Legal Redress Committee

As a result of recent high-profile tragedies, the racial injustice that pervades our nation's law enforcement and criminal justice system has received much-needed attention and prompted a broader movement for reform. This racial injustice, of course, is not new – it has affected generations of Black and Brown people throughout our country's history. 

The Legal Redress Committee is charged with:

• Investigating all discrimination cases reported to it;
• Supervising all litigation in which the Unit is interested; and
• Keeping the National Office and Branch informed on the progress of every case. 

(Note: We do not give general legal advice.)

In addition to acting as charged, the committee takes local action to redress the impact of racism in the criminal justice system through:

• Hosting  Criminal Record Annulment Clinics: A criminal record can have long-lasting effects on a person's ability to work and on access to housing and educational opportunities. Manchester NAACP is working with the New Hampshire Bar Association to provide advice to people who have served their time on how to have their criminal records expunged. To date, we've served more than 250 people,  helping them overcome the many barriers posed by a lingering criminal record.

• Working with DCYF: It's essential that New Hampshire's Division for Children, Youth & Families handle cases regarding youth of color in a manner that values family members appropriately. We're working with the New Hampshire Judicial Council and other members of the legal community to provide training to DCYF staff to ensure a better understanding of and respect for the unique challenges families of color face.

• Delivering Diversity and Implicit Bias Training: Implicit bias: the unconscious biases that all people hold and that many people fail to recognize – is a reality that touches all aspects of life. Its impacts are especially damaging within the criminal justice system, where unconscious biases have led police, prosecutors, and judges to take actions that lead to unfair results for Black and Brown people. To tackle this problem, we're  actively working to provide diversity and implicit bias training for the criminal justice community.