The Tennessean is reporting today that a Tennessee state civil rights panel, specifically the Tennessee Title VI Compliance Commission, has disbanded after more than five years of inactivity.
More below.
The state commission responsible for looking into civil rights violations by the government was quietly allowed to stop work more than five years ago, potentially leaving behind a backlog of cases that have never been investigated.
State leaders took no action as the panel, which was set up in 2002 to make sure state and local agencies comply with federal civil rights law, failed to hold a single meeting for more than five years. The job of director — the commission's sole employee — also went unfilled for nearly a year and a half until the commission was disbanded this summer, say current and former state officials and court records.
State officials are claiming that civil rights complaints are still being investigated by other individuals and groups.
Responsibility for holding local governments accountable for civil rights violations has now been moved to another state agency. A spokeswoman for Gov. Phil Bredesen also says that, because state agencies have internal civil rights officers, Tennessee residents' civil rights were protected even as the commission was essentially defunct.
Yes, of course, if your civil rights are violated by a government agancy your complaint will be fully investigated by an employee of that agency. What could go wrong?
The report makes it clear that the panel was simply never given the resources to do its work, which eventually led to the resignation of its director.
Sundquist's executive order gave the commission powers to audit agencies, investigate discrimination and tell citizens about their rights. But it was assigned only one worker, a career state worker named John Birdsong, who served as director.
Birdsong said he attempted to fulfill the commission's mission. But he was hampered because the 13-person commission could not get enough members together to hold a single meeting from March 15, 2004, until its disbandment July 1, 2009, according to government officials and three lawsuits filed this summer in federal court in Nashville.
The state legislature, which could name lawmakers to advise the commission, left seats vacant, and for several years, the commission had no chairman.
Two commissioners appointed by Bredesen were disqualified because they were doing work for public agencies, despite rules that said commissioners must have no professional ties to the government, Birdsong said.
"I didn't have the support that I needed, so I decided it was time for me to go," he said
Records show approximately 140 complaints filed over the five years, but the Director, Mr. Birdsong, was only able to investigate a handful, since he was never provided any staff.
A new law in June did reassign the task of investigating civil rights complaints to another agency, the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, but representatives of this commission say that, three months later, they are still just in the process of reviewing the large backlog of cases they were handed, because they are already fully occupied with their primary assignment.
Some observers said transferring responsibility to the Human Rights Commission will make little difference. "Their plates are full right now," Brooks said. "Putting it over (to the Human Rights Commission) is just placating someone."
I guess I could take the John Kyl approach. I'm a white male, so why do I need a panel to investigate civil rights complaints. And, hell, this is Tennessee. It's never been a problem here