Who founded the Southern Poverty Law Center?
Morris Dees. Jump to navigation Jump to search. Morris Seligman Dees Jr. (born December 16, 1936) is an American attorney who is the co-founder and chief trial counsel for the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and a former market engineer for book publishing. Along with his law partner, Joseph J. Levin Jr., Dees founded the SPLC in 1971.
Who is suing the Southern Poverty Law Center?
^ Trotta, Daniel. "The founder of the far-right group Proud Boys is suing the Southern Poverty Law Center for labeling his organization a hate group". Archived from the original on October 5, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
Is the Southern Poverty Law Center losing all credibility?
^ Thiessen, Marc (June 22, 2018). "The Southern Poverty Law Center has lost all credibility". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 20, 2019. Dees, Morris; Fiffer, Steve (1991).
Who was the co-founder of the South Carolina Lawyers Association?
Mr. Dees, the son of an Alabama farmer, sold his book publishing business to begin the civil rights law practice that would eventually become the S.P.L.C. in 1971. His co-founders were the civil rights leader Julian Bond and another young Montgomery lawyer, Joe Levin.
Why was the SPLC founded?
The SPLC was founded in 1971 to ensure that the promise of the civil rights movement became a reality for all. By the late 1960s, the civil rights movement had ushered in the promise of racial equality as new federal laws and decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court ended Jim Crow segregation.
Who was the first president of the SPLC?
The lawyers formally incorporated the SPLC in 1971, and civil rights activist Julian Bond was named the first president. Dees and Levin began seeking nationwide support for their work. People from across the country responded with generosity, establishing a sound financial base for the new organization. In the decades since its founding, the SPLC ...
What is the SPLC known for?
In the 1980s, the SPLC began monitoring white supremacist activity amid a resurgence of the Klan and today its Intelligence Project is internationally known for tracking and exposing a wide variety of hate and extremist organizations throughout the United States.
What is the SPLC teaching tolerance program?
In the early 1990s, the SPLC launched its pioneering Teaching Tolerance program (now Learning for Justice) to provide educators with free, anti-bias classroom resources such as classroom documentaries and lesson plans.
Who founded the SPLC?
Civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Jr. founded the SPLC in 1971 to ensure that the promise of the civil rights movement became a reality for all. Since then, we’ve won numerous landmark legal victories on behalf of the exploited, the powerless and the forgotten.
What is the SPLC?
The SPLC is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of all people. Civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Jr. founded the SPLC in 1971 to ensure that the promise ...
The Southern Poverty Law Center is Founded
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) was founded on June 30, 1971, as a legal activist center in the fight for justice and tolerance.
Is The Civil Rights Movement Over?, Harry Davis Sr
Harry Davis Sr. is a businessman, politician and activist. In this segment, heshares his view on the Civil Rights movement in the 21st century
Who founded the SPLC?
Along with his law partner, Joseph J. Levin Jr., Dees founded the SPLC in 1971. Dees and his colleagues at the SPLC have been "credited with devising innovative ways to cripple hate groups " such as the Ku Klux Klan, particularly by using "damage litigation".
Who sued the Young Men's Christian Association?
But Dees said he later had an "epiphany" and regretted defending Henley. In 1969, Dees sued the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in Montgomery, Alabama, at the request of African-American civil rights activist Mary Louise Smith.
What was the aim of the Dees lawsuit?
Dees said that the aim was to gain large judgements which would "clean their clock". In 1981, the SPLC and Dees sued the United Klans of America (UKA) and won a $7 million judgment for Beulah Mae Donald, the mother of Michael Donald, an African American who had been lynched by UKA members in Alabama.
What court case affirmed the YMCA's affirmative action?
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ( α) partly affirmed the trial judge's finding, reversing his order that the YMCA use affirmative action to racially integrate its board of directors. According to historian Timothy Minchin, Dees was "emboldened by this victory" when he founded the SPLC in 1971.
What is the purpose of civil lawsuits?
Dees was one of the principal architects of a strategy that used civil lawsuits to secure a court judgment for monetary damages against an organization for a wrongful act. The courts could potentially seize organization assets in order to gain payment of the judgment.
How much did Dees offer to represent Henley?
When Dees learned that another lawyer had asked for $15,000 to represent Henley, Dees offered to do the job for $5,000, which was roughly the median household salary in America at the time. Dees's defense helped Henley gain an acquittal. But Dees said he later had an "epiphany" and regretted defending Henley.
What is the Southern Poverty Law Center?
Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a nonprofit organization based in Montgomery, Alabama, that is committed to advocacy for civil rights and racial equality.
Who was the first president of the SPLC?
With politician and civil rights leader Julian Bond as its first president, two of SPLC’s early lawsuits resulted in the desegregation of the local YMCA ’s athletic offerings and the racial integration of the Alabama State Troopers.
What did the SPLC do in the 1970s?
From the 1970s through the 1980s, SPLC legal cases challenged conditions in prisons and mental health facilities, worked to end involuntary sterilization of women on welfare, and fought for equal benefits for women in the armed forces. In 1979, when the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) disrupted a civil rights gathering in Decatur, Alabama, ...
Who designed the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama?
The center also sponsored the creation of a civil rights memorial in downtown Montgomery. The black granite memorial, designed by architect Maya Lin, is a contemplative place visited by people from around the world to honor those killed during the struggle for civil rights and equality.
What is the Southern Poverty Law Center?
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is a non-profit civil rights group. The SPLC is best known for cataloging hate groups in the United States. According to the SPLC, almost any organization that disagrees with its far-left worldview is a hate group. The SPLC goes to great lengths to scare people into thinking American conservatives are rife with hate, and that citizens should fear their neighbors.
What is the SPLC program?
Through its “Teaching Tolerance” program, the SPLC teaches school children and teachers its positions. The program advocates social justice. The program offers a magazine, toolkits, curriculum and films to schools at no cost.
What is the Southern Poverty Law Center?
Initially conceived as a public interest law firm, specializing in civil rights, it is a non-profit organization relying on donations to fund its operations. In 1979, the organization went through a massive expansion.
What policies did the SPLC have to champion?
Further, it was the sanctuary policies that the SPLC had spent decades championing that created the conditions in San Francisco that made it possible for Steinle’s murderer to have even been in the city when she was killed. These are policies that the SPLC has continued to champion with abandon.
Has the SPLC become radicalized?
But, since 2000, the SPLC has become radicalized. Gone are the days of pursuing KKK members. The SPLC has spent an inordinate amount of time pursuing its political opponents on the Right since 2000. The list of the SPLC’s biggest donors is a compendium of the most extreme Left-wing corporations, groups, and individuals.
What was the Montgomery Advertiser's report on the S.P.L.C.?
In 1994, The Montgomery Advertiser published an eight-part series on the S.P.L.C. that included allegations of discriminatory treatment of black employees. The report included accounts from staff members accusing Mr. Dees of being a racist, and suggested that black employees felt threatened. The center and Mr. Dees denied the accusations.
Who won the lawsuit against the Klans?
In 1987, Mr. Dees, a skilled marketer and a shrewd legal strategist , won $7 million in damages against the United Klans of America on behalf of the family of Michael Donald, a 19-year-old black man whose body was left hanging in a tree in Mobile, Ala.
Who is the son of an Alabama farmer?
Conservatives have accused the group of unfairly including right-leaning organizations on the list. Mr. Dees , the son of an Alabama farmer, sold his book publishing business to begin the civil rights law practice that would eventually become the S.P.L.C. in 1971.
Overview
History
The Southern Poverty Law Center was founded by civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph J. Levin Jr. in August 1971 as a law firm originally focused on issues such as fighting poverty, racial discrimination and the death penalty in the United States. Dees asked civil rights leader Julian Bond to serve as president, a largely honorary position; he resigned in 1979 but remained on the board of dir…
Administration
In early February 2020, Margaret Huang, who was formerly the Chief Executive at Amnesty International USA, was named as president and CEO of the SPLC. Huang replaced Karen Baynes-Dunning, a former juvenile court judge, who served as interim president and CEO since April 2019, after founder Morris Dees was fired in March 2019. The SPLC had appointed Tina Tchen, a former chief of staff for former first lady Michelle Obama, to review and investigate any issues with the …
Fundraising and finances
The SPLC's activities, including litigation, are supported by fundraising efforts, and it does not accept any fees or share in legal judgments awarded to clients it represents in court. Starting in 1974, the SPLC set aside money for its endowment stating that it was "convinced that the day [would] come when non-profit groups [would] no longer be able to rely on support through mail because of posting and printing costs".
Criminal attacks and plots against the SPLC
In July 1983, the SPLC headquarters was firebombed, destroying the building and records. As a result of the arson, Klansmen Joe M. Garner and Roy T. Downs Jr., along with Klan sympathizer Charles Bailey, pleaded guilty in February 1985 to conspiring to intimidate, oppress and threaten members of black organizations represented by SPLC. The SPLC built a new headquarters building from 1999 to 2001.
Notable SPLC civil cases on behalf of clients
The Southern Poverty Law Center has initiated a number of civil cases seeking injunctive relief and monetary awards on behalf of its clients. The SPLC has said it does not accept any portion of monetary judgments.
An early SPLC case was Sims v. Amos (consolidated with Nixon v. Brewer) in which the U.S. District Court for the Middle of Alabama ordered the state legisla…
Lawsuits and criticism against the SPLC
In October 2014, the SPLC added Ben Carson to its extremist watch list, citing his association with groups it considers extreme, and his "linking of gays with pedophiles". Following criticism, the SPLC concluded its profile of Carson did not meet its standards, removed his listing, and apologized to him in February 2015.
In October 2016, the SPLC published its "Field Guide to Anti-Muslim Extremists", which listed the …
Projects and publishing platforms
In 1990, the SPLC began to publish an "annual census of hate groups operating within the United States".
Over the years the classifications and listings of hate groups expanded to reflect current social phenomena. By the 2000s, the term "hate groups" included organizations it has assessed either "attack or malign an entire class of people…
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