DERRICK JOHNSON

Voting legislation that is a cornerstone of the Democratic agenda and top priority for civil rights leaders is on track for defeat.

Democrats are mounting an impassioned bid to overhaul Senate rules that stand in the way of their sweeping voting legislation.

"It's hard for African-Americans to reconcile what we witnessed in that trial," Derrick Johnson said.

Several dozen people gathered below the wind-whipped Wisconsin flag at Kenosha’s Civic Center Park and warmed up with chants for justice before taking to the streets in protest of the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse.

The following is a transcript of an interview with NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson that aired Sunday, November 21, 2021, on "Face the Nation."

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and more appear on Sunday's "Face the Nation."

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and more appear on Sunday's "Face the Nation."

The civil rights organization cited the state's recent voting and abortion laws in a letter sent to all professional sports players' associations.

The civil rights organization cited the state's recent voting and abortion laws in a letter sent to all professional sports players' associations.

The civil rights organization cited the state's recent voting and abortion laws in a letter sent to all professional sports players' associations.

U.S. Border Patrol agents tied to images showing aggressive tactics on Haitian immigrants have been placed on administrative duties pending an investigation.

In the nation’s capital on Saturday, multiracial coalitions of civil, human and labor rights leaders are convening rallies and marches to urge passage of federal voter protections that have been eroded since the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Voting Rights LaQuita Howard of Washington, with the League of Women Voters, attends a rally for voting rights, Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2021, near the White House in Washington. The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, named for the late Georgia congressman who made the issue a defining one of his career, would restore voting rights protections that have been dismantled by the Supreme Court. A second ruling from the court in July made it more difficult to challenge voting restrictions in court under another section of the law. Conservatives also criticized the bill as a departure from the 1965 voting law, which used minority turnout data as well as a place's history of enacting discriminatory voting laws when determining which places would be subject to preclearance. The new bill, instead, leans heavily on looser standards, such as using the number of legal settlements and consent decrees issued in voting rights cases, to pull places into preclearance.

House Democrats have passed legislation that would strengthen a landmark civil rights-era voting law weakened by the Supreme Court over the past decade.

Human Rights Watch on Thursday said the thousands of rockets fired by the Palestinian militant group Hamas during the 11-day war with Israel “violated the laws of war and amount to war crimes." The New York-based rights group investigated Hamas rocket attacks that killed 12 civilians in Israel, as well as a misfired rocket that killed seven Palestinians inside the Gaza Strip.

Voting Bills Texas Texas Department of Safety officers stand watch over the Texas Capitol, Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2021, in Austin, Texas. NAACP President Derrick Johnson sent the letter late Wednesday to Kristen Clarke, who runs the Justice Department’s civil rights division. Earlier Wednesday, officers of the Texas House of Representatives delivered civil arrest warrants for more than 50 absent Democrats as frustrated Republicans ratcheted up efforts to end the standoff. The letter says the Justice Department “could determine that the Texas governor and Republican members of the Texas House have openly conspired” to violate civil rights law. A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Johnson’s letter.

The NAACP is urging the Justice Department to investigate whether a federal crime was being committed when Texas Republicans threatened to have their Democratic colleagues arrested.

Democrats are renewing their push to enact their marquee elections bill.

Civil rights activist and Algebra Project founder Bob Moses dies at 86

The president is set to meet with leaders of national civil rights organizations, including the NAACP, the National Action Network, the National Urban League and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

American actress and singer Vanessa Williams will perform the song "Lift Every Voice and Sing," which has become known as the "black national anthem," at the annual A Capitol Fourth televised celebration.

At its peak in mid-December, more than 25,000 prisoners tested positive in a single week. “The medical community, prison leadership and society at large have learned so much about COVID in a short period of time,” Sears said. Even when state and federal prisons did conduct tests, they still allowed prisoners who tested positive to come in contact with others. Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein, who leads the COVID Prison Project, said she hasn’t seen the systemic change needed to address the next pandemic. Once there were active cases throughout the state's prisons, including among staff, the department became lax with quarantining and actively contact-tracing staff after someone tested positive.

For 15 months, The Marshall Project and The Associated Press tracked the spread of COVID-19 through prisons nationwide.

Derrick Johnson had a makeshift mask. As the coronavirus ravaged the Everglades Correctional Institution, Johnson was surrounded by the sounds of coughing and requests for Tylenol. “Prison is not built to compete with a pandemic,” said Johnson, who was released in December.

"It really does feel like a passive move in the midst of some really heavy conversations," said Danielle Hawthorn of the diversity nonprofit Code 2040.

The Democratic Party’s most passionate voters are growing increasingly frustrated with the pace of change in Washington under Democratic control.

Leaders from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are unveiling $9.25 million in new educational and humanitarian projects as they seek to build on an alliance formed with the NAACP in 2018.

Manchin met virtually with leaders of several civil rights organizations on Tuesday morning.

The United States has faced a racial reckoning in the 365 days since former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, by kneeling on his neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds. Millions of Americans have marched in dozens of cities protesting police brutality. Black voters showed up to the November polls in droves—especially in pivotal electoral states like Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania—helping Joe Biden win the White House.

Prosecutors argued Derek Chauvin squeezed the life out of George Floyd while the defense argued the former cop acted reasonably.

NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson joins Major to talk about the trial of Derek Chauvin, the Black Lives Matter movement, Georgia’s new voter restrictions, and athletes’ fight to earn payment from the NCAA on this week's episode of "The Takeout with Major Garrett."

NAACP President Derrick Johnson spoke with CBS News' Major Garrett for this week's episode of "The Takeout" podcast.

FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2020, file photo, Eddie Murphy accepts the lifetime achievement award at the 25th annual Critics' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, Calif. Murphy will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame this month. The NAACP announced Thursday, March 11, 2021, that Murphy will be inducted during the March 27 ceremony, which will air on CBS. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)LOS ANGELES – Eddie Murphy will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame this month. The NAACP announced Thursday that Murphy will be inducted during the March 27 ceremony, which will air on CBS. The NAACP Image Awards honoring entertainers and writers of color will also simulcast on BET, MTV, VH1, MTV2, BET HER and LOGO.

Congressman Bennie Thompson, the Democratic lawmaker who is partnering with the NAACP in a lawsuit against former President Trump and Rudy Giuliani, says he is looking forward to his day in court. If he doesn't, we will put him out of business," Thompson, the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, told CBSN in an interview Wednesday. He spoke along with NAACP President Derrick Johnson about the legal action they are pursuing against those they want held accountable for the January 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol. Mr. Trump issued a statement saying he "did not incite or conspire to incite" the violence at the Capitol. Thompson said the arguments and evidence brought by his House colleagues "justify this lawsuit."

Congressman Bennie Thompson, the Democratic lawmaker who is partnering with the NAACP in a lawsuit against former President Trump and Rudy Giuliani, says he is looking forward to his day in court. If he doesn't, we will put him out of business," Thompson, the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, told CBSN in an interview Wednesday. He spoke along with NAACP President Derrick Johnson about the legal action they are pursuing against those they want held accountable for the January 6th assault on the U.S. Capitol. Mr. Trump issued a statement saying he "did not incite or conspire to incite" the violence at the Capitol. Thompson said the arguments and evidence brought by his House colleagues "justify this lawsuit."

NAACP files lawsuit against Trump over role in Capitol riot The NAACP is suing former President Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers in connection with the assault on the U.S. Capitol. The suit claims they violated the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act by inciting the riot. NAACP President Derrick Johnson and Congressman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi who is the named plaintiff in the case, joined CBSN to talk about what they hope to accomplish with this suit.

Andrew Cuomo is scheduled to hold a press briefing Wednesday on the coronavirus pandemic alongside members of President Joe Biden's Covid-19 equity task force. Al Sharpton, National Urban League President Marc Morial and NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson are also scheduled to join Cuomo and the equity task force at the briefing, according to a statement from the governor's office. On Tuesday, Biden's equity task force announced the administration will begin sending doses directly to community health centers next week to expand outreach to traditionally underserved communities. New York City opened a mass vaccination site at Citi Field for residents of Queens and other essential workers on Wednesday. The site's opening, which had been delayed because of a lack of doses, comes just days after another mass site at the Yankee's Stadium in the Bronx opened for residents there.

NAACP president on Trump's impeachment: Capitol assault "was an act of treason" As former President Trump's impeachment trial gets underway, the NAACP says "the Senate must convict him swiftly." Derrick Johnson, the president and CEO of the NAACP, joins CBSN to discuss.

NAACP leader on the importance of Black History Month NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson joined CBSN to discuss the importance of understanding Black history as well as how the NAACP is marking its 112th anniversary.

NAACP leader on the importance of Black History Month NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson joins CBSN to discuss the importance of understanding Black history as well as how the NAACP is marking its 112th anniversary.

NAACP President Derrick Johnson on Thursday criticized police inaction toward Trump supporters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, saying it showed a double standard when compared to how law enforcement responded to Black Lives Matter protesters this summer. The response to Black Lives Matter protesters, he said, "was as if they were criminals, and they were simply carrying out a First Amendment right to protest." Law enforcement did not have the same presence at the Capitol during the pro-Trump riots. "No one can tell me that if it had been a group of Black Lives Matter protestors yesterday that they wouldn't have been treated very differently than the mob that stormed the Capitol," Biden tweeted. No one can tell me that if it had been a group of Black Lives Matter protestors yesterday that they wouldn’t have been treated very differently than the mob that stormed the Capitol.

(AP Photos)NEW YORK – Black Lives Matter protests, 2020: Overwhelming force from law enforcement in dozens of cities. “Confederate flags, ‘don’t tread on me,’ ‘blue lives matter’ flags, the Trump flags — all of it symbolizes the same thing. On Wednesday, images emerged showing custodial staffers of color in the Capitol sweeping up the shards of glass and trash left behind by the rioters. NAACP President Derrick Johnson said the people who violated the Capitol on Wednesday should not be seen as patriotic. “This is not protesting or activism; this is an insurrection, an assault on our democracy, and a coup incited by President Trump,” Johnson said.

NAACP head decries using racism to score political points in wake of Capitol mob The riots at the U.S. Capitol have ignited calls for impeachment and removal from office of President Trump and prompted civil rights leaders to criticize a double standard in how law enforcement reacted to the mob Wednesday versus how it responded to Black Lives Matter protests last year. NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson joins CBSN to discuss how the incident and the deep racial divide in the country.

NAACP leader on the decision not to charge officer in Jacob Blake shooting The Kenosha, Wisconsin district attorney's office has announced it will not bring charges against Officer Rustin Sheskey in the shooting of Jacob Blake. NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson joined CBSN to talk about the decision.

(AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)WASHINGTON – Shortly after President-elect Joe Biden’s victory last month, Cabinet hopeful Marcia Fudge pointedly noted that Black people are often typecast into positions such as housing secretary. He’s pledged to nominate the most diverse Cabinet in history and restore experience at beleaguered federal agencies. The GOP has barely acknowledged Biden's victory so the cooperation of its senators in the confirmation process is far from certain. “That’s why we are worried.”One prominent feature of Biden’s picks so far: deep ties to the Obama administration. Brent Colburn, a former Obama administration official who served in several agencies, encouraged Democrats to consider the bigger picture as they judge Biden's Cabinet.

NAACP President Derrick Johnson is calling for the appointment of a racial equity adviser at the White House. "The president-elect said racial equity will be a part of his administration. The racial equity adviser to the president could hold the portfolio and oversee the process." Johnson called it "a very positive meeting" in which Mr. Biden's biggest commitment was to "continue the dialogue" on racial justice. "We need to have an adviser to the president to address racial equity across the administration, regardless of individuals who are sitting in the seat."

NAACP leader calls for Biden to create a new civil rights envoy position NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson joins CBSN to discuss President-elect Joe Biden's meeting with with the leaders of seven civil rights groups, and the importance of creating a civil rights envoy position in the White House.

WASHINGTON – President-elect Joe Biden is facing increasing pressure to expand the racial and ideological diversity in his choices for Cabinet and other top jobs. Of the nine major picks Biden has made so far, only two — Secretary of State choice Antony Blinken and chief of staff Ron Klain — are white men. Today’s Senate is more bare-knuckled and hyper-partisan than when Biden was vice president, including GOP senators eyeing their own 2024 White House runs. During his decades in the Senate and even while serving as Obama's vice president, Biden relied on a small group of close advisers who were largely white. King said he hoped Biden would appoint an African American to one of the “big four” posts, especially attorney general.

WASHINGTON – President-elect Joe Biden is facing increasing pressure to expand the racial and ideological diversity in his choices for Cabinet and other top jobs. Of the nine major picks Biden has made so far, only two — Secretary of State choice Antony Blinken and chief of staff Ron Klain — are white men. Today’s Senate is more bare-knuckled and hyper-partisan than when Biden was vice president, including GOP senators eyeing their own 2024 White House runs. During his decades in the Senate and even while serving as Obama's vice president, Biden relied on a small group of close advisers who were largely white. King said he hoped Biden would appoint an African American to one of the “big four” posts, especially attorney general.

OAKLAND, Calif. – A group of prominent Facebook critics, including one of the social network's early investors and a journalist facing jail time in the Philippines, are launching their version of an “oversight board” to rival the company's own. The group says Facebook is taking too long to set up its oversight panel, which they argue is too limited in its scope and autonomy. The announcement Friday comes a day after Facebook said its own, quasi-independent oversight board, which has faced numerous delays since the company announced its creation in 2018, will launch in October. The first four board members were directly chosen by Facebook. Facebook also pays the board members’ salaries.

FILE - In this April 7, 2020, file photo, voters wait in line to cast ballots at Washington High School while ignoring a stay-at-home order over the coronavirus threat to vote in the state's presidential primary election in Milwaukee. Many Black voters are skeptical of voting by mail even as states seek to expand that option during the coronavirus pandemic. Decades of racism and voter disenfranchisement are at the heart of the uneasy choice facing Black voters. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

Many Black voters are skeptical of voting by mail even as states seek to expand that option during the coronavirus pandemic. Decades of racism and voter disenfranchisement are at the heart of the uneasy choice facing Black voters. Ironically, suspicion of mail-in voting aligns with the views of President Donald Trump, whom many Black voters want out of office. Multiple studies show mail-in ballots from Black voters, like those from Latino and young voters, are rejected at a higher rate than those of white voters. Among the places where Black voters say they have had to overcome institutional obstacles is Shelby County, Tennessee, which includes Memphis.

FILE - NAACP President and CEO, Derrick Johnson addresses the 110th NAACP National Convention in Detroit on July 22, 2019. CBS Television and the NAACP have reached an agreement to develop content to further tell stories of the African American experience. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)LOS ANGELES CBS Television and the NAACP has reached an agreement to develop content to further tell stories of the African American experience. The television studio and civil rights organization announced the multi-year agreement in a joint statement Wednesday. CBS will work with the NAACP to form a team to acquire, develop and produce programming to detail inclusive stories.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg met with civil rights leaders, Tuesday, July 7, 2020, including the organizers of a widespread advertising boycott of the social network over hate speech on its platform. On Tuesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg met with a group of civil rights leaders, including the organizers of a growing advertising boycott over hate speech on Facebook. Those included hiring a civil rights executive; banning private groups that promote white supremacy, vaccine misinformation or violent conspiracy theories; and ending an exemption that allows politicians to post voting misinformation. President Donald Trump frequently skirts Facebook's posting rules, yet faces no consequences, dismaying both civil rights leaders and some of Facebook's own employees. On Wednesday, Facebook will release the final results of its own civil rights audit of its U.S. practices.

What were watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign:Days to next set of primaries (New York and Kentucky): 8Days to general election: 141___THE NARRATIVEPresident Donald Trump makes his official return to the campaign trail this week. At the same time, health experts worry that Trump's rally could help intensify a second wave of coronavirus infections. ___THE BIG QUESTIONSWill Trump's return to the campaign trail backfire? ___2020 Watch runs every Monday and provides a look at the week ahead in the 2020 election. ___Catch up on the 2020 election campaign with AP experts on our weekly politics podcast, Ground Game.

Key Democrats, including presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden, are rejecting liberal calls to defund the police as President Donald Trump and his allies point to the movement as a dangerous example of Democratic overreach. Other opponents of the movement include Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., a former presidential candidate and one of two black Democratic senators, and Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., head of the Congressional Black Caucus. Municipal officials in Minneapolis have endorsed the defund the police language backed by some civil rights activists and a handful of progressive House Democrats. Protesters over the weekend also painted DEFUND THE POLICE in large yellow letters on a street close to the White House. Some Democrats described it as bad politics, even if most Democrats shared the desire to overhaul policing.

It's an open question, however, whether the energy on the streets will translate into energy in the voting booth. Trump hopes to demonstrate strength among his base of white voters in small towns while holding his own in metro areas. Georgia, which has emerged as a potential battleground state this fall, offers the clearest test for those two paths. The state is also holding a Senate primary on Tuesday, with congressional primaries happening in states including Nevada and South Carolina. Bidens campaign manager, Jen OMalley Dillon, mentions Georgia along with Arizona and Texas as the next three states that Democrats can flip.

WASHINGTON Joe Biden lamented the open wound of the nation's systemic racism on Friday as he responded to the police killing of a black man in Minnesota. As the country endures another spasm of racial unrest, the central premise of Bidens campaign is being tested. He clearly condemned it.By Friday afternoon, Trump sought to acknowledge the shocking circumstances of Floyds death while commending law enforcement. Biden, without mentioning Trump by name, made clear he would approach the presidency differently. This is no time to encourage violence, Biden said.

As the coronavirus tightens its grip across the country, it is cutting a particularly devastating swath through an already vulnerable population black Americans. As the coronavirus tightens its grip across the country, it is cutting a particularly devastating swath through an already vulnerable population black Americans. In Michigan, more than half of the deaths where race data was collected were black residents; the state's population is 14% black. On Wednesday, the CDC did release racial data for March hospitalizations in 14 states that showed a third of patients were black. Of the entities that released racial data to the AP, much of it remained sorely lacking.

Peebles is one of roughly 40 million black Americans deciding minute by minute whether to put their faith in the government and medicine during the coronavirus pandemic. Ive just been conditioned not to trust, Peebles said. Black people already suffer disproportionately from chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease and are far more likely to be uninsured. Cities with large black populations like New York, Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee and New Orleans have emerged as hot spots for the coronavirus. A 2016 paper found the fallout included mistrust of medicine among black men, along with fewer interactions with doctors and higher mortality rates.