Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement on the announcement that Attorney General Eric Holder, the first African American to hold the position, will resign from the Department of Justice after a successor has been nominated and confirmed:

“Attorney General Eric Holder has been a voice for social justice in his distinguished career with the Department of Justice, demonstrating a commitment to ending the substantial disparities that exist today in our system criminal justice, particularly for young men of color. A proud native of the Bronx whose father came to the United States from the Island of Barbados, Attorney General Holder lived a chronicle of the American Dream, and has worked to extend the same opportunity to subsequent generations of young  men. He also worked to protect the rights of immigrants and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans. He remains a man of true integrity whose dedication to the public interest will forever inspire attorneys who want to establish the principles of equal protection and due process of law in the practices of the United States. I will continue to hold Attorney General Holder in high esteem, and I wish him and his wife, Sharon Malone, and their family all the best.” 

U.S. Representative Yvette D. Clarke is a member of the House Committee on Small Business, Ethics, and Homeland Security, where she is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Security Technologies. She represents many neighborhoods in central and southern Brooklyn, NY which include Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, parts of Park Slope and Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.