Senate passes first leg of anti-discrimination amendment

The Delaware Senate unanimously passed a bill that would amend Delaware's Constitution to prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin.

As a constitutional amendment, Senate Bill 191 needs two-thirds approval by two consecutive General Assemblies.

“Dismantling systemic racism in Delaware must begin with our founding document from which all other laws in our state are derived,” said Sen. Darius Brown, D-Wilmington, chairman of the Delaware Legislative Black Caucus and the prime sponsor of SB 191. “Once this process is complete, our Constitution will state clearly, once and for all, that all people – no matter their skin color and no matter their backgrounds – are guaranteed the basic rights and dignity that have been promised to us for generations.”

In 1901, Delaware ratified the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments, officials said, but it still did not have a constitutional provision that prohibits the denial or abridgment of equal rights under law on the basis of race, color or national origin.

The bill was introduced by Brown during Black History Month in February with 20 co-sponsors in the Senate and the House, including both Democratic and Republican lawmakers.

“With today's bipartisan passage of Senate Bill 191, the members of this body made a clear constitutional commitment to enhancing and expanding equality of rights to all Delawareans regardless of race, color or national origin,” said co-prime sponsor Sen. Ernie Lopez, R-Lewes.

“This vote reflects a call to action, which we have heard across our state and around our nation, as we listen with humility and work together to achieve the more perfect union this generation demands and future generations of Delawareans deserve.”

The first leg of SB 191 now heads to the House for final consideration.

Additional legislation proposed by the Delaware Legislative Black Caucus as part of its Justice For All Agenda is expected to be introduced at a later date. These proposals include:

• Banning kneeholds, chokeholds and similar acts of applying force or pressure against the trachea, windpipe, carotid artery or jugular vein unless deadly force is necessary
• Requiring that body camera devices be used by all law enforcement agencies in Delaware and mandating that those devices be activated from the beginning to the end of all interactions with suspects or witnesses
• Prohibiting Delaware law enforcement agencies from releasing mugshots or other photographs of juvenile defendants
• Requiring that all Delaware law enforcement agencies video record all interrogations of juvenile suspects and defendants except under certain circumstances
• Amending the Delaware Law Enforcement Officers Bill of Rights to allow criminal defendants’ legal counsel to receive internal affairs investigation records of law enforcement officers accused of wrongdoing
• Creating a Law Enforcement Accountability Task Force to develop additional police reforms and an African American Task Force to propose remedies to disparities experienced by people of color throughout Delaware.