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Civil Rights

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Reasonable Accommodation Guidance for DHS Recipients

The Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties provides technical assistance and guidance to DHS recipients in meeting their obligations under federal civil rights laws, which includes providing reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities. The following documents provide information that can assist recipients in developing a reasonable accommodation notice and process for persons with disabilities.  A reasonable accommodation is a change of or modification to afford a qualified individual with a disability full enjoyment of a recipient’s programs or activities, unless modifications of policies, practices, and procedures would fundamentally alter the nature of the program, service, or activity, or result in undue financial and administrative burdens to the recipient.

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DHS Statement on Safety and Enforcement During Tropical Storm Barry

DHS Statement on Safety and Enforcement During Tropical Storm Barry - no immigration enforcement initiatives associated with evacuations or sheltering.

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Recommendations for Emergency Managers for Disaster Assistance to Survivors with Disabilities

Following DHS listening sessions in many communities heavily impacted by natural disasters in 2017 and 2018, the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties makes the following recommendations to state, local, territorial, and tribal emergency managers to improve the delivery of disaster assistance to disaster survivors with disabilities.  The recommendations are grouped by major areas DHS covered in the listening sessions.

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Developing a Discrimination Complaints Process

This document outlines the basic elements of a process for receiving and responding to complaints of discrimination from program beneficiaries (e.g., program participants, clients, customers, or consumers, etc.). This document can assist recipients in developing a complaint process for their own organization.

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Recommendations Memo to CBP Concerning Religious Questioning at Ports of Entry

This memorandum provides policy and training recommendations to better support front-line CBP Office of Field Operations officers in avoiding improper questions regarding travelers' religion while conducting border inspections.  It closes, with general findings and specific recommendations, multiple complaints filed with the
CRCL on this subject, and also closes multiple complaints that touch on similar subjects--without findings or recommendations--due to their age and ongoing litigation.

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Reasonable Accommodations at DHS

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for employees and applicants. DHS provides reasonable accommodations for the known physical or mental limitations of otherwise qualified employees and applicants with disabilities, unless DHS can demonstrate that a particular accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of its programs.

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Expert Recommendations or Onsite Investigation at Bergen County Jail in Hackensack, New Jersey

CRCL conducted an onsite investigation into conditions of detention for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees at the Bergen County Jail in Hackensack, New Jersey. CRCL's investigation occurred March 27-29, 2018, and was in response to complaints alleging civil rights and civil liberties violations of general conditions of detention, inadequate medical and mental health care of detainees, and inadequate environmental health and safety at the facility.

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Annual Implementation Progress Report for Fiscal Year 2017-2019

These reports summarize the Department’s progress toward achieving the goals of Executive Order 12898 during fiscal years 2017-2019. The Department of Homeland Security is proud to be an active participant in the interagency effort to incorporate environmental justice values as it keeps the nation safe, secure, and resilient.

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DHS Statement Regarding Safety and Enforcement During Hurricane Michael - Translations

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are concerned about the potential impact of Hurricane Michael to southern and southeastern portions of the United States, where Florida and Alabama are under states of emergency. The following are versions of the statement translated into various languages.

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Expert Recommendations Memo for Onsite Investigation at LaSalle Detention Facility in Jena, Louisiana

CRCL conducted an onsite investigation into conditions of detention for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees at the LaSalle Detention Facility in Jena, Louisiana. CRCL's review of the facility focused in large part on operations in the areas of suicide prevention; medical care; and conditions of confinement. On August 21, 2017, CRCL issued an initial expert recommendation memorandum for this facility. Following this, CRCL issued this supplemental expert recommendation memorandum (below), which focuses on findings regarding four detainee deaths that occurred at the facility between January 23, 2016 and March 13, 2017. CRCL received and reviewed the relevant documents related to these deaths after an onsite investigation concluded on March 17, 2017.  Thus, these findings and recommendations were not included in the initial expert recommendations memorandum.