Ketanji Brown Jackson, Trailblazers of GA-4, the FAIR Act & More

Dear Friends,

After attending the Senate Judiciary Committee's first of four days of Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Ketanji Brown Jackson on Monday, I'm home in Georgia for the remainder of the week meeting with constituents, including middle-school students, local leaders and workers.

I will be updating them on what I've been working on, but more importantly I will be listening to their thoughts and concerns about what's happening in their lives so I can continue to bring their perspective with me when I introduce and vote on legislation, and work with my fellow Members of Congress.

As part of Women's History Month, I'm honoring nine extraordinary Fourth District women as part of my annual Trailblazers Awards. Please join us, if you can, to help celebrate these dynamic women on Wednesday, March 23 from 6 to 8 PM. To sign up for this event, click HERE.

Last week in Washington, one of my signature pieces of legislation – H.R. 963, the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal (FAIR) Act – passed the House of Representatives. Americans' constitutional rights to access the court system are too often stolen by the fine print in employee and consumer contracts requiring them to use private arbitration to resolve a dispute. Research shows that these "forced arbitration" clauses too often benefit the employer or business. My legislation eliminates forced arbitration and insists that individuals have a meaningful choice – requiring that any agreement to arbitrate employment, consumer, civil rights and anti-trust disputes be made after the dispute has arisen.

I was honored to join former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores at a press conference to discuss how forced arbitration impacts those who experience racial discrimination. Forced arbitration has become a trusted tool for the powerful to evade public accountability, and the NFL is no exception. Here is my testimony in Rules Committee explaining how the bill works in more detail.

I am proud that this bill has once again passed the House, and that it has an unprecedented 39 cosponsors in the Senate. I have been fighting to restore our rights since I first introduced this bill in my first session of Congress, and I am confident that we are building the momentum necessary to eventually see this bill become law. I will continue my work until it is done.

As Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet, I chaired a hearing on "Workplace Protections for Federal Judiciary Employees: Flaws in the Current System and the Need for Statutory Change." The purpose of this hearing was simple: To bring attention to the fact that the more than 30,000 women and men who work for our federal courts do not have statutory rights and protections against discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation and other forms of workplace misconduct. These public servants deserve a workplace free from sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation. And yet, the federal civil rights statutes that protect nearly every civilian employee in the country — public or private — do not extend to them. This must change. It's why I have introduced the Judiciary Accountability Act, bipartisan legislation that will give judiciary employees meaningful rights against workplace misconduct.

Also, while in Washington last week, I voted in favor of imposing new economic punishments for Russia's continued unprovoked and unjustified attacks on the people of Ukraine, as well as Belarus' support for Russia's invasion by revoking permanent normal trade relations. I also supported The Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act or the CROWN Act, which is a critically important civil rights bill that would explicitly prohibit discrimination on the basis of hair texture or hairstyles commonly associated with a particular race or national origin. Young Black girls in particular deserve to grow up in a world where their natural hair is a point of pride, not something to hide.

As always, I appreciate your time and feedback. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to represent you in Congress. If you have an issue with a federal government agency, please don't hesitate to call my district office at 770-987-2291.