Civil Rights
On day one, Patrick made civil rights a cornerstone of his work in court, through legislation, and in outreach in Rhode Island and across the nation.
Patrick’s ground-breaking work in the area of Civil Rights includes:
- Patrick was the first Attorney General in the United States to issue a legal opinion advising that the state should recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states.
- Patrick has argued that same-sex couples employed by the state should receive the same benefits available to other married couples.
- Patrick created the position of Civil Rights Advocate within the Office of Attorney General whose role is to promote civil rights and prosecute hate crimes.
- His office was the first to prosecute cases where people were targeted or discriminated against only because they were gay.
- When Patrick was first elected Attorney General, he worked to ensure that the Attorney General’s office looked like Rhode Island. Now, 17.5% of employees in the Office of the Attorney General are minorities. This represents the highest level in the history of the state.
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