Black Women in the News
Missing black girls in DC spark outrage, prompt calls for federal help
Two months ago, the Washington Metropolitan Police Department’s new commander, Chanel Dickerson, made a pledge: Let’s find our missing girls.
Now, as the department posts profiles of missing black and Latina girls in the nation’s capital on its Twitter feed almost daily, members of the Congressional Black Caucus are calling for a federal investigation.
In a letter Tuesday, the lawmakers asked Attorney General Jeff Sessions and FBI Director James Comey to “devote the resources necessary to determine whether these developments are an anomaly, or whether they are indicative of an underlying trend that must be addressed.”
“(W)hen children of color go missing, authorities often assume they are runaways rather than victims of abduction,” they added.
Sessions was briefed on the issue Friday, Justice Department spokesperson Sarah Isgur Flores said.
“The Attorney General is aware of the reports and is looking into the issue,” she said.
The FBI declined to comment on the matter.
Although Dickerson, who heads the department’s Youth and Family Division, said Friday that the number of missing girls is decreasing, an outcry on social media has…
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