Civil Rights Leaders Announced Campaign To Confirm Loretta Lynch As Attorney General

17th Annual NAN Convention is the nation’s largest civil rights gathering since tragedies in Ferguson and Staten Island

 In the wake of a deadly police shooting in North Charleston, South Carolina that killed Walter Scott, the nation’s top civil rights leaders held a press conference Saturday, April 11 at 10:15 a.m. in New York City to announce a campaign to urge Senate leadership to immediately call for a vote to confirm Loretta Lynch as Attorney General. It has been nearly 150 days since Lynch was nominated by President Obama to replace Eric Holder as Attorney General. Further delay will only lead to greater uncertainty among law enforcement officials across the country in implementing common-sense law enforcement reforms at the local, state, and federal levels.

Leadership from national civil rights organizations – including National Action Network President (NAN) Rev. Al Sharpton, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) President and CEO Cornell William Brooks, National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, among others – calledl for the end to a historic delay to confirm the nation’s top law enforcement official. Reports indicate Lynch has the votes necessary to be confirmed as Attorney General.

The press conference was held on the final day of the 17th annual NAN Convention in New York City, with a panel discussion to follow. This year’s annual convention arrives on the heels of a series of events that shined a bright light on the racial and civil rights challenges still plaguing America. It is the largest gathering of civil rights leaders since the tragedies in Ferguson, Staten Island and most recently, the tragic shooting of Mr. Scott in South Carolina. The press conference was streamed live www.nationalactionnetwork.net.

• Reverend Al Sharpton, National Action Network President
• Cornell William Brooks, President & CEO, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
• Marc Morial, President & CEO, National Urban League
• Barbara Arnwine, President & Executive Director, The Lawyers Committee on Civil Rights Under Law
• Melanie Campbell, President & CEO, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation (NCBCP) & Convener, Black Women’s Roundtable
• Wade Henderson, President and CEO, The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights

Janai Nelson, Associate Director-Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.