Assistant Attorney General Tom Perez Formally Installed to Head Civil Rights Division

Friday afternoon, Judge Linda K. Davis formally installed Tom Perez as Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division.  Attorney General Holder, Deputy Attorney General Ogden, and Associate Attorney General Perrelli were all present to formally welcome back Tom Perez to the Civil Rights Division. Special guests that participated in the program included Melody Barnes, the Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council and a long-time friend of Assistant Attorney General Perez, Stephen H. Sachs, former Attorney General of Maryland and U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland; and Ralph Rouse, the Regional Manager for Civil Rights for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Members of the Perez family were also in attendance, joining Civil Rights Division leadership and staff, as well as representatives from Congress and many civil rights organizations. Attorney General Holder emphasized that the Civil Rights Division was a priority when he first started in February and continues to be a priority today.  Attorney General Eric Holder:

We must commit ourselves to making the Division stronger and better than it has ever been before and ready to confront the 21st century issues that have already begun to present themselves. This will take time – but not too much time. The quest for justice must be an impatient thing – for we all know what happens when justice is delayed. So I am an impatient Attorney General.

During his remarks Assistant Attorney General Perez stated:

The Civil Rights Division is open for business. Our job is to enforce the civil rights laws – all the laws. Civil Rights Enforcement is not like the buffet line at the cafeteria. You can’t pick and choose which laws you like, and which ones you don’t. We will enforce all the laws in fair, aggressive and independent fashion, and we will use all the tools available to us.