Equality

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) and a group of House Democrats today introduced the Fair Representation Act, an election reform bill to change the way U.S. Representatives are elected. The bill, which includes a provision requiring that all Congressional districts be drawn by independent commissions to prevent gerrymandering, came soon after the Supreme Court’s decision in Rucho v. Common Cause,… Read more »

The Hill |  Reps. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Pete Olson (R-Texas) introduced legislation Thursday to improve reporting of hate crimes and expand resources for victims. Beyer and Olson unveiled the National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality (NO HATE) Act in response to high-profile attacks on the LGBTQ, Jewish, Muslim and other communities.… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) issued the following statement today upon the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling against challenges to partisan gerrymandering in Rucho v. Common Cause: “This infuriating, political decision will dismay everyone who opposes partisan gerrymandering, which is a terrible and undemocratic practice no matter who does it. Any system that allows politicians to choose their voters… Read more »

U.S. Representatives Don Beyer (D-VA) and Pete Olson (R-TX) today introduced bipartisan legislation to strengthen federal laws that combat hate speech, threats, and attacks. As incidents of hate crimes continue to rise, the National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality (NO HATE) Act would improve reporting and expand assistance and resources for victims of hate crimes.… Read more »

Washington Post |  Give the FBI this much: It shows no favoritism in its contempt for those seeking information on the investigation into the unwarranted shooting of an unarmed young accountant by U.S. Park Police officers in November 2017. The bureau shows contempt for the young man’s family, contempt for the public and contempt for members of Congress. In December, more… Read more »

Washington Post |  Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and Rep. Don Beyer reintroduced a bill Wednesday requiring uniformed federal officers to wear body cameras and have in-car cameras following the fatal 2017 shooting of unarmed motorist Bijan Ghaisar, which was not captured on video by the two U.S. Park Police officers involved. Norton and Beyer first introduced the bill in… Read more »

WTOP |  In the wake of the fatal shooting of an unarmed motorist in Fairfax County, Virginia, a push is underway in Congress to require that federal officers wear body cameras. D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia have introduced a bill that would require not only bodycams, but also dashboard cameras in federal police vehicles. The Democratic lawmakers say… Read more »

Washington Post |  Sen. Charles E. Grassley, who has been pushing for answers in the fatal November 2017 shooting of Bijan Ghaisar by two U.S. Park Police officers, again pressed authorities for information Tuesday. He was joined by Sen. Mark R. Warner in a letter to the FBI. “The FBI’s slow pace and lack of transparency are weakening the trust between law enforcement and the… Read more »

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA) today introduced a bill to require uniformed federal police officers to wear body cameras and have dashboard cameras in police vehicles.  The District of Columbia and Fairfax County both require officers to wear body cameras and have dashboard cameras in marked vehicles.  Norton and Beyer want to adopt… Read more »

Washington Post |  When an Atlanta police officer working on an FBI fugitive task force shot and killed a wanted but unarmed man in January, he hadn’t yet been assigned a body camera. Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields moved quickly to assign cameras to all of her officers on task forces and was told no. Federal agents never wear body cameras, and they prohibit local officers from… Read more »