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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

MD Civil Rights Group: Hate-Crime Alert System Provides Hope

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Thursday, August 25, 2022   

As Maryland's "Emmett Till Alerts" system goes into effect, civil-rights leaders are expressing optimism about getting a handle on hate-crime incidents around the state.

The system, which was announced earlier this week, is similar to Amber Alerts. Black leaders in Maryland, including those who are elected, will be alerted to racial incidents and hate crimes occurring within the state. The name is in honor of the teen who was abducted, tortured and lynched in Mississippi in 1955.

Zainab Chaudry, director of the Maryland office for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said creating more awareness of such incidents opens the door to resources.

"If our elected officials don't know that there's a problem, they're going to be less inclined and less compelled to invest and allocate funding to address this issue," Chaudry pointed out.

Chaudry noted despite FBI data showing increases in hate-crime incidents, many cases still go unreported. She explained several factors are at play, including issues with law-enforcement tracking, as well as victims worried about retaliation. The service, led by an African American Leaders caucus, follows a host of high-profile incidents in Maryland over the past year.

A number of the incidents targeted the Black community, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities. However, Chaudry stressed the level of hate has also appeared to escalate against so many other populations, and the effort will hopefully lead to solutions they might be in search of.

"Obviously, there are many other communities who are impacted by hate, and we can use this as a model to connect with those communities as well," Chaudry stated. "They also have a mechanism in place similarly to raise awareness about the prevalence of hate against them."

According to FBI data, there has been a nearly 50% increase in anti-Black hate crimes since 2019. For anti-Asian incidents, there was a nearly 80% increase over the past two years. Crimes against transgender individuals were up by more than 40%.


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