be with us. Without further ado, it is my deep thrill to introduce dr. Carla hagan. I am an enormous fan. As a student of history and a person who was saved in her love of reading and learning by many librarians over time, it is a special privilege to introduce dr. Carla hagan, the 14th librarian of congress. She is the first woman and the first africanamerican to lead the national library. She was nominated to the position by president obama on on february 24, 2016. Before joining the library of congress, she served the Baltimore Library in maryland. Prior to joining the library, she was the chief librarian of the Chicago Public library from 19911993. She began her career with the Chicago Public library. Dr. Hagan. [applause] dr. Hagan thank you so much. Good afternoon. Welcome to the library of congress. It is an honor to be with you today. I have to tell you that a person i have known through many years, mary frances, it is very good to see you here. Also, librarians appear everywhere. So, my colleague was the head of the alexander public library, and i want to give a special thank you to her. When i was asked by president obama to serve as the 14th librarian of congress, the 14th since 1802, and is the first woman, that was quite something, because librarianship is one of those feminized professions like nursing, social work, and education, where 85 of the work force is female and the top management doesnt reflect that. People said that mr. Milner was probably having a moment at my swearingin. But the most significant part was being an africanamerican. At the swearingin, i was able to talk about the fact that for many years people of color were forbidden to read and that there were many laws on the books in fact, i started to list them all at my swearingin, and it was too long. I only had a few minutes. Amputation, whipping, all of these things, so, to be the first africanamerican to head up the Worlds Largest library was especially significant. At the library of congress now, when i was asked by president obama to serve, he said i have seen the contents of Abraham Lincolns pockets the night he was assassinated. I have seen the original draft of the declaration of independence that had a section on slavery that was taken out because they knew they couldnt get it passed. They said well deal with slavery later. He said what could you do serving at the library of congress to make sure these resources are at the fingertips of every young person . When i thought about it, i realized as i came to the library and you saw some of the treasures. This is just a tiny fraction of what the library of congress has about civil rights and africanAmerican History, and all types of history. When you think about the fact that when i was in baltimore and the unrest that happen there, and i was at a store front looked out over the store that was burned, and of course the car, there was a library there. There was a little girl about 10 years old who asked, whats the matter . Whats going on . If i could have pulled up the papers of rosa parks in her own hand when she talked about what it felt like to be in that jail cell, when she talked about what it felt like, i am alone, i feel it nothing, this is horrible. What it would have done at that moment of time to have those resources. So, my vision is to share these resources. The largest collection of the naacp. The Legal Defense fund. The papers of the student nonviolent score naming student nonviolent coordinating committee. The Martin Luther king fbi files. The files on justice marshall. Susan b anthony. And now, the first photo of Harriet Tubman that was ever taken, that shows are not as the older woman we all think about with the shawl, but Harriet Tubman as she led the underground railroad. To coordinate with the africanamerican museum to purchase that photo and make sure it was there. But to also have those pinch me moments, i call them, and to share these treasures. Everything, these are collections that you go through and you see in the stack areas, 830 six miles of shelving. They reach from here to davenport, iowa. 30 million items to be catalogued and made available. The papers of 33 president s from George Washington to calvin coolidge. You walk down the aisles, as i did recently. Because i have had the experience in baltimore, in maryland, and really, connected with Frederick Douglass quote, once you learn to read, you will be forever free. I am going through the aisles in the stacks underneath the building, and i am passing by thurgood marshall, Oliver Wendell holmes, Ralph Ellison, susan b anthony, all of these people. And i get to Frederick Douglass. I say to the curator, can i just look at some of these things . I pull out a random box, box 22, open it up and pull a random file out, open it, and there, in his own hand, was Frederick Douglasss description of Abraham Lincoln, a plain and simple man. A man who, because he fought for the freedom for colored people that was the term he was murdered, killed, assassinated. Every time he mentioned it, he said murdered, killed. You could see it. You could feel the anger, the emotion coming through that. And then he said, one of the worst injustices that he had witnessed was that the colored people who had so much that they owed to Abraham Lincoln were not allowed in washington, d. C. To participate in Funeral Services and pay tribute to Abraham Lincoln. So, i closed the file, and i said thank you, president obama. Thank you for the opportunity, because these are the things that will give context and meaning to what you do and what you are fighting for all the time. Thank you for being here. Please come back and we will show you some of those treasures, too. [applause] she is amazing. I hope our next panel will be equally amazing. To lead us through that task is richard, the first asianamerican male to anchor a Daily National news show. He has reported on almost every seminal event in the last decade, including political upheaval in the middle east and asia, challenges in the global economy, and in ferguson in baltimore during heightened racial unrest. Outside of work, he travels each week from new york city to San Francisco to care for his father, an alzheimers patient, and to highlight the importance of family caregiving. He is an Alzheimers Association celebrity champion. He is an ambassador for the u. N. s because i am a girl campaign. He works with an ngo teaching trafficking survivors to become coders. He is ranked in the top 1 of social media users by twitter and was named a person to watch alongside jayz and sheryl sandberg. We are grateful to him for moderating us today. [applause] richard thank you so much. I have to talk to my manager. He is lying a lot in that bio. I sat in the back and thought about what this Commission Means for me personally as well as my parents and grandparents. Thank you all for being leaders in this space, for standing up. It means so much to all of us. Me being a storyteller, my first story as a young, cub reporter, was rodney king. Later, in ferguson, i was asking myself, why is this happening again . I cant imagine some of the pain that was discussed among this elite group on civil rights. I understand what you have done, what it stands for, why i live such a good life is because of what this commission has done. When we look at the face of chen in the 35 years since his killing, it is because of the work of this group and decisions you have made and suggestions you have made. Before we get into the panel, which i am really looking forward to, i just came back from malaysia as well as the balkans. You know this, but i have to say it. What is discussed in this commission is what people around the world look up to. They look for the standard bearers of civil rights. And again, that is what this commission has discussed and what it decides upon. Thank you for having me here today. 60 years, i cant believe it. This grand room. I was sitting in the corner and looking up and realizing what a small grain of sand i really am. So now, the title of this conversation that we are going to get into is the commission past, present, and future. We are going to try to get this done in a meaningful amount of time. I could do it all afternoon, but i would get the hook, no doubt, as i do when i am onair. First off, as you were hearing from catherine commission is the current chair of the u. S. Commission on civil rights. President obama appointed her to a sixyear term on the commission in september, 2016. That may feel like a long time ago. That may feel like yesterday. She also serves as counsel for the National Center for youth law. Before coming to the commission, she served as the assistant secretary for civil rights at the u. S. Department of education. [applause] i am going to walk through time, backward, in a good way. Marty castro, president barack obama appointed mr. Castro in 2011 and elevated him to chair, making marty the first latino chair in the history of the commission. Marty is the president i hope you dont mind i use your first names and introductions. Marty is the president and ceo of castro synergies, llc, which provides Strategic Consulting services to organizations that seek to collaborate with and have a positive social impact on diverse communities. Marty. [applause] Gerald Reynolds was scheduled to be here today but he had a personal emergency and could not join us. A little bit of background on gerald. George w. Bush appointed mr. Reynolds to serve as chair of the commission in 2004. He served in that role until 2010. [applause] cap for him though he is not around. I love when people clap for me when i am not around. Its about the only time people will clap for me. Dr. Mary frances berry. Dr. Berrys tenure at the commission lasted over five administrations starting in 1980, including serving as chair from 19832004. She was first appointed by president jimmy carter. She is currently the Geraldine R Segal professor of American Social thought and history at the university of pennsylvania. Mary. [applause] dr. William d allen. Ronald reagan appointed him to the commission in 1987. He served as chair from 19881989. From 198419 87, he also served as a member of the National Council of the humanities. He is emeritus dean of James Madison college, a mertes professor of political philosophy at Michigan State university. [applause] i went to michigan. We will not discuss that at the moment. Remain civil, please. [laughter] richard let me start, if i may, because of the order we are sitting in on the dais. I will start with dr. Barry. How did you view the commissions role question mark i wrote a book about the history of the commission called and justice for all. I went to all the president ial libraries, looked at all the archives, and as an historian and a lawyer, i spent many hours in this building doing research. Where is ms. Eisenhower, the granddaughter somebody said she is here. Is she here . In any case, i learned about what the commission is supposed to do from knowing the history of it and from experience. And the most important thing was something that arthur fleming, the grand old man who was chair of this commission who had been a cabinet secretary in every administration from hoover, a moderate, liberal republican, old school, the grand man, and there is an award for senior officials who do the best job called the fleming award, a distinguished award. He used to remind me that eisenhower said he wanted the commission so it could put the facts on top of the table. Arthur would always whether he was having breakfast or wherever he was he would slam the table when he said it. On the history of it does show that there were political considerations, but in talking with his attorney general, the point was that ordinary people would be able to come to the commission, or the commission would go out to where the ordinary people were to listen to them and dig around, and find the facts, and get the officials in, and that the subpoena power was so important to use. They argued about that, and he said you have to have the subpoena power so you can get ordinary people who might be scared to come because they might be fired from their jobs say i had to go, i was ordered to. What happened to me during my time on the commission i wasnt always interested in what elites think. I happen to be one myself, by default. I was interested in what ordinary people think. Finding out whats going on out there is really important in forming legislation and helping congress tried to pass something, advising the president and the people on whats going on. That was my mantra while i was at the commission. Richard great, great. Dr. Alan, what do people think about the commission when you were chair . I dont know what people thought about the commission when i was chair, its an odd question, when you stop to think about it, because after all, the commission does not take polls. It asks people what they think about their lives and their experiences, and tries to establish the facts as far as they can acquire those, gather them together as mary frances suggested. But its not a polling organization. You might want to stop and pause and ask why the commission is a not a polling organization, why doesnt it care, the way so many other commissions are designed to care, about collecting public sentiment on a daily, weekly, yearly basis . The commission was not established simply to be a mirror. It was established to change Public Opinion in the country. That task from 1957 onward has been the motivation of the commission, to take an understanding of civil rights that was incorrect and steadily, slowly, by persuasion, influence, demonstration, lead the country to a healthier understanding of civil rights. I believe that work is still underway. Indeed, i prepared some notes for the commission on this occasion and have entitled them, still work to be done. Richard was it a long list . It is a single task. It is not a long list at all. It is a difficult task. Richard marty, to build off a dr. Allen said as well as dr. Barry, how did the commission change what people thought about civil rights during your chairmanship . I have always thought about the commission not only is the conscience for the country on civil rights. That has become our tagline in many ways. Beyond that, both individually as well as societally, i view it is the great equalizer. It is our job to come in and show with this country should be, what the intentions of those of us who believe in civil rights and equality want this country to look like. Even after all the work of the commission has done over the years, we see the history right here. When i was appointed in 2011, i did and interview with a wellknown National Journalist who asked why there was a need for a Civil Rights Commission because we have a black president . I said we may have an africanamerican president , but racism and bias is alive and well in america. We have come along way from jim crow. Being appointed the first latino chair by the first africanamerican president , only in america. But there was still, and at that time, hatred, bias, and discrimination that is there. It might be in some ways the same as during jim crow but it has also taken on different forms which require more of work to root out and shine a light on it. It is the great equalizer and we talk about what this country should be. I got to sing with thousands, including president obama, at the 50th anniversary of selma. We talked to parents who lost children to bullying. We try to protect transgender kids. All of these issues are about, at the very core, each of us being treated like humans equally and letting our full potential be reached. That still remains to be the important work that this chair and commission are embarking on. 40s is your view historically what the commissions role has been . I think the commission has had the responsibility to be the eyes and ears for the country and make recommendations of how we can be better selves. My hope for us is the same hope we have had over the last six years. Do not mess it up and to make sure in this urgent time that we are vigilant and fierce about ensuring civil rights. That we maximize what it is we have. We have incredible colleagues and incredible civil rights leaders, colleagues, friends. We have extraordinary staff who have decades of service to the country who bring expertise and deep commitments to the charge that we have. We also, at this time, have a deep and broad set of kinds of topics that we have under our belts and i hope in the near future we can release them. There is a lot to say and do in respect to civil rights and making sure that we maximize the expertise and experience we have and the platform we have as the only independent, bipartisan federal entity in existence that is able to advise the country, the president , and the congress about what civil rights ought to be and how to shape our norms. What are you watching today . We are watching a broad range of topics. We are poised to release the first report on lgbt status in the country. That will be an important marker for us and will follow work my colleagues have done. We also have in our agenda work on police use of force and the status of rights, finance equity, there is a broad range of topics pending in a distressingly wide variety of ways. These kinds of issues, some of them are new and different ways of not living up to our deals and some of the same old same old and we have not yet satisfied our promises. You are watching our community and how we can the we can the who we ought to be for each other. Marty, what should be wanting from your seat as former chair . I think chairman lehman talks about some of these topics. From a product perspective from a broader perspective, civil rights are in danger currently in this country. There is a Resistance Movement that has been taking place at the grassroots of this country and it is not necessarily partisan. It is about principles. The commission has a historic light that is shining on how this administration is protecting and funding civil rights. That is one of the important roles were back. Not only looking out at the world to see if jobs are accessed by everyone, regardless of who they love or where they come from, but also, is our federal government doing what its supposed to be doing to protect the rights of our citizens and residents . In this iteration of the commission, that becomes more important. Under the obama administration, those appointed were independent. We still looked with a tough eye. We have to say, we can do better. Now even more so, the commission needs to focus on the federal government and its conduct, ensuring it needs its mandates. To protect all american citizens and residents vote. Th. Boat dr. Alan, what are you watching and why . Dr. Alan, the work of the commission is not simply to assess the dynamics of the society. That is part of it and necessary, to accumulate the facts that will be the basis of judgment. It is also to evaluate the performance of the government so that what we should be watching, each problem deserves attention. Everyone who suffers unjustly deserves attention. We do not need to parse the opportunity to assess the functioning and mission of the commission on civil rights. We need to remember that it is supposed to cast a critical eye on the government and most dimensions of the society in which we can discover patterns that are correctable. It does not mean we are there is sensors of the community, it does not mean that every human suffering is to be addressed by the commission, that has never been the case. It does mean that the commission casts a critical eye with regard to the question of civil rights in the performance of this country and its government in bringing our understanding and implementation of the guarantees of civil rights to a level which ideally speaking would make the process city of the commission itself illuminate the commission. If we can retain the ideal, it is more reason to not visualize it. Dr. Barry, what are some of the lessons from your time that you would apply today . Dr. Barry as usual, i am not going to answer your question. [laughter] you are my perfect cast. That happens to me all the time. [laughter] i thought about what everybody said, as i was sitting here. It seems to me that while it is important that the commission monitor performance, dr. Alan is right. Since the passage of the civil rights laws, that has been a major function of the commission, and it should continue to be, no matter who is in office. It should be done. The second thing that i was thinking is that we have done a pretty good job as a country in achieving something diversity in most areas of our life. Education, employment, achieving diversity. Diversity. There are still problems with all of the groups who are embraced in that concept. Marginalize people who are now involved. That is true. But we made progress. But there is a flaw in what the arguing. In what we are doing. My graduate students talked about of the other day. While we are making progress, we there is a lagging group. Its the group that the Civil Rights Commission was first established to address, and that is black slave descendents in the United States. You may have seen a big headline story in the New York Times recently about how blacks in elite Higher Education institutions have declined over the last 25 years. While the enrollment of all Different Group that people call people of color i dont like that, i like to name everybody, but that would take too long. Ok, i will name all of them. Asian americans, japanese, chinese, i can name all of them. Pacific islanders. All the rest. Blacks from the caribbean, from africa. In other words there were a lot , of people. We have done a pretty good job. I can see the asians on the campus. Leaders in education are important. These are where the decisions come from. If we do not do a good job of incorporating people, especially given democracy and how it is changing in the country, those of us already in positions of some kind of power might already feel good about ourselves and doubt people we know and about helping people on the bottom. But we forget about the whole disparity that exists. I do not know why the disparity, i have some ideas and there has been research on papers that have been published about it. The same thing might happen with poor white students who we are now trying to incorporate after the trump thing into the university. From listening to people, there is a cap. We won a few of them, but not too many. The reason why is not just because of black people, all the other civil Rights Groups that have civil rights protection, their protections evolved from the Legal Framework that was established in addressing africanamericans. To the extent that we do not do anything about the condition of africanamericans, eventually the other things that extrapolated from that are going to become a problem and be stagnated. Americas original sin is racism against black americans. Madison and jefferson both said that. It is here now and it keeps resurging. Every time something happens we say it resurged. But it was there all the time. We ought to look at this issue and see what has been the result of diversity. We do not want to talk about identity politics. It is bad framing. But multiracism is great. But as Richard Delgado said, all groups have problems, but they are not all the same. If you lump them together you will never ascertain what the problems are. You never really address and get to the heart of the problem. I agree with that. You do not ask me that. [laughter] dr. , i do not mind. I am used to it. I was listening so carefully. I wanted to shift a little here. Dr. Alan, as we look at today and the new generations that will be coming and think back, and i think about the little statue to my father has of a young pastor. I am guessing for him, why he decided to become a pastor, he was energized by a young pastor, Martin Luther king. It is something that my father would bring up as a reason for many of his life decisions. How important are civil rights leaders Going Forward . Who are you watching them might be of note that might be of note . And why . Weeds do not grow spontaneously, they grow rum seeds. As dr. Barry explained if you moments ago, 30 years ago, i gave an address in which i took note of the 30th anniversary and celebrated it put also played out some danger signs. Danger signs pointing in the direction had dr. Barry has described. I make that observation to say, are we always going to assume that the continuing difficulties are always there because they were there 300 years ago, or are we ever going to take responsibility for the things we do that continue to foster difficulties . We could see long before the New York Times expose what was happening to the enrollment of black American Students in Higher Education. We talked about it. We said this is happening. I was called to the university of colorado 10 years ago to speak on diversity. This is one of those topics that has been on my radar and i have addressed it. I went out there and give a discussion which i said, you have to refocus. Youre speaking of diversity and you have good intentions in mind. The youre not paying attention to the fact that you were spreading difference with the emphasis on diversity. You are putting the focus on the difference and now what brings us together. The very name of university means we should identify ourselves with a common mission. So lets embrace inclusiveness is a way to bring people together as a way instead of difference. I was pleased to see that not long after inclusiveness became the byword. It spread throughout the country. But my point is, they say diversity and inclusivity. They did not fully refocus and make the switch. It is not case that i am the only one who said we should talk about inclusivity. We should pray for we should prefer it to diversity. We need to calibrate the mission and vocabulary and our understanding of the effect are having on the world. Instead of always assuming the effects proceed from some evil source. We are spreading seeds in addition to the seeds that were originally spread. My focus is on getting clarity and where we can gain traction and power over the dynamics in the society and where we could see our own failures in relationship to these dynamics. I think that is the most important task. Marty, reflect on what dr. Alan said, and my question, how important are civil rights leaders Going Forward, and who are you watching . Marty it is always important to have leaders but the concept of Leadership Today is different than it was 50 years go. Among millennials, they are lead they lead in a common fashion, they do not select one person to be a spokesperson or a charismatic leader. They do it communally. I think we need to understand that and to the extent that we want to succeed, adopt that as much as we can. That does not always work. We are going to have one president , one governor. Those political leaders play an important role. For when we are talking about grassroots, it is more of a key communal leadership that we need to foster. The leads to the kind of inclusivity that the chair is talking about. One of the challenges we never truly overcame, we legislated and litigated civil rights and created change. The one thing we fail to do well was win hearts and minds. There was always festering anger, bias, and discrimination. We cannot pull the weed. Bad weeds are hard to kill. But we can try to create a communal leadership. Maybe we can find collaboration. What are the things we can move forward on . We were four progresses and for conservatives and we worked together to put out a number of reports turned my chairmanship. They were fair and be moved forward and issue reports to the country and did it working together. We did it communally. Communally. That concept. We moving away from the singular idea of what a single civil rights leader might be . The culture is not limited to young people. We are all accessing these conversations. Therefore, we talk about civil rights and look at leadership, it has become more communal. I think it has been local and communal. 20 years ago there was a Photo Exhibit traveling the country that was meaningful. Its not have the photos we have all seen of dr. King giving a speech. It had children kneeling, praying before armed police when they were marching. They were marching, asking for the right to attend school. I do not know the names of the children. There were little children taking a risk for themselves and someone else because that is what leadership looks like. There were photos of a 96yearold black man raising his fist, held on the shoulders of other men because he had the right to vote for the first time. He had to vote because that is what leadership is and was. There were suburban housewives Holding Signs in front of people who were marching in order to have equal access in the country. That is leadership of a different kind of it but again, i do not know their names. But i know the hate that that transmits. The reality is we have had charismatic leaders, some on the commission, who have advanced our rights in ways that are powerful. It is amazing for us to have the opportunity to see the to markers of the moments here in the room. We have had activists, leaders, believers in the nation, who let us. Led us. We have people who build our imagination and step into a moment to help to lead us into who we can become. And people who may be did dream of being the leaders. Some who are in this room. Mr. Henderson, you are here because of what you have done for us in this country. And there are people who share with us the vision for their country. I would like to address the question. I will be brief. Let me just say that the way change has been made in the civil rights arena, part of it has been the work of the commission in its glory days before the partisan disruption which i was in part responsible for. A lot of it has been done by people who gathered together to protest, because protest is an essential ingredient of politics. What we had in charlottesville, the movements of the kind that are organized around the country, are necessary and the commission has to take the temperature of the public in terms of what is it is interested it in or a great about an upset about and wants to do. I wrote another book which is called history teaches us to resist, it has a story of the movements that have taken place against president s in challenging times and how they did it. Litigation, investigation, legislation, are all part of the venture. But you have to have organized people. The leaders that we had, i would name all sorts of people. Black lives matter, all the people in the resistance who are in fact organizing and the people organizing. We do have people who are activists and moving. The commission should with its expertise and all of the reports it has done, have some very important things to say about that when it comes to the issue of police practices. The commission has several reports it has done. And what police should do and not to. All of these things, the commission should have something to say about it but it should be in tune with what ails the public at a particular time. Part of what is ailing the public today, if you turn on the news, is the issue of gender. We have talked about the rights of Lgbtq Community members and that has become a part of the fabric of our country. It was not always. We look at the issue of gender. Because we have stories of hollywood and stories of leadership in politics talking about ways and issues of the Sexual Assault in ways we are not used to seeing, where do you think we are when it comes to civil rights when it is in relation to gender . I bring up the Lgbtq Community because in the last 10 years this country has had a watershed moment. When president obama appointed me, he also appointed the first openly gay member of the commission. He sent a strong message about the direction he wanted the commission to go in and what he wanted us to focus on. So i am proud say the first report that addressed these issues with hours and it was issued under my chairmanship. We looked at the condition of lgbtq and the transgender children. It was the first time the commission raised this as a protected class. We got some pushback but we felt it was important to address. When the transgender bathroom issue came out we were the first ones to come out strongly in support for protections for the children. We have always been at the forefront at looking at gender issues. One of the reports i am most proud of is the report we did on military Sexual Assault. We were able to put generals in a chair in front of us and put them to task for not protecting the armed forces, especially the women. If we cannot protect the women in our armed forces, how can we protect others . We looked at the issue of sex trafficking. We wanted to bring a civil rights perspective to it. We looked at it as a form of gender discrimination. I remember talking with one of our conservative commissioners and then have some concrete actions taken from it. Exit bit of history about the commission, it was integral in sex, the law that protects equality, point about which im very proud, the reality is that in school, out of school as a country, the sex equality work we have done has advanced enormously and is not advanced nearly far enough. The quantum of sex discrimination that persists is astounding, and the kinds of forms of sex discrimination that we see that is permeating the jawdropping in its repetition in his for right of ways that women as well as men are harassed because of who they are and perceptions of who they are and in the degree to which we as a country have for decades ignored president about what sex discrimination log requires. So how much we have not done to satisfy the course Core Principles that we live. Grateful thatd to the country has moved in a way that is exponentially farther than it was for my father and my mothers mother before her. I think we are more equal than from myeen, and i know jewels of two daughters that my 13yearold, who is in middle school, when she went to join the stem club in middle school, her teacher said youve got to do it, you love science, youll be welcomed, and you will be the only girl. In this century, to think that my daughter is the only girl in her stem club, we have not moved far enough. The reality is this commission has work to do on this topic and im proud to say that we are doing it. Also thrilling. We as a country need to actually have every day the promises that congress has made to us, the u. S. Supreme court has made, and that we made at our founding about who we would be. Dr. Berry, why is the country listening now on this topic . This very topic of gender discrimination. It depends on whether youre talking about lgbtq issues or sexual harassment, or what it is you are talking about. Specific to gender discrimination. The country is listening , i once predicted that it would be harder to get rid of discrimination against lgbtq people than to get rid of race discrimination, and i was wrong. Most people know somebody who is gay, or they may have somebody ortheir family who is gay, that had somebody who worked for them who is gay who they either new art they didnt know that they were. Most people in this country who are not black dont have anybody who is black and their family, or are coming know, you dont have the same kind of personal experiences that people have, so i was wrong about that. But even when we talk about gender, the people who are the worst treated or the transgender people, and especially black transgender people. They are killed by serial killers in huge numbers, and no one ever does anything about it. They have the most difficulty getting jobs. They have terrible lives. I think that part of it is the movement, and when people who made up their minds that they were going to out themselves, come out, i remember when barney frank was so mad because somebody out of him. And i remember sitting in the green room at abc waiting to go on nightline when they were saying, i guess we cant use him anymore, he is now out it as gay. Did you really hear about really do that . Yes. The people who were not decided themselves to actively move in the way that they did on the issues, and part of it is that somebody knows, and when people did out themselves, it is easier, and saying that gays were only interested having families like themselves, the whole picket fence strategy worked because people who used think that gay people were wild night who stayed out all and had affairs and get all kinds of promiscuous things, they just want to have a house and some kids and have a family, like us. Lot,nk that helped a whole so im glad it happened, but i think that all those had something to do with it. I assume you mean the same question. I cannot embrace the assumption, i think the country is fundamentally a country of people who are committed to the equal administration of the laws. A does not mean there is not a diversity of sentiments about what that calls for, there is. It doesnt mean there isnt some degree, i suppose the best word i could choose his failure with regard to upholding that standard. That has happened throughout our history. But i dont think we ought to regard it as something novel that people believe in the equal administration of the law, the equal administration of justice. But they have difficulty with, but the struggle with, is knowing how to make that a practical reality, so that cherry picking, doesnt bring to that fundamental question, to be honest with you. In fact, it sows confusion. It leads us to believe that we a axis op today and tomorrow. We expect the proms to come up forever. That undermines our attempt to lay foundations that can guide the formulation of Public Policy administration of the laws. Debate withhen the Ralph Ellison was discussed in talking to strangers, daniel allens look on this, the thing that struck me is so powerful was the fact that something to lay at the heart of ordinary experience was invested with extraordinary moral and philosophical power, and we tend to undermine that extraordinary moral and philosophical power when we use transitory, ephemeral dynamics in place of fundamental reasoning about what the rule of law iris. We are a Republican People not by accident, even if those who created the republican institutions were not all year in their professions of equality or whatever else. The republicanism is a deliberate, and it is a challenge that is not an easy thing for human beings to accept the responsibility of republican life and recognize the choices they make, they must be held accountable for. To think there is an administrative arrangement that can remove the accountability and make everything turn out all right is simply a mistake. It will never happen. Yes, it is true, we have created with regard to samesex relationships, and altered environment than previously existed. That is nothing unusual in the longer course of events in history of the United States. We have constantly shifted cultural expectations. Was it because there was a commission on civil rights . No, as was indicated, the commission was laggard in a taking of the topic and did not lead the way. And we ought to be learning from the area in which they did not lead the way, what the dynamics are that underscore change in this culture. I dont want us to flatline the relationship between this commission and society. I dont want to treated as a onedimensional thing. It is a multivariable relationship, and we dont have to therefore set out a scorecard by which we say this or that particular issue now has relevance because the commission has stamped it with approval. We have got i apologize. 30 seconds, we have to finish. Please go ahead. The commission was the first Government Agency to permit an activist who was openly gay and a lesbian to testify in a hearing. But that doesnt correct it, it is a footnote. But they were the first one. Im going to ask everyone and we will finish with catherine closing. I will start all the way over here at the left, 30 seconds for your final comment. I have taken all the time. [laughter] dr. Allen. I came onto the commission at a time when there was a great deal of divisiveness. One of the lessons i derived from my experience was how important it was to transcend the divisiveness, no matter what was happening politically. When i was called back after having served on the commission to testify about reauthorization for the commission, i entered the house Hearing Committee to give my testimony in support of the commission at the end of the chairs testimony in which i was being blamed, two chairs removed, for operational failures. Nevertheless, though i was the scapegoat for something i had nothing to do with, i still mounted the chair, gave my testimony and said the commissions work is not finished, it is important and we need to make a commitment to it. I say that again today. First of all, it is a treat to be part of history. That is what we are doing today, celebrating 60 years of history, also as an individual, to have been the first latino chair of the commission. I tried to be the chairman for all people, all walks of life, i have to say it was also important for me as a latino to go to my community and let them see that the son and grandson of mexican immigrants who crossed the border 90 years ago with no hope other than to find a better life, they could have a grandchild that would be in the adopted home country of this nation in a leadership role. Thats what the commission brings. It can bring an abiding hope to communities that have been oppressed, individuals who have been shunned. People who feel less than what they should be, that there is hope. And the people who sit in these seats as chairs and commissioners have a duty to make sure this country, as president obama said, that this union is always working to perfect itself. We have come a long way but we have a long way to go. I know this chair, and i want to express to everyone, you will have mine and im sure my fellow chairs, you will have our supporting continuing that mission. I will take my 30 seconds to agree, the work of the commission is far from done. And also, to entreat all of you and all of the people you know to share information with us about what is you want for this country so we can continue to live up to the legacy that comes before us of extraordinary work, to make us a better union, a better country where we have recommended tools of that have worked to increase access to equity as a country, where we have monitored the use of and the implementation of those tools that have worked, and where we have celebrated progress and identified ways to move forward. That is our charge, as acutely necessary today as it has ever been as a country and we will only be as effective as we are together in doing that work. I look forward to the celebration that continues for the next few minutes today and to the work that continues every day moving forward for all of us together. Thank you very much for what we will do Going Forward. Catherine, thank you for pulling us together on this anniversary. And to all of our esteemed chairs on this table, thank you for all of your years of commitment to this. I am truly humbled by all of the knowledge sitting up here, these brains that have gone through so much. As i said earlier, we could be here for a long but very good conversation. Thank you to all of our chairs again. Dont get too comfortable. Representative kilmer has joined us and he has been in a normas he has been an enormous champion for the commission over years and i look forward to hear what he will say to us before relief. Derek kilmer from washington. We are in the members room and we are here because he is a member and put this together for us. Please, representative. [applause] rep. Kilmer thank you. I am standing with Martin Castro in a village, part of an indian nation, and the nations president takes us up a slight incline of a sand bank as we look at the pacific ocean, and she says, when i was a kid, ocean was a football field length away, now it is at our front porch. She explained that her village has been there since time immemorial, but they are seeing rising sea levels and more severe storms, not to mention the threat of tsunami. She points out that her vision is below sea level, not a problem generations back. But now on numerous occasions, when a severe storm hits, the seawall breaches and the village fills up like a bowl. I got off the plane yesterday from washington state, which i have the honor of representing, and i had a message from her on my phone saying it had happened again, we have a seawall breach, can you reach out to the army corps . That story and other tribes in my district, as we sit here today in this amazing setting, is one of four tribal stories from my district that are in the process of trying to move to higher ground. Those stories deserve to be heard. Thats why im grateful, not just to former chairman castro, but to the commission on civil rights for listening to the stories. Billy frank junior, a civil rights icon and native american leader, used to provide vital direction, saying to those who wanted to advocate, tell your story. And storytelling is essential to change, but in order for change to happen, someone needs to hear the story into to listen to the people who are telling it. Too often, there is no one listening when communities of color or disadvantaged populations tell their story, and that is quite friendly what the u. S. Commission on civil rights is so absolutely vital, so important, whether it is looking at gender equities in the Education System or challenges to the Lgbtq Community or religious community, the stories matter. Addressing these inequities matter if we are going to form a more perfect union. Let me again mention the work the commission is doing on this issue, these issues facing the native american community. There was a 2003 report that showed the governments of systemic failures to live up to treaty obligations with tribal communities. I am grateful for the work they are now doing to update this report. I want to tell one more story we heard in the process of updating the report. Tribal leader shared his story. He said, do you want good news or bad news . We said, look to the good news. He said, everyone of our High School Seniors graduated this year. The bad news, for the first time, the state of washington is going to require students take the exam over the internet. Well have highspeed internet. He said we tried it, we shut down every computer in the school except for two, and its one of those where you have to answer 10 questions and then click next page. It took one minute and 40 minutes to click next page. Many of the tribes lack access to broadband that we take for granted. It doesnt just hurt entrepreneurs or schoolkids that need to take the statemandated exam, it is a civil rights problem. According to the fcc, approximately 63 of trouble land residence lack access to the internet. Only 17 of the rest of the nation likes that access. This isnt the only challenge that tribes face, and in the crisis report for, they found higher rates of substance abuse, lower graduation rates, underfunded schools and police forces, many areas lack access to Economic Development that families need to have a good income. These are real problems. Again, too often communities get ignored when they highlight real problems. The u. S. Commission on civil rights is both listening, but they are also amplifying those quiet voices. I am so grateful for the work the commission is doing to update the crisis report. When it is completed, it will provide a roadmap for congress and the administration to hopefully address the problems that too often go unnoticed. The commission looks at other communities, as well. It is a big part of the reason that hate crime legislation recently passed out of the house judiciary committee. I want to thank ms. Rowe for being here and adding your voice to this incredibly important conversation. The commissions work is driving the houses discussion on voting rights, breaking down barriers with regard to inequities and education, discrimination in the workplace. To wrap it up, i just want to say thank you. I want to say thank you all for being here today, i want to thank the library of congress and dr. Hayden for hosting us and curating incredibly powerful exhibits. To the tribes in my area, to ms. Rowe and everyone else doing the important work of telling their stories, i want to thank you for that, and to the commission, thank you for listening, thinking for shining a light on in justice into spirited, thank you for the work youre doing to ensure our nation keeps its promise to all of our residents. Thank you everybody, thank you for being here. [applause] with that, our time is now over. What a great couple of hours, wasnt it . You can come up and talk to the chairs, they will be here. Thank you for coming today, thank you. [applause] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2017] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] are watching American History tv. All weekend, every weekend, on cspan3. To join the conversation, like us on facebook at cspan history. 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