Case Particulars

Tribunal

11th Circuit Court of Appeals

Date Filed

August 2, 2023

Docket No.

1:23-cv-03424-TWT / USCA11 Case: 23-13138

Case Status

Plaintiff's motion for injunction pending appeal granted by 11th Cir.; oral argument is scheduled for the week of Jan. 29, 2024

Case Overview

The American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER) brought suit against Fearless Fund in the Northern District of Georgia challenging a grant program available only to black women. The claim was brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, a post-civil war statute prohibiting discrimination in contracting, and not the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which arguably would not apply to a private investment company, nor under other discrimination statutes.

The Federal District Court judge ruled in favor of the program on the basis that a racially discriminatory contract is “speech and expression” protected by the 1st Amendment. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals granted AAER’s emergency motion for injunction pending appeal, and oral argument is scheduled for early 2024.

Equal Protection Project is an Amicus Curaie supporting AAER in the current appeal.