DOJ Civil Rights Division slammed for new 2nd Amendment office despite abandoning cases of racial discrimination, voting rights

The new office may not have legal standing, an expert tells theGrio: “Cute for the photo op. Worthless in practice.”

The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division established an office focused on the Second Amendment, a move that is being slammed by civil rights and racial justice leaders who decried the DOJ’s reversal on investigating claims of racial discrimination and other social justice issues.

The Second Amendment Rights Section will be dedicated to protecting gun rights, an issue that has been a long-standing concern for conservatives.

Since returning to the White House, President Donald Trump has shifted the focus of the Civil Rights Division away from voting rights and racial discrimination, reportedly dropping such investigations, according to NPR. Instead, the division, led by Harmeet Dhillon, has focused on Trump’s priorities, like his anti-trans sports agenda, anti-Christian bias, and antisemitism.

“The Civil Rights Division was never designed to be a customer service desk for constitutional amendments. It was built to protect people from discrimination, voter suppression, unconstitutional policing, targeted government abuse, and state-sanctioned inequities,” Angela Angel, a senior advisor for Black Lives Matter PAC, told theGrio.

“It exists to safeguard the rights that are actually being violated, not the ones already receiving warm, continuous hugs from the Supreme Court. Which leads to the core legal question: What civil rights violation is this new office actually addressing?”

Angel, an attorney, said that for a federal enforcement division such as this to be justified, there must be “evidence of a systemic deprivation of rights by government actors.”

The former Maryland state delegate explained, “But courts, including the Supreme Court, have spent the last decade expanding Second Amendment protections with enthusiasm. No one is hunting down lawful gun owners and confiscating their weapons. There is no epidemic of states discriminating against people for wanting to own a firearm.”

The Trump administration’s establishment of a Second Amendment office within the DOJ also comes amid a years-long gun violence epidemic that has left hundreds of thousands of people dead in the U.S. over the past decade.

“Let’s call this what it is: payment on a political debt. The NRA and gun lobby backed this administration, poured millions into campaigns, and now they’re collecting their return on investment. Not in the form of actual policy that helps gun owners, but in the form of a shiny new office that makes it look like something is being done,” said Angel. “It’s governance as performance art, designed to satisfy donors rather than serve citizens.”

NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson told theGrio of the DOJ’s new office, “In America, it is easier to obtain a gun than to access emergency care for a gunshot wound. While the Trump Administration scrambles to maintain the support of its MAGA base, it continues to tank the economy, and sideline education and healthcare.”

The civil rights leader added, “As costs skyrocket, Americans are struggling to find good-paying jobs. We don’t need performative gestures. We need to confront the compounding crises affecting the American people.”

Angel of Black Lives Matter PAC said that the opposition to the Second Amendment division is not about being anti-guns but rather being “pro-law, pro-sense, and pro-reality.”

“From the Black Panthers who exercised armed self-defense against police brutality to the Deacons for Defense and Justice who protected civil rights workers, from everyday community members to Vice President Kamala Harris herself, it’s not unusual for us to value self-defense and constitutional rights,” she asserted.

The racial justice advocate said the very existence of a Second Amendment office within the DOJ Civil Rights Division is likely not even legal, as the division was created by Congress with a “statutory mandate.”

“Congress has created enforcement pathways for voting rights, housing rights, disability protections, equal education, and policing reforms. It has created no such pathway for the Second Amendment,” explained Angel.

“Without congressional authorization, this new office risks becoming the legal equivalent of one of those shiny holiday gifts that looks impressive under the tree but reveals itself as flimsy and useless the moment you actually try to do anything with it. Cute for the photo op. Worthless in practice.”

If the Trump administration were “genuinely concerned” about the civil rights of Americans, Angel said, there are “real crises waiting for attention.”

“Instead, we are watching a political distraction dressed up as legal principle, designed to shift headlines rather than serve the American people,” she argued. “Americans asked for relief and stability. What they received instead was a press release and a diversion.”