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  Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
  Community Engagement

     Center for Countering Human Trafficking
                
                    
                    
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      Public AffairsCommunity Engagement
Public engagement with diverse communities whose civil rights may be affected by Department activities is a priority for the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL). Our Community Engagement Section responds to community concerns and provides information on Department programs, activities, and issues. Our goal is to:

Communicate reliable information about federal programs and policies, including avenues for redress and complaints;
	Obtain feedback about community concerns and on-the-ground impacts of Department activities, in order to incorporate into the policymaking process community ideas and issues relating to civil rights and civil liberties; and
	Deepen channels of communication between communities and federal officials in order to facilitate solution of problems.
      
      Engagement Events
      CRCL facilitates a range of engagements that include interagency roundtables, community meetings, civil society stakeholder listening sessions, and public townhalls – all of which are designed to promote inclusive, policy-oriented, and solution-focused dialogue with diverse communities who feel their civil rights or civil liberties may be affected by DHS activities. These engagements regularly involve community and faith-based leaders and federal, state, and local government officials. In recent years, CRCL has regularly convened engagements with stakeholders in numerous cities across the country.
      Engagement Locations
               Atlanta
Chicago
Columbus
Denver
El Paso
Houston
Los Angeles
Miami
Minneapolis
New York City
Orange County
Phoenix
Rio Grande Valley
San Diego
Seattle
Tucson
Yuma
              Incident Community Coordination Team
      CRCL's Incident Community Coordination Team (ICCT) is a national conference call that allows for rapid two-way communication between the federal government and impacted communities in the immediate aftermath of a homeland security incident or emergency. The ICCT call provides timely information to communities and allows them to provide feedback to senior government officials on:

allegations of hate crimes;
	specific community needs and asks in the time of crisis;
	reactions or concerns to policies or enforcement actions taken by the government; and
	feedback on how the government might be more effective in responding to acts of domestic violent extremism or other national emergencies.
              International Engagement
      CRCL regularly coordinates with international government and civil society partners to share best practices on community outreach and engagement efforts. To date, CRCL’s international engagement work has included:

presenting at conferences in Austria, Bosnia, Canada, Denmark, Kazakhstan, and Poland; and
	participating in State Department-sponsored public diplomacy trips to Egypt, England, France, Germany, and Kyrgyzstan, among other countries.
              Cultural Competency/Engagement Training
      CRCL leads efforts to raise awareness and cultural competency considerations for DHS personnel on a range of topics that affect diverse and faith-based communities. This work includes the development of training materials on diverse religious and cultural groups that are intended to inform best practices in community outreach.

Most recently, in support of the Operation Allies Welcome mission, CRCL developed training materials for staff and volunteers that focused on cultural competency, along with basic principles to help guide their interactions with newly arrived Afghans.

Community Outreach and TrainingPosters on Common Muslim American Head Coverings, Common Sikh American Head Coverings, and the Sikh Kirpan



These training posters provide guidance to Department personnel on ways in which to screen, if needed, Muslim or Sikh individuals wearing various types of religious head coverings and Sikh individuals carrying a kirpan (ceremonial religious dagger).

On Common Ground



This training DVD on Sikhism was created for law enforcement personnel by the Department of Justice's Community Relations Service in collaboration with the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Guidance Regarding the Use of Race for Law Enforcement Officers



This training on the Department of Justice (DOJ) racial profiling guidance was produced by the U.S. Secret Service and reiterates the Department of Homeland Security's commitment to race neutrality in law enforcement activities.

The First Three to Five Seconds



This training, produced by the DOJ's Community Relations Service, introduces law enforcement officers to basic principles of the Arab American and Muslim American cultures.
              Connect with CRCL
      Subscribe to CRCL's newsletter by e-mail at crcloutreach@dhs.gov.
	Follow CRCL on Facebook for updates on our roundtables and other activities at www.facebook.com/CivilRightsandCivilLiberties.By Mail

Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
2707 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE
Mail Stop #0190
Washington, DC 20528-0190

By Email

CommunityEngagement@hq.dhs.gov
  
    
    TopicsCivil Rights and Civil LibertiesKeywordsCivil Rights
              Community Engagement
              Outreach

    Last Updated: 12/01/2023
  
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