DURHAM, N.C. (April 23, 2026) — Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) recognizes this week’s federal indictment of Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) for what it is: a calculated attempt to use the weight of justice to punish those who demand it.
For more than 50 years, SPLC has done what this work demands, including shining a light on and formally documenting the most violent and extreme hate groups and protecting the very people they target. Their work has saved lives amid countless threats to their own. Now, this administration that pardons insurrectionists and attempts to rewrite the very definition of civil rights, is moving to criminalize the organizations fighting back. SPLC is the latest target, but it won’t be the last.
“This administration wants civil rights organizations to go quiet,” said Ryan Roberson, Executive Director at SCSJ. “We won’t. SCSJ stands firmly with SPLC, and we will keep showing up loudly for the communities who need us.”
###
Southern Coalition for Social Justice, founded in 2007, partners with communities of color and economically disadvantaged communities in the South to defend and advance their political, social, and economic rights through the combination of legal advocacy, research, organizing, and communications. Learn more at southerncoalition.org and follow our work on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.