The analysis, released Thursday by the Red Line for Civil Rights project, identifies at least 36 abandoned cases involving discrimination against Black, Latino, and Native American communities. These include litigation concerning the Voting Rights Act, redlining settlements, and hiring bias in police and fire departments. Specifically, the department has retreated from cases like United States v. Cobb County, Georgia, where federal lawyers previously challenged discriminatory testing practices against Black firefighter applicants.
Justice Department Abandons Dozens of Key Civil Rights Cases
Under the Trump administration, the Department of Justice has dropped dozens of investigations into school desegregation and racial discrimination. New reports from Democracy Forward suggest the agency is systematically dismantling its Civil Rights Division’s enforcement efforts while redirecting resources toward the president’s political agenda.
The Shift in School Desegregation
The department has also moved to end or effectively stall oversight in 56 school districts across 12 states. For decades, the Civil Rights Division enforced desegregation orders to uphold the promise of the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling. Legal experts and Democratic lawmakers argue that this withdrawal leaves marginalized students without federal protection against systemic inequality. Representative Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) described the trend as a betrayal of the agency’s central duty, noting that while the DOJ pursues political opponents, it has allowed long-standing discrimination to proliferate unchecked. The Civil Rights Division is currently led by Harmeet Dhillon, following a leadership shakeup that saw former attorney general Pam Bondi replaced by Todd Blanche.
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