Chair of Prince William Human Rights Commission Issues Statement

​Curtis O. Porter, chair of the Prince William County Human Rights Commission, issued the following statement:

Since the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) first formed in 1865, hate groups in the United States have propagated racism, hatred and violence. Nooses, swastikas and Confederate Battle Flags will forever be etched in our collective memory as a result of the violent rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. These images evoke the deeply rooted legacy of white supremacy in the United States.

As residents of one of the most diverse counties in the nation and the first majority County of color in Northern Virginia, we reject the scourge of hatred in our community. I would like to draw everyone's attention to the Board of County Supervisors resolution of June 26, 2018, which reaffirmed Prince William County as a Hate Free and Bigot Free Zone.

Prince William County continues to be the home of people of many races, ethnicities, cultures, national origins, religions, sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions. The residents of Prince William County take pride in celebrating our diversity and positive contributions that all groups have made and are making to our County. The residents of Prince William County do not and will not tolerate acts of hatred and attempts to hurt and divide our community.

The Prince William County Human Rights Commission denounces any individual or organization that seeks to foster a culture of racial inequality or racial supremacy of any kind, as well as any attempts to use violence to advance political or ideological goals. The Prince William County Human Rights Commission will continue to engage our community in dialogue that advances equality for all our residents and seek to engage our richly diverse community in that dialogue.

About the Human Rights Commission

The Human Rights mission is to eliminate discrimination through civil and human rights law enforcement and to establish equal opportunity for all persons within the County through advocacy and education. The Human Rights Commission consists of nine at-large members appointed by the Board of County Supervisors (BOCS). Commissioners advise the BOCS on issues pertaining to human and civil rights enforcement and concerns that arise in the community.