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Biden Orders DOJ to End Contracts with Private Prisons, HUD to End Discrimination in Housing

HeadlineJan 27, 2021

President Biden signed four executive orders Tuesday aimed at addressing racial inequities. One order directs the Justice Department to end its use of private prisons. As a senator, Biden authored the 1994 crime bill, which intensified mass incarceration, disproportionately targeting Black and Brown communities, but he expressed regret for his past policies on the campaign trail after intense scrutiny and pressure. Immigrant rights advocates are calling on Biden to also end the use of private immigration jails. Another executive order directs the Department of Housing and Urban Development to “redress racially discriminatory federal housing policies.” Two other orders commit to respecting and reinforcing tribal sovereignty, and combating xenophobia against Asian Americans.

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