WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, America First Legal (AFL) sued the Department of Justice (DOJ) to enforce immediate compliance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In August, AFL filed a FOIA request with the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ regarding the Southern Poverty Law Center’s (SPLC) annual “Year in Hate and Extremism.” The report targeted what they call the “anti-government movement,” which included national parents’ rights organizations like Moms for Liberty and Parents Defending Education. These groups stand up for parental rights in the classroom and against radical teachings like Critical Race Theory and sexualized books in the library that seek to indoctrinate children. Given that the Biden Administration colluded with the National School Board Association and Attorney General Garland issued his October 4, 2021 memo requesting that the FBI open federal investigations into parents speaking at school board meetings, it is concerning that the administration has maintained a close relationship with the SPLC and the American people deserve answers.
For months, the DOJ has stonewalled AFL and refused to hand over the requested records as required under the law. Today, AFL is taking legal action to obtain these documents and expose the truth to the American public.
In a statement, Ian Prior, America First Legal Senior Advisor, expressed, "The Department of Justice has made it a priority to silence parents who speak out against DEI and the government-sponsored transgender agenda that is being pushed in public schools to children as young as five-years-old. The Southern Poverty Law Center appears to have been part of that effort — adding parent organizations to its so-called ‘hate map’ in 2023. America First Legal is committed to shining a light on this abhorrent and anti-constitutional collusion between the DOJ and the SPLC to target parents who are exercising their rights to have a say in their children’s education."