STATEMENT FROM REV. AL SHARPTON ON THE CONFIRMATION OF LORETTA LYNCH AS THE NEXT U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL

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Apr 23, 2015

NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK

Reverend Al Sharpton, President

Thursday, April 23, 2015

STATEMENT FROM REV. AL SHARPTON ON THE CONFIRMATION OF LORETTA LYNCH AS THE NEXT U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL

“National Action Network (NAN) and I congratulate Loretta Lynch on her confirmation as the next U.S. Attorney General. In light of the police cases that NAN is working on in North Charleston, Staten Island, Baltimore, and other cities, as well as voting rights being changed by states all over the country, her confirmation is even more important. The fact that she is the first African American woman in this office is a game changer. For her to continue the positive moves made by her predecessor Eric Holder around police reform and preserving voting rights is crucial.

We cannot let right wing forces change the direction that the justice department has been moving in the last several years. We hope that while the game has changed quarterbacks, that the goal line of equal protection under the law, police reform, and voting rights for everyone, will remain unchanged.

Ms. Lynch has an impeccable record as a leading prosecutor, confirmed twice for US Attorney, nominated by the President to be the Attorney General, and will now be the first black woman Attorney General.

This country has seen two consecutive historic appointments to this office. First with Eric Holder as the first African American U.S. Attorney General and now with Ms. Lynch both under the leadership of our nation’s first African American President.

I was at the White House as a guest the day that President Obama announced her nomination. NAN along with this nation’s leading civil rights organizations has been in support of Ms. Lynch and has fought hard to see this historic day.

While Ms. Lynch waited far too long for this moment during a particularly critical time for this country, we are hopeful that she will now be supported in doing the work that we know she is capable of in moving this country forward. However, we must not forget that she was forced to wait 165 days for a vote or those senators that voted against her. We must call for an end to this type of partisanship in Washington, where qualified nominees are held prisoner for political reasons.”

– Rev. Al Sharpton, President, National Action Network

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