Obama nominates DOJ official as Labor Department Secretary

Tuesday, March 19, 2013  

Thomas Perez delivers remarks after President Barack Obama announced Perez as his nominee for Labor Secretary, in the East Room of the White House, March 18, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

A Department of Justice official who has worked on Indian issues was nominated by President Barack Obama to lead the Department of Labor.

As an assistant attorney general at DOJ, Thomas Perez has headed up the Civil Rights Division. He's worked on Indian voting rights, tribal justice, violence against Indian women and discrimination issues since October 2009.

"I have made the civil rights of American Indians a priority for the Civil Rights Division. For far too long Native Americans have experienced discrimination and injustice, and the federal government can and must stop such discrimination," Perez said at the National Congress of American Indians annual convention last October, according to the transcript of his remarks.

During his tenure, Perez oversaw the prosecution of three men for attacking a disabled Navajo Nation man in New Mexico. The case was the very first under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.

"In his current role as the head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Tom has fought to open pathways into the workforce for everyone willing to contribute, including people with disabilities, LGBT Americans, and immigrants," Obama said at the White House. And he has helped settle some of the largest cases ever on behalf of families targeted by unfair mortgage lending."

Perez also led the investigation of the Seattle, Washington, police department following the fatal shooting of John T. Williams, a Native man from Canada, by a police officer. The city agreed to create a police commission that includes Native representatives.

Get the Story:
Perez to Labor Department (The Washington Post 3/19)
A Justice Dept. Official Is Named to Lead Labor (The New York Times 3/19)
In the Loop: Perez first Dominican American named to cabinet (The Washington Post 3/18)
Obama nominates Justice’s Thomas Perez as labor secretary, Republicans raise concerns (AP 3/18)