Civil Rights

Civil Rights Enforcement

The Maine Civil Rights Act authorizes the Attorney General to seek restraining orders against persons who commit violence, threats of violence, or property damage motivated by bias. Civil rights can be defined in the simplest terms as our personal liberties or rights. Civil rights enforcement is the means by which the State of Maine protects those rights.

In the State of Maine, the Attorney General enforces the Maine Civil Rights Act, a civil statute that authorizes the Attorney General to seek restraining orders against persons who commit violence, threats of violence, or property damage motivated by bias. These restraining orders are intended to ensure that the people in this State are afforded the rights guaranteed to them by the United States Constitution, and the Constitution and laws of Maine.

Read frequently asked questions about civil rights.

Civil Rights in Schools

The Attorney General also administers the Civil Rights Team Project, a school-based preventative program. The mission of the Civil Rights Team Project (CRTP) is to increase the safety of elementary, middle level, and high school students by reducing bias-motivated behaviors and harassment in our schools.

The CRTP accomplishes this by supporting student civil rights teams in our schools. The CRTP and the student civil rights teams are active in identifying and addressing issues of bias in our school communities, especially those related to:

  • Race and color
  • National origin and ancestry
  • Religion
  • Physical and mental disabilities
  • Gender
  • Sexual orientation

We believe that bias-based behaviors are especially damaging to targeted individuals and create a hostile school climate that is not conducive to learning. Because of their unique nature, bias-based behaviors warrant specific preventative efforts.