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NAACP Occupies Jeff Sessions’ Office to Stop Him From Becoming Attorney General

Rachel StockmanJan 3rd, 2017, 4:21 pm
 

Members of the NAACP are occupying the office of U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions in Mobile, Alabama. Sessions is nominated to be the next U.S. Attorney General under President-Elect Donald Trump, and has come under fire for his controversial comments about the NAACP, and other groups.

 

“Our objective is certainly to stop his nomination,” Bernard Simelton, president of the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP, told the New York Daily News.

When Sessions was nominated to a federal judgeship position by President Ronald Reagan,  one attorney stated that Sessions regarded organizations like the ACLU and the NAACP “un-American” because they were “trying to force civil rights down the throats of people.” Another attorney, who is black, said that Sessions once called him “boy.” That same lawyer also recalled how Sessions once quipped that he didn’t have a problem with the KKK “until I found out they smoked pot.”

Sessions denied calling the man “boy,” but did not refute the other allegations against him, including one where a prosecutor told Sessions that a judge called a white lawyer “a disgrace to his race” for representing black clients. Sessions supposedly responded, “maybe he is.” Sessions responded to that allegation at a hearing, saying, “I recall a conversation in which that was mentioned … I do not know why I would have said that, and I certainly do not believe that.” Sessions was ultimately denied the judgeship.

Sen. Sessions’ confirmation hearing is scheduled for January 10th. Democrats have asked for a delay because they have too much material to review.

Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report. 

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Rachel Stockman is President of Law&Crime which includes Law&Crime Productions, Law&Crime Network and LawAndCrime.com. Under her watch, the company has grown from just a handful of people to a robust production company and network producing dozens of true crime shows a year in partnership with major networks. She also currently serves as Executive Producer of Court Cam, a hit show on A&E, and I Survived a Crime, a new crime show premiering on A&E this fall. She also oversees production of a new daily syndicated show Law&Crime Daily, which is produced in conjunction with Litton Entertainment. In addition to these shows, her network and production company produce programs for Facebook Watch, Cineflix and others. She has spent years covering courts and legal issues, and was named Atlanta Press Club's 'Rising Star' in 2014. Rachel graduated from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism and Yale Law School.

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