The United States Commission on Civil Rights is holding a hearing on May 19th in Washington, D.C. entitled Collateral Consequences: The Crossroads of Punishment, Redemption, and the Effects on Communities. The hearing be live-streamed here. Testimony of speakers will also be posted on the Commission’s website.

The official agenda includes:

• Research and data to provide evidence of collateral consequences and the extent to which these barriers affect reentry to society;

• The extent to which racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately affected by these consequences;

• The extent to which states and the federal government have addressed these issues.

The Commission on Civil Rights’ mission is “to inform the development of national civil rights policy and enhance enforcement of federal civil rights laws.”