Where do the candidates stand on Civil Rights Protections? 

Civil rights are fundamental rights and freedoms granted to individuals by their government. Given the long history of state-imposed oppression and marginalization of Black Americans in the United States, the Civil Rights Movement is often associated with the fight for justice for African Americans. While this true, the efforts of this and other civil rights movements have created better protections for us all: civil rights laws in the United States today create protections from unfair treatment and discrimination for everyone, with a specific focus on protecting those who have been historically marginalized based on race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability, citizenship status, and/or national origin. Civil rights laws apply in many areas of life, with specific focus in the United States on employment, housing, education, political participation, and locations open to the public (e.g., restaurants, museums, zoos, hospitals). 

Civil rights protections have been hard-won for many marginalized groups in the United States. Tragically, these protections are currently under attack at the federal and state level. Attempts to roll back these protections seek to redefine discrimination and undermine the advancement of equity and inclusion for everyone in our diverse American society. 

The following issue areas related to Civil Rights Protections were assessed: 

• Does the candidate support protecting and defending civil rights for all people?

• Does the candidate support prevention of discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexuality, as well as other protected characteristics?

• Does the candidate support ensuring civil rights protections, especially for those who have been historically marginalized?

• Does the candidate support mitigation of discrimination, and the impacts of discrimination, against historically margnizalized groups, including those that seek to expand diversity, equity, and inclusion?

• Does the candidate support resisting anti-immigrant policies which infringe on civil and constitutional rights for all, including protection of students from privacy violations and immigratin raids on campus?

Candidates' positions on Civil Rights Protections were determined based publicly available information, such as press statements, voting records (in California or Federally), and campaign materials.  All candidates were given the opportunity to respond directly to a member of AAUW California's Public Policy team. Candidates' positions on Civil Rights Protections were then scored using the scale below, which gauges candidates' degree of alignment with AAUW California's public policy priorities and positions on Civil Rights Protections.

If candidate responses or public records show that said candidate strongly opposes a key policy or topic within a larger issue area (e.g., does not support policy that expands civil rights for all people), we have placed them in an “oppose” position to the entire issue area (e.g., protection of civil rights). 

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Click here to view raw data collection guides and citations for research conducted on all candidates.