Civil rights-era government agency in Justice Department to be purged

A landmark Justice Department office created in the 1960's during the civil rights movement is marked for closure by the Trump administration, raising fears of a loss of generations of work tamping down and working to prevent unrest in the nation's major cities.   

An internal Justice Department memo reviewed by CBS News said Trump appointees are considering closing the Community Relations Service, which was created as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The mission of the office is to be "America's peacemaker," tasked with "preventing and resolving racial and ethnic tensions, conflicts, and civil disorders, and in restoring racial stability and harmony."

The Community Relations Service does not investigate or prosecute crimes and has no law enforcement authority, and according to the Justice Department, its services are both confidential and free of charge to communities that accept or request them. In 2021, the agency said of its mission that it sought to help realize Martin Luther King Jr.'s "inspiring dream of a vibrant, all-embracing nation unified in justice, peace, and reconciliation."