As part of the celebration of Black History Month, Justice Pam Alexander, who served as a Hennepin (Minn.) County District Court Judge for 25 years and is now president of the Council on Crime and Justice, visited our Eagan, Minnesota campus to speak to employees on the impact that race continues to have on the criminal justice system.

In her hour-long presentation, she took the audience on a journey examining several different U.S. laws and punishments from the 1600’s through the late 90’s and how they have been motivated by race.

She also spoke about her involvement in the Fair Sentencing Clarification Act, which was filed in the Supreme Court and passed as law this past August. This bill pertained to the crack and powder cocaine sentencing disparity, which has fallen disproportionately on African Americans.

Watch the following video and hear more highlights from her presentation.

It was clear to all in attendance that although we have made significant strides, there is still a lot of work to be done to ensure that we are true to the Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”

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