[House Hearing, 117 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


               THE TARGETING OF BLACK INSTITUTIONS: FROM 
                 CHURCH VIOLENCE TO UNIVERSITY BOMB  
                 THREATS

=======================================================================

                                 HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

                     COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                               __________

                             MARCH 17, 2022

                               __________

                           Serial No. 117-48

                               __________

       Printed for the use of the Committee on Homeland Security
                                     

[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] 
                                     

        Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov

                               __________


                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE                    
47-811 PDF                 WASHINGTON : 2022                     
          
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------   

                     COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY

               Bennie G. Thompson, Mississippi, Chairman
Sheila Jackson Lee, Texas            John Katko, New York
James R. Langevin, Rhode Island      Michael T. McCaul, Texas
Donald M. Payne, Jr., New Jersey     Clay Higgins, Louisiana
J. Luis Correa, California           Michael Guest, Mississippi
Elissa Slotkin, Michigan             Dan Bishop, North Carolina
Emanuel Cleaver, Missouri            Jefferson Van Drew, New Jersey
Al Green, Texas                      Ralph Norman, South Carolina
Yvette D. Clarke, New York           Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Iowa
Eric Swalwell, California            Diana Harshbarger, Tennessee
Dina Titus, Nevada                   Andrew S. Clyde, Georgia
Bonnie Watson Coleman, New Jersey    Carlos A. Gimenez, Florida
Kathleen M. Rice, New York           Jake LaTurner, Kansas
Val Butler Demings, Florida          Peter Meijer, Michigan
Nanette Diaz Barragan, California    Kat Cammack, Florida
Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey          August Pfluger, Texas
Elaine G. Luria, Virginia            Andrew R. Garbarino, New York
Tom Malinowski, New Jersey
Ritchie Torres, New York
                       Hope Goins, Staff Director
                 Daniel Kroese, Minority Staff Director
                          Natalie Nixon, Clerk
                           
                           C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              
                                                                   Page

                               Statements

The Honorable Bennie G. Thompson, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of Mississippi, and Chairman, Committee on 
  Homeland Security:
  Oral Statement.................................................     1
  Prepared Statement.............................................     3
The Honorable John Katko, a Representative in Congress From the 
  State of New York, and Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland 
  Security:
  Oral Statement.................................................     4
  Prepared Statement.............................................     6
The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of Texas:
  Prepared Statement.............................................     7
The Honorable Ralph Norman, a Representative in Congress From the 
  State of South Carolina:
  Prepared Statement.............................................    10

                               Witnesses

Rev. Eric S.C. Manning, Senior Pastor, Mother Emanuel AME Church:
  Oral Statement.................................................    11
  Prepared Statement.............................................    12
Mr. Thomas K. Hudson, President, Jackson State University:
  Oral Statement.................................................    14
  Prepared Statement.............................................    15
Ms. Janai Nelson, President and Director-Counsel, NAACP Legal 
  Defense Fund:
  Oral Statement.................................................    17
  Prepared Statement.............................................    19

                             For the Record

The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, a Representative in Congress 
  From the State of Texas:
  Letter From Texas Southern University..........................    47
The Honorable Dan Bishop, a Representative in Congress From the 
  State of North Carolina:
  Tweet..........................................................    31
  Article, The Guardian..........................................    31
  Article, The Washington Post...................................    44

                                Appendix

Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Eric S.C. Manning....    71
Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Thomas K. Hudson.....    71
Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Janai Nelson.........    71

 
THE TARGETING OF BLACK INSTITUTIONS: FROM CHURCH VIOLENCE TO UNIVERSITY 
                              BOMB THREATS

                              ----------                              


                        Thursday, March 17, 2022

                     U.S. House of Representatives,
                            Committee on Homeland Security,
                                                    Washington, DC.
    The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:01 a.m., via 
Webex, Hon. Bennie G. Thompson [Chairman of the committee] 
presiding.
    Present: Representatives Thompson, Jackson Lee, Langevin, 
Payne, Correa, Slotkin, Cleaver, Green, Clarke, Watson Coleman, 
Rice, Demings, Barragan, Gottheimer, Malinowski, Katko, 
Higgins, Guest, Bishop, Van Drew, Miller-Meeks, Clyde, Cammack, 
and Pfluger.
    Chairman Thompson. The Committee on Homeland Security will 
come to order. Without objection, there is some--oh. Oh, OK. 
So, the Committee on Homeland Security will come to order. 
Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare the 
committee in recess at any point.
    Good morning. The committee is meeting to examine the 
targeting of Black institutions from church violence to 
university bomb threats. Exactly a year ago, Secretary 
Alejandro Mayorkas testified before this committee that 
domestic extremist violence represents the greatest threat to 
the homeland right now.
    Today we are here to discuss how one form of extremism, 
White supremacist violence, threatens Black institutions, 
particularly Black churches and Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities. Data from the Center for Strategic and 
International Studies, or CSIS, shows that right-wing extremism 
has surged to dangerous levels. Since 2015, right-wing 
extremists have been responsible for 267 plots and attacks and 
91 deaths.
    No one could forget the tragedy at Mother Emanuel African 
Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston in June 2015, when a 
radicalized White supremacist murdered 9 churchgoers while 
shouting racial epithets. According to the CSIS, Black churches 
were targeted in another 15 plots or attacks from 2016 to April 
2021.
    As a son of the South, I know all too well the horror that 
shakes a community when a house of worship is attacked. Today 
we find ourselves confronting an unprecedented rise in threats 
of violence against HBCUs. Between January 4 and February 4 of 
this year, the FBI identified a staggering 51 total bomb 
threats, 28 targeting HBCUs and 12 targeting Black churches. 
There have been at least 8 more bomb threats in the last 6 
weeks.
    While the nature of violence toward Black institutions may 
have evolved over the years, the attacks are by no means new. 
When I was coming of age in Mississippi, White supremacists 
attacked Black churches with impunity. Many were firebombed, 
burned, or destroyed. I also recall with great sadness the 
tragedy that occurred at Jackson State University when I was a 
young man.
    In May 1970, 75 police officers were sent to campus to 
break up a protest. In a use-of-force incident the President's 
Commission on Campus Unrest later called an unreasonable, 
unjustified overreaction, police fired 140 shots toward a 
dormitory building, tragically killing 2 students and injuring 
another 12.
    Shortly after I was elected to Congress, our Nation was 
again confronted with a resurgence in attacks on Black 
churches. In 1995 to `96 alone, there were as many as 35 
burnings of Black churches. Here we are, yet again, today. 
These attacks sicken me.
    These terrorists, and they are terrorists, whether they be 
engaged in physical violence or threats of such, seek to 
intimidate good people from exercising their religious beliefs 
and receiving an education. While these institutions have shown 
remarkable resilience under terrible circumstances, their 
academic or religious missions are too often hampered by having 
to divert resources to ensure safety and security. Congress has 
heard and answered the call for increasing funding for the 
Nonprofit Security Grant Program. This program provides funding 
for physical security enhancements and other security-related 
activities to nonprofit organizations, such as houses of 
worship and universities, that are at high risk of a terrorist 
attack.
    In fiscal year 2021, Congress doubled funding for the 
program to $180 million, but significant needs remain. In 
response, Congress increased funding for the program to $250 
million in the fiscal year 2022 omnibus spending bill President 
Biden signed into law this week.
    Additionally, I have introduced legislation cosponsored by 
Ranking Member Katko that would authorize $500 million for the 
program. This legislation would also create an office tasked 
with conducting outreach, education, and technical assistance 
to eligible nonprofits, with a particular focus on underserved 
communities.
    As someone with a long history with the NPSG program, I am 
pleased that we are holding this hearing today to get testimony 
on the record about its importance and how it might be further 
strengthened. I am also pleased to see that yesterday, the 
Biden administration announced that HBCUs will be able to 
access grant funds under the Project School Emergency Response 
to Violence program to restore a safe learning environment.
    They are important steps, but much more remains to be done 
to help communities who have been hurt by this violence bring 
the perpetrators to justice and prevent future threats and 
attacks. It is unconscionable that Americans practicing their 
faith at houses of worship or obtaining an education to better 
themselves, their families, and future generations would have 
to fear for their lives. Indeed, racially-motivated threats and 
violence against Black churches and schools are attacks on 
these institutions, but also on our American way of life. Our 
response must be swift and serious, commensurate with the 
persistent threat.
    I am honored to have a distinguished panel of witnesses 
before the committee this morning and look forward to hearing 
their testimony on this important topic. Reverend Eric Manning 
joined Mother Emanuel AME Church, Charleston, South Carolina, 
as the senior pastor in June 2016, a year after the tragic 
shooting. He has lifted his church and community in the years 
since the terrorist attack and has continued to be a voice of 
social justice.
    My friend Mr. Thomas Hudson, president of Jackson State 
University, is leading his university as it confronts this new 
wave of threats. President Hudson offers a unique perspective 
as HBCUs address this on-going crisis.
    Finally, I look forward to hearing from Ms. Janai Nelson 
about the broader threat landscape facing Black institutions 
and what the Federal Government can do to help keep those 
communities safe. I also wish to congratulate her on her recent 
promotion, becoming the eighth president of the NAACP Legal 
Defense and Education Fund.
    Thank you again. I look forward to your testimony.
    [The statement of Chairman Thompson follows:]
                Statement of Chairman Bennie G. Thompson
                             March 17, 2022
    The committee is meeting to examine the ``Targeting of Black 
Institutions: From Church Violence to University Bomb Threats.'' 
Exactly a year ago, Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testified before this 
committee that ``domestic violent extremism'' represents the ``greatest 
threat in the homeland right now.''
    Today, we are here to discuss how one form of that extremism--White 
supremacist violence--threatens Black institutions, particularly Black 
churches and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Data 
from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) shows 
that right-wing extremism has surged to dangerous levels. Since 2015, 
right-wing extremists have been responsible for 267 plots and attacks 
and 91 deaths.
    No one could forget the tragedy at Mother Emanuel African Methodist 
Episcopal Church in Charleston in June 2015--when a radicalized White 
supremacist murdered 9 churchgoers while shouting racial epithets. 
According to the CSIS, Black churches were targeted in another 15 plots 
or attacks from 2016 to April 2021.
    As a son of the South, I know all too well the horror that shakes a 
community when a house of worship is attacked. And today, we find 
ourselves confronting an unprecedented rise in threats of violence 
against HBCUs. Between January 4 and February 4 of this year, the FBI 
identified a staggering 51 total bomb threats, 28 targeting HBCUs and 
12 targeting Black churches. There have been at least 8 more bomb 
threats in the last 6 weeks.
    While the nature of violence toward Black institutions may have 
evolved over the years, the attacks are by no means new. When I was 
coming of age in Mississippi, White supremacists attacked Black 
churches with impunity. Many were firebombed, burned, or destroyed. I 
also recall with great sadness the tragedy that occurred at Jackson 
State University when I was a young man.
    In May 1970, 75 police officers were sent to campus to break up a 
protest. In a use-of-force incident the President's Commission on 
Campus Unrest later called an ``unreasonable, unjustified 
overreaction,'' police fired 140 shots toward a dormitory building, 
tragically killing 2 students and injuring another 12.
    Shortly after I was elected to Congress, our Nation was again 
confronted with a resurgence in attacks on Black churches. In 1995-96 
alone, there were as many as 35 burnings of Black churches. And here we 
are, yet again, today. These attacks sicken me.
    These terrorists, and they are terrorists whether they be engaged 
in physical violence or threats of such, seek to intimidate good people 
from exercising their religious beliefs and receiving an education. 
While these institutions have shown remarkable resilience under 
terrible circumstances, their academic or religious missions are too 
often hampered by having to divert resources to ensure safety and 
security. Congress has heard and answered the call for increased 
funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP). This program 
provides funding for physical security enhancements and other security-
related activities to nonprofit organizations, such as houses of 
worship and universities, that are at high risk of a terrorist attack.
    In fiscal year 2021, Congress doubled funding for the program to 
$180 million, but significant needs remain. In response, Congress 
increased funding for the program to $250 million in the fiscal year 
2022 Omnibus spending bill President Biden signed into law this week.
    Additionally, I have introduced legislation co-sponsored by Ranking 
Member Katko that would authorize $500 million for the program. This 
legislation would also create an office tasked with conducting 
outreach, education, and technical assistance to eligible non-profits, 
with a particular focus on underserved communities.
    As someone with a long history with the NPSG program, I am pleased 
that we are holding this hearing today to get testimony on the record 
about its importance and how it might be further strengthened. I was 
also pleased to see that yesterday, the Biden administration announced 
that HBCUs will be able to access grant funds under the Project School 
Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV) program to restore a safe 
learning environment.
    These are important steps, but much more remains to be done to help 
communities who have been hurt by this violence, bring the perpetrators 
to justice, and prevent future threats and attacks. It is 
unconscionable that Americans practicing their faith at houses of 
worship or obtaining an education to better themselves, their families, 
and future generations would have to fear for their lives. Indeed, 
racially-motivated threats and violence against Black churches and 
schools are attacks on these institutions, but also on our American way 
of life. Our response must be swift and serious, commensurate with this 
persistent threat.
    I am honored to have a distinguished panel of witnesses before the 
committee this morning and look forward to hearing their testimony on 
this important topic. Reverend Eric Manning joined Mother Emanuel AME 
in Charleston, South Carolina as the senior pastor in June 2016, a year 
after the tragic shooting. He has lifted his church and community in 
the years since the terrorist attack and has continued to be a voice 
for social justice. My friend, Mr. Thomas Hudson, president of Jackson 
State University, is leading his university as it confronts this new 
wave of threats. President Hudson offers a unique perspective as HBCUs 
address an on-going crisis. Finally, I look forward to hearing from Ms. 
Janai Nelson about the broader threat landscape facing Black 
institutions and what the Federal Government can do to help keep those 
communities safe.

    Chairman Thompson. I now recognize the Ranking Member of 
the full committee, the gentleman from New York, Mr. Katko.
    Mr. Katko. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your insight and 
powerful statements. I appreciate them and I thank you for 
holding this important hearing today.
    To our witnesses, thank you for joining us in person and 
virtually, I think one of them is virtually, to discuss a 
troubling issue that threatens the safety and security of 
Americans throughout the United States. Unfortunately, it is 
not confined to the Black community, the Jewish community, 
including my city suffered a bombing of a temple when I was a 
prosecutor. This type of conduct, it is just sickening in 
today's day.
    Threats against African Americans are an ugly part of 
American history and an issue our country clearly still 
struggles with. Throughout the civil rights era, African 
Americans were subject to violent and often deadly assaults as 
they fought for the simple right of equality. Birmingham, 
Alabama, alone, which served as a focal point of the civil 
rights movement, experienced more than 40 deadly bombings 
between the late '40's and the mid-'60's, earning it the 
dubious nickname ``Bombingham.'' While our Nation has 
thankfully made great progress, we still have much work to do 
to ensure that all our citizens feel safe within our borders.
    Thank you, Reverend Manning, for being here today. It is 
devastating to recall the evening of June 17, 2015, when a mass 
shooter took the lives of 9 African-American congregants who 
were attending Bible study at Emanuel African Methodist 
Episcopal Church in Charleston. This race-fueled attack at an 
historic African American church shook our Nation to its core, 
causing all of us to reflect on the fact that inherently evil 
acts of violence continue to exist in many forms. That is why 
we are here and that is our main mission. I am grateful to have 
you here today to discuss how this horrific day shaped the 
church's external engagement to enhance security and any 
insights you may have into how Congress can better support the 
safety and security of religious institutions of all stripes.
    Almost a decade later, we are now dealing with a series of 
threats, most of them targeted at the safety and well-being of 
predominantly Black academic communities. The FBI reported that 
57 Historically Black Colleges and Universities, or HBCUs, and 
houses of worship were targeted with bomb threats from January 
4 through February 16 of this year. The FBI has dedicated more 
than 20 field offices to investigating these threats which they 
have categorized as hate crimes.
    While we are thankful that no bombs have been discovered, 
these threats have derailed education and religious operations 
while instilling fear in the hearts of students, faculty, 
administrations, administrators, and worshipers.
    To digress for a moment, the next step is what has been 
happening in the Jewish community where people are losing their 
lives. That is something we just can't have.
    I commend the Federal, State, and local law enforcement 
efforts to bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice. 
While law enforcement officers work to apprehend those 
responsible, Congress has a sacred duty to ensure educational 
institutions and houses of worship have access to and knowledge 
of every safety and security tool in our Federal toolbox. The 
Department of Homeland Security offers a variety of grants, 
including the Nonprofit Security Grants and Targeted Violence 
and Terrorist Prevention Grants to nonprofits and institutions 
of higher education to establish or enhance security 
capabilities, mitigate targeted violence, and prevent 
terrorism.
    At the same time, the FBI offers security training, 
including active-shooter training, to teach leaders at schools, 
houses of worship, and other at-risk settings how to respond to 
threats and save lives. It is vital that soft targets, such as 
our colleges and churches, are aware of these resources and 
that we bolster their relationship with law enforcement to 
prevent violence within our communities. Again, drawing on my 
experience with what is happening with the Jewish community 
across this country, most Jewish communities now have a very 
robust and active security apparatus, and that is something we 
should talk about today.
    I am excited to hear from our witnesses today about how 
they are working to protect HBCUs and African American houses 
of worship. I am looking forward to learning more about the 
unique threats our institutions face, the partnerships they 
have fostered with law enforcement, the capabilities they have 
to report and combat violence, and how Congress can strengthen 
all of these efforts.
    Threats against historically Black institutions are attacks 
on the core freedoms promised to all Americans. Efforts to 
derail any person's ability to seek higher education or pursue 
their religious freedoms is an assault on their fundamental 
Constitutional rights and the justice system must address it 
swiftly and severely.
    I want to thank you again to our witnesses for being here 
today. I look forward to our conversation and I yield back my 
time.
    [The statement of Ranking Member Katko follows:]
                 Statement of Ranking Member John Katko
    Thank you, Chairman Thompson, for holding this important hearing 
today, and thank you to our witnesses for joining us to discuss a 
troubling issue that threatens the safety and security of Americans 
throughout the United States.
    Threats against African Americans are an ugly part of American 
history and an issue our country clearly still struggles with. 
Throughout the civil rights era, African Americans were subject to 
violent and often deadly assaults as they fought for their right for 
equality.
    Birmingham, Alabama alone, which served as a focal point of the 
civil rights movement, experienced more than 40 deadly bombings between 
the late 1940's to mid-1960's, earning it the dubious nickname 
``Bombingham.''\1\ While our Nation has thankfully made great progress, 
we still have work to do to ensure that all of our citizens feel safe 
within our borders.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/07/06/197342590/
remembering-birming- hams-dynamite-hill-neighborhood.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Thank you, Reverend Manning, for being here today. It's devastating 
to recall the evening of June 17, 2015, when a mass shooter took the 
lives of 9 African American congregants who were attending Bible study 
at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston.
    This race-fueled attack at a historic African American church shook 
our Nation, causing all of us to reflect on the fact that inherently 
evil acts of violence continue to exist in many forms. I am grateful to 
have you here today to discuss how this horrific day shaped the 
church's external engagement to enhance security and any insights you 
have into how Congress can better support the safety and security of 
religious institutions.
    Almost a decade later, we are now dealing with a series of threats, 
most of them targeted at the safety and well-being of predominantly 
Black academic communities. The FBI reported that 57 historically Black 
colleges and universities, or HBCUs, and houses of worship were 
targeted with bomb threats from January 4 through February 16 this 
year.
    The FBI has dedicated more than 20 field offices to investigating 
these threats, which they have categorized as hate crimes. While we are 
thankful that no bombs have been discovered, these threats have 
derailed educational and religious operations, while instilling fear in 
the hearts of students, faculty, administrators, and worshippers.
    I commend the Federal, State, and local law enforcement efforts to 
bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice.
    While law enforcement officers work to apprehend those responsible, 
Congress has a duty to ensure educational institutions and houses of 
worship have access to and knowledge of every safety and security tool 
in our Federal toolbox.
    The Department of Homeland Security offers a variety of grants, 
including Non-Profit Security Grants and Targeted Violence and 
Terrorism Prevention Grants to non-profits and institutions of higher 
education to establish or enhance security capabilities, mitigate 
targeted violence, and prevent terrorism.
    At the same time, the FBI offers security training, including 
active-shooter training, to teach leaders at schools, houses of 
worship, and other at-risk settings how to respond to threats and save 
lives. It is vital that soft targets, such as our colleges and 
churches, are aware of these resources and that we bolster their 
relationship with law enforcement to prevent violence within our 
communities.
    I am excited to hear from our witnesses today about how they are 
working to protect HBCUs and African American houses of worship. I am 
looking forward to learning more about the unique threats their 
institutions face, the partnerships they have fostered with law 
enforcement, the capabilities they have to report and combat violence, 
and how Congress can strengthen all these efforts.
    Threats against historically Black institutions are attacks on the 
core freedoms promised to all American citizens. Efforts to derail any 
person's ability to seek higher education or pursue their religious 
freedoms is an assault on their fundamental Constitutional rights and 
the justice system must address it swiftly and severely. Thank you 
again to our witnesses for being here today, and I look forward to our 
conversation.

    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman yields back. Other Members 
of the committee are reminded that under committee rules 
opening statements may be submitted for the record.
    [The statement of Hons. Jackson Lee and Norman follow:]
               Statement of Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee
                             March 17, 2022
    Thank you, Chairman Thompson and Ranking Member Katko, for 
convening today's hearing entitled, ``The Targeting of Black 
Institutions: From Church Violence to University Bomb Threats.''
    I look forward to hearing from today's witnesses:
   Rev. Eric S.C. Manning, senior pastor, Mother Emanuel A.M.E. 
        Church, Charleston, South Carolina;
   Thomas K. Hudson, J.D., president, Jackson State University, 
        Jackson, Mississippi; and
   Janai S. Nelson, J.D., associate director-counsel, NAACP 
        Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc., Washington, DC.
   There is no Minority witness.
    The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony about the 
heightened threats and violence facing Black institutions, including 
churches and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
    These threats are not new, but in recent months HBCUs and other 
Black institutions have faced a disturbing number of bomb threats.
    This hearing will be an opportunity to highlight the importance of 
the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP), which plays a critical 
role in helping at-risk nonprofit organizations and religious 
communities bolster security.
    Prior to September 11, 2001, the Federal Government had a wide 
range of law enforcement, National security, and crime investigative 
agencies that collected information, but jealously guarded this 
information from other agencies.
    More than 20 years after the 9/11 attacks, the terrorism landscape 
is complex, diffused, and dynamic.
    The 9/11 Commission Report allowed an in-depth assessment of the 
failures that led to the horrific terrorist attacks against the United 
States that cost the lives of nearly 3,000 people.
    The House Committee on Homeland Security was created to implement 
the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Report and ensure that 
resources were provided to support the mission of homeland security.
    The most significant task of the committee was guiding the 
establishment of the Department of Homeland Security and making sure 
that it had all that it would need to carry out its mission to keep all 
Americans safe from the threat of terrorism.
    I, along with other Members who have served on this committee since 
its inception, made a commitment that a terrorist attack of the 
magnitude that occurred on September 11, 2001, would never happen 
again.
    An essential component of our ability to keep this commitment was 
the establishment of stronger ties among local, State, and Federal law 
enforcement and building collaborations with private-sector partners.
    Since the founding of DHS its mission remains the same--to defend 
the homeland from terrorist attacks and to help victims recover from 
disasters that are natural and man-made.
    Although terrorist actors espousing violent Islamist ideologies 
continue to pose a threat, the greatest terrorism threat to the 
homeland today is posed by domestic violent extremists, particularly 
from those who promote a violent White supremacy ideology.
    Further complicating counter-terrorism efforts is the convergence 
of violent ideologies where violent White supremacy (including anti-
Semitism) often combines with other violent ideologies to drive an 
attack.
    The face and threats posed by terrorism is now sourced from 
domestic threats that have been present within this Nation for a very 
long time but have found voice to reemerge in recent years.
    This is the bind that connects the Civil Rights movement to the 
Jewish Faith, which includes joining in marches, sit-ins, voter 
registration drives in the deep south--none of which were safe things 
to do--but they were the right things to do for the Nation.
    An embodiment of this joint struggle were the deaths of Goodman, 
Schwerner, and Chaney--names that will forever be linked.
    In January 2022, the month prior to Black History month bomb 
threats targeting Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) 
started.
    Just a few weeks ago we visited the issue of violence targeting 
places of worship for persons of the Jewish faith and today we are 
looking at threats of violence targeting HBCUs and Black churches.
    Many HBCUs welcomed Jewish intellectuals fleeing Europe during the 
rise of Nazism in the early 1930's.
    During this period more than two-thirds of the faculty hired at 
many HBCUs from 1933 to 1945 had come to the United States to escape 
Nazi Germany.
    HBCUs believed the Jewish professors were valuable faculty that 
would help strengthen their institutions' credibility.
    HBCUs had a firm belief in diversity and giving opportunity no 
matter the race, religion, or country of origin.
    HBCUs were open to Jews because of their ideas of equal learning 
spaces, which demonstrated that an environment where all people felt 
welcome to study, including women could prosper.
    In this environment the leaders of the modern civil rights movement 
were educated.
    The history of the civil rights movement and HBCUs is inextricably 
linked.
    HBCUs are where early civil rights leaders and church leaders were 
forged.
    The list of prominent leaders and the HUBCs they attended:
   Kamala Harris (Howard University)
   Martin Luther King (Morehouse)
   Rosa Parks (Alabama State)
   Medgar Evers (Alcorn State University)
   Thurgood Marshall (Lincoln University and Howard University)
   Jesse Jackson (North Carolina A&T)
   Ralph Albernathy (Alabama State University)
   Lonnie Johnson (Tuskegee State University)
   Langston Hughes (Lincoln University)
   Harry and Harriette Moore (Bethune Cookman College)
   Clementa Carlos Pinckney (Allen University)
   Toni Morrison (Howard University)
   Booker T. Washington (Hampton University)
   Alice Walker (Spelman)
   Kathern Johnson (West Virginia State University)
   John Lewis (Fisk University)
   W.E.B. Dubois (Fisk University)
   Ida B. Wells (Fisk University).
    On December 25, 1951, the first martyrs of the civil rights 
movement Henry and Henrietta Moore, were murdered on the night of their 
anniversary, for the battles they won for voting rights and equal pay 
for Black residents in the State of Florida.
    At the time of their murder Florida had the highest number of 
registered Black voters of any Southern State.
    Targeting African Americans for working for all Americans to have 
equal access to housing, employment, and opportunities is best 
illustrated by the history of Birmingham Alabama, which earned the 
bloody name of ``Bombingham'' because of the number of bomb attacks in 
that city between 1947 and 1965, the year the voting rights act passed.
    On September 15, 1963, a well-known attack in Birmingham occurred 
when the 16th Street Baptist Church was bombed before Sunday morning 
services, killing 4 girls:
   Addie Mae Collins (age 14, born April 18, 1949),
   Carol Denise McNair (age 11, born November 17, 1951),
   Carole Rosamond Robertson (age 14, born April 24, 1949), and
   Cynthia Dionne Wesley (age 14, born April 30, 1949).
    Maxine McNair, was the last living parent of any of the 4 Black 
girls killed in the 16th Avenue Baptist Church bombing. She died on 
Sunday, January 2, 2022, at the age of 93.
    Outrage over the incident and the violent clash between protesters 
and police that followed drew National attention to the hard-fought, 
often-dangerous struggle for civil rights for African Americans.
    The bombing of the 16th Avenue Baptist Church was not an isolated 
incident it was part and parcel of the civil rights struggle in one of 
the most dangerous places in the United States to be African American 
and demanding equal rights.
    The city of Birmingham, Alabama, was founded in 1871 and rapidly 
became the State's most important industrial and commercial center.
    By the late 1960's, Birmingham was well-known as one of the most 
discriminatory and segregated cities in the United States.
    Alabama Governor George Wallace was a leading foe of desegregation, 
and Birmingham had one of the strongest and most violent chapters of 
the Ku Klux Klan (KKK).
    The city's police commissioner, Eugene ``Bull'' Connor, was 
notorious for his brutality in combating radical demonstrators, union 
members, and any Black citizens.
    Political labels during this period were not what they are today.
    Democrats were the pro-segregationist--evidenced by Alabama 
Governor George Wallace and Police Chief Bull Connor and they are there 
also the lead anti-segregationist President John F. Kennedy and 
President Lyndon Banes Johnson.
    It was a case of the classic house divided parable and by the 
1970's Democrats emerged as a unified party committed to moving the 
country forward as one Nation and not one divided against itself.
    Today, Democrats and Republicans should be unified to make the 
United States in word and deed live up to the words of the 
Constitution, but we must be prepared to weather the storms caused by 
those who want to drag the Nation back into a dark place in its 
history.
    Black people and institutions have continued to experience threats 
and violence over the decades since the 1960's.
    In the mid-1990s President Bill Clinton committed to having a 
Federal Government that looked like the United States, which resulted 
in the first African Americans appointed to serve as Secretaries of the 
Department of Commerce and the Department of Agriculture, as well as 
dozens of high-level appointments throughout the Federal Government.
    Following these high-profile appointments along with policy 
statements regarding equity and his administration there was a surge in 
attacks on Black churches.
    In 1995-96 alone, there were as many as 35 burnings of Black 
churches.
    While these attacks were mostly spread throughout the South, there 
were also Black churches targeted in the Northeast, Midwest, and 
Southwest.
    In response to these attacks, Congress passed the Church Arson Act 
of 1996, which created a Federal crime for damaging religious property 
or obstructing any person's free exercise of religious beliefs where 
the offense takes place.
    Over the last 6 years, Black churches have been among the dozens of 
religious institutions, including mosques and synagogues, that have 
been threatened, burned, bombed, and hit with gunfire.
    According to data from CSIS, Black churches were the targets of 15 
attacks or plots from 2016 to April 2021.
    Other forms of attacks have also targeted Black churches.
    The attack at the Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church 
is well-known, as a recent act of terrorism on a Black house of 
worship. On June 17, 2015, Dylan Roof shot and killed 9 churchgoers 
while shouting racial epithets.
    After the attack, officials discovered a manifesto with racist 
characterizations of Blacks, Jews, and others.
    As prosecutors in his Federal murder trial noted, the perpetrator 
of this crime is an example of the lone-wolf actor becoming radicalized 
by a ``self-learning process'' on-line leading to the belief ``that 
violent action is necessary to fight for White people and achieve White 
supremacy.''
    In the weeks following the attack at Mother Emanuel, several other 
Black churches were burned, including God's Power Church of Christ in 
Macon, Georgia and Battle Creek Baptist Church in Charlotte, North 
Carolina.
    God's Power Church was completed gutted, and Battle Creek Baptist 
incurred more than $250,000 in damages, destroying the church's main 
building.
    In 2018, with cold precision several bombs detonated in the city of 
Austin Texas plunged the city into fear.
    The bombs were set by a 23-year-old Mark Anthony Conditt, a White 
resident of Pflugerville, Texas who killed 2 people that included 
Anthony House, the African American son of a local minister, and 
African American Draylen Mason, 17, both were members of the Wesley 
United Methodist Church.
    The Wesley United Methodist Church in Austin, Texas, was founded in 
1865, at the end of the American Civil War by newly-freed slaves from 
the Austin area and has remained a predominantly African-American 
congregation.
    Anthony Conditt left an audio confession that has never been made 
public and it should be heard by the Members of this committee to 
properly put into context what his mindset was when he committed these 
awful acts of terrorism.
    The city of Austin experienced terror, and the lives lost were 
those of African Americans.
    Because of the real threat of violence faced by vulnerable groups 
the DHS security grants program is a necessary and important tool that 
must be available to assist places of worship in increasing security.
    Members of this committee recognize that the terror landscape has 
changed: Violent extremists today pick and choose individual elements 
of violent ideologies that fit their world view.
    Groups from ISIS to domestic White supremacist are united in their 
violent anti-Semitism--leaving the American Jewish community 
particularly vulnerable.
    Nonprofits, including those within the American Jewish community, 
have no choice but to invest in protection against the threat from 
these violent ideologies, and rely on NSGP funding to do so.
    Democrats recognize that we must support these at-risk nonprofits 
and ensure that houses of worship have the resources they need to 
bolster their security in the face of these terror threats.
    I want to make it very clear--that this is not just a burden for 
African American places of worship or HBCU's to carry--but the 
responsibility of the United States to protect against terrorist 
attacks no matter the target or the place attacked--it is vitally 
important that all members of our Nation feel and know that they are 
not alone when they face a threat.
    An attack against one place of worship or school is an attack 
against all places of worship and education settings.
    Democrats have doubled funding for Nonprofit Security Grant Program 
from $90 million in fiscal year 2020 to $180 million in fiscal year 
2021, but it is still not enough to meet the real and pressing need.
    As a Member of the House Budget Committee, I join other Members of 
this committee in calling for significant increases to funding in 
fiscal year 2022 appropriations bill and the ``Build Back Better Act'' 
would have added $100 million in additional funding.
    In addition to more funding, the infrastructure of the Nonprofit 
Security Grant Program both within FEMA and among the States needs to 
mature to help ensure that eligible at-risk non-profits can easily 
apply and access the resources they desperately need to ensure 
community members can worship and congregate safely.
    I look forward to today's testimony and the work of this committee 
to continue in its efforts to strengthen and improve the Nonprofit 
Security Grant Program.
    I yield back the balance of my time.
    Thank you.
                                 ______
                                 
                  Statement of Honorable Ralph Norman
    The only concern students and staff should have while on campus 
should be education. Safety and security should never be called into 
question and that has sadly been compromised by the recent threats of 
violence targeting HBCU campuses.
    I am deeply disturbed by the recent events that have taken place 
since January 1 at HBCUs across the Nation, causing a disruption in 
learning and a heightened sense of fear. I am calling on our law 
enforcement agencies and prosecutors to continue to work diligently to 
identify those responsible and bring them to justice. They must face 
the heavy hand of the law.
    I am thankful to my colleagues in Congress for bringing this issue 
forward and to the FBI for their on-going investigations. Perhaps most 
importantly, I am thankful to Clinton College in Rock Hill South 
Carolina for promoting a campus environment of faith, unity, and 
positive moral. Campus safety is an utmost priority to every 
educational institution, and should be second only to education itself.

    Chairman Thompson. Members are also reminded that the 
committee will operate according to the guidelines laid out by 
the Chairman and Ranking Member in our February 3, 2021, 
colloquy regarding remote procedures.
    I now welcome our panel of witnesses. Our first witness, 
Reverend Eric Manning, is a senior pastor at the Mother Emanuel 
AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Prior to accepting 
his appointment to Mother Emanuel in June 2016, Reverend 
Manning led 4 other AME Churches in South Carolina over 12 
years.
    Our second witness, Mr. Thomas K. Hudson, JD, is president 
of Jackson State University, located in Jackson, Mississippi. 
He was named the university's president in November 2020, after 
serving as acting president and in several key leadership roles 
at the university, including chief operating officer and chief 
diversity and EEO officer.
    Our final witness is Ms. Janai S. Nelson, the newly-
appointed president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal 
Defense and Education Fund. Prior to the role, Ms. Nelson 
served as the associate director-counsel at the organization 
where she has worked for the past 8 years.
    Without objection, the witnesses' full statement will be 
inserted in the record.
    I now ask each witness to summarize their statement in 5 
minutes, beginning with Reverend Manning.

  STATEMENT OF REV. ERIC S.C. MANNING, SENIOR PASTOR, MOTHER 
                       EMANUEL AME CHURCH

    Rev. Manning. Chairman Thompson and Ranking Member Katko 
and the Committee on Homeland Security, I thank you for this 
opportunity to share some thoughts with you this morning. This 
is the first time that I have ever had the privilege to appear 
before a Congressional committee and please know how deeply 
humbled I am for this opportunity to share with you today some 
reflections on the pain that was experienced by a deliberate 
and sinful act that is rooted in hate.
    While there have been many attacks levied against the Black 
church throughout history, for the purpose of this testimony 
today I will only highlight two, the first being the 16th 
Street Baptist Church, the site of one simple act that was 
rooted in hate where, on Sunday, September 15, 1963, at 10:22 
a.m., while worshipers were gathering for worship service and 
church school was concluding, 4 church school attendees were 
murdered: Addie May Collins, 14; Cynthia Wesley, 14; Carole 
Robertson, 14; Carol Denise McNair, 11. While this sinful act 
of hate took place over 57 years ago, this community still is 
feeling the pain that was inflicted upon them.
    The second sinful act of hate occurred here at Mother 
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church where on June 17, 
2015, at the conclusion of Bible Study, a lone White supremist 
entered and came into our Bible Study and murdered 9 members: 
Reverend Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45; Cynthia May [sic] 
Graham Hurd, 54; Susie J. Jackson, 87; Ethel Lee Lance, 70; 
Reverend DePayne Middleton, 49; Honorable Reverend Clementa C. 
Pinckney, 41; Tywanza Sanders, 26; Reverend Daniel L. Simmons, 
Sr., 74; and Myra Thompson, 41--or 59, excuse me. There were 
also 5 survivors: Felicia Sanders, Polly Sheppard, Jennifer 
Pinckney, and 2 minor children.
    The entire congregation was stunned and rendered speechless 
by an unbelievable act of horror. It left an undeniable stain 
on all of our hearts, our minds, and our memories. Our sacred 
sanctuary had become a crime scene.
    It is important to understand that both crimes rooted in 
hate struck at the heart of the Black community, which is 
indeed the church. In many communities the church is the place 
where the community gathers for fellowship, comfort, discuss 
community concerns, and, most importantly, share in the 
liberating Gospel of Jesus Christ. When an act is levied 
against the Black church, it has a lingering effect. I am not 
sure how long it will truly take for these respective 
communities to heal, especially, of course, when they have been 
dealt such a major blow that is rooted in the sin of racism.
    I have served as the pastor of Mother Emanuel now for 
almost 6 years and I can truly say that every member is in a 
different place when it comes to healing. Many continue to deal 
with the lingering impact, knowing that their sacred place or 
house of worship had been violated by the sin of racism. To 
this day, there are still many members who have not yet 
returned.
    I would characterize the lingering effects of trauma as a 
long-term opportunity, meaning that we must still seek 
resources that will help the members to recover. In the short 
term, immediately following the tragedy of the church, the 
church was able to develop a security plan. This security plan 
was implemented by the church and continues to be updated on a 
regular basis.
    To date the church has spent well over $50,000 when it 
comes to church security. I would have hoped that by now that 
we would have been able to throttle back with budgetary item. 
However, it is still one that we utilize on a regular basis.
    Tragically, we live in a world where sin and hate is so 
strong that many houses of worship will need to develop 
detailed security plans. I believe that we can all still come 
together to find sustainable solutions that would protect all 
houses of worship, understanding, though, that this would 
require all of us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. I 
want to believe that we could truly embrace what Abraham 
Lincoln said, ``Let us discard all quibbling about this man or 
the other man, this race or that race or the other race being 
inferior. And let us discard these things and unite as one 
people throughout this land until we shall once more stand up 
declaring that all men are created equal.''
    But until that time comes, let us continue to look for ways 
to protect houses of worship as the Nonprofit Security Grant 
Act of 2022, H.R. 6825, prayerfully will do.
    Thank you again for this opportunity to share with you all 
today.
    [The prepared statement of Rev. Manning follows:]
                Prepared Statement of Eric S.C. Manning
                             March 17, 2022
    Chairman Thompson, Ranking Member Katko, thank you for the 
opportunity to share some thoughts with you this morning.
    This is the first time that I have ever appeared before a 
Congressional committee. Please know how deeply humbled I am by this 
opportunity to share with you today, my reflections on the pain that 
was experienced by a deliberate and sinful act rooted in hate.
    While there have been many attacks levied against the Black church 
throughout history, for the purpose of this testimony today I will 
discuss two. The first being the 16th Street Baptist Church, the site 
of one sinful act rooted in hate. On Sunday September 15, 1963, at 
10:22 am, when worshippers were gathering for worship service and 
church school was concluding a bomb went off. Four young girls 
attending Sunday School were murdered: Addie Mae Collins (14), Cynthia 
Wesley (14), Carole Robertson (14), and Carol Denise McNair (11). While 
this sinful act of hate took place over 57 years ago, the community is 
still feeling the pain that was inflicted upon them.
    The second sinful act rooted in hate occurred on Wednesday June 17, 
2015, at the conclusion of Bible Study. This act occurred at Mother 
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church (AMEC) while the Bible Study 
group closed the session in prayer. It was at that time a lone gunman, 
who was welcomed by the group opened fire killing 9 members of the 
church: Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton (45), Cynthia Marie Graham Hurd 
(54), Susie J. Jackson (87), Ethel Lee Lance (70), Rev. DePayne 
Middleton (49), Honorable Rev. Clementa C. Pinckney (41), Tywanza 
Sanders (26), Rev. Daniel L. Simmons, Sr. (74), and Myra Singleton 
Thompson (59). There were also 5 survivors: Felicia Sanders, Polly 
Sheppard, Jennifer Pinckney, and 2 minor children.
    The tragedy of June 17, 2015 shook all the foundations of Mother 
Emanuel AMEC to their very core. Acts of Christian love were met by 
forces of hate, racism, bigotry, and violence. A welcomed visitor ended 
the weekly prayer meeting with actions the congregation had never 
experienced in more than two centuries of worship.
    As the worshippers bowed their heads in a closing prayer 9 
members--including the young and visionary pastor--were murdered. Three 
other members were terrorized--tortured by indescribable memories.
    The entire congregation was shocked, stunned, and rendered 
speechless by an unbelievable horror. It left an indelible stain on 
their hearts, minds, and memories.
    A sacred sanctuary became a crime scene.
    The loving response of Charleston citizens, the protective response 
of city, State, and National officials, the outpouring of condolences 
and sympathy revealed that this tragedy of bigotry and hate no longer 
represented the forces that opposed Mother Emanuel AMEC in its earlier 
days.
    Despite the welcomed support the indelible stain of tragedy was 
uniquely felt by Mother Emanuel AMEC. With joined hands and humble 
hearts the congregation had to look only to the Divine hills for help. 
There they found comfort in the arms of a loving God. While this sinful 
act of hate took place almost 7 years ago the community is still 
feeling the lingering effects of this trauma.
    It is important to understand that both crimes rooted in hate 
struck at the heart of the Black community, which is the church. In 
many communities the church is the place where the community gathers to 
fellowship, comfort, discuss community concerns, and most importantly 
share in the liberating Gospel of Jesus Christ. When an attack is 
levied against the Black church it has lingering effects and I am not 
sure how long it takes to truly heal from these acts of hate that are 
rooted in the sin of racism.
    I have served the congregation of Mother Emanuel AMEC as their 
senior pastor for almost 6 years and can truly say that every member is 
in a different place when it comes to healing. Many continue to deal 
with the lingering impact of having their sacred place of worship being 
violated by the sin of racism. To this day there are still many members 
who have not returned to the church.
    I would characterize the lingering effects of trauma as a long-term 
opportunity (meaning that we still must seek resources that will help 
members recover). In the short term (immediately following the tragedy) 
the church developed a detailed security plan. This security plan was 
implemented by the church and continues to be updated on a regular 
basis.
    To date the church has spent well over $50,000 in updating the 
security cameras on-site, deploying biometric scanners, key fobs, and 
employing off-duty police officers. This new budgetary item is one that 
I thought would be reduced over time, unfortunately this has not become 
a reality for Mother Emanuel AMEC.
    Tragically, we live in a world where the sin of hate is so strong 
that many houses of worship will need to develop detailed security 
plans. I believe that we can all still come together to find 
sustainable solutions that would protect all houses of worship, 
understanding though that this would require all of us to love our 
neighbor as we love ourselves. I would want to believe that we could 
truly embrace what Abraham Lincoln said, ``let us discard all this 
quibbling about this man and the other man--this race and that race and 
the other race being inferior . . . Let us discard all these things, 
and unite as one people throughout this land, until we shall once more 
stand up declaring that all men are created equal''.
    Thank you again for the opportunity to share with you all today.

    Chairman Thompson. Thank you for your testimony, Reverend 
Manning. I now recognize President Hudson to summarize his 
statement for 5 minutes.

    STATEMENT OF THOMAS K. HUDSON, PRESIDENT, JACKSON STATE 
                           UNIVERSITY

    Mr. Hudson. Good morning, Chairman Thompson and Members of 
this committee. I would like to thank you for allowing me the 
opportunity to speak with you today.
    While I wish my presence before you was due to other 
circumstances, I do believe this is a conversation of 
necessity. The recent bomb threats against the institution I 
lead, my alma mater, Jackson State University, and the almost 
two dozen other HBCUs, make a mockery of how far we have come 
as a Nation.
    There is always a group of individuals who will attempt to 
drag us back to a time when terrorizing our communities was 
frequent occurrences, often without admonishment. The threat we 
received on February 1, 2022, was an attempt once again to 
incite mass anxiety and fear reminiscent of yesteryear. The 
targeting of Black schools and sacred institutions has taken 
place in our country since their inception. Then and now, these 
threats are designed to intimidate and impede our sense of 
safety and freedom in an environment where our students deserve 
to feel protected at all times.
    At JSU, we were fortunate that our local, State, and 
Federal law enforcement agencies rallied behind us during this 
time. We appreciate the efforts of the Jackson Police 
Department, State of Mississippi Capitol Police, and the FBI, 
who responded not just in words, but in action, helping to 
provide the necessary resources to mitigate this threat. Of 
course, we thank the JSU Department of Public Safety, who on 
this day and every day work hard to protect our campus and our 
students.
    Collectively, it is our responsibility to create safe 
environments for our campus community. They should be able to 
receive a nurturing learning experience in a protected 
environment free from distraction.
    But what will it take for us to ensure the long-term 
protection of not only our students, faculty, staff, and 
stakeholders, but the historical assets that are HBCUs? It is 
with this context that I would like to address the areas in 
which this committee may assist us in this endeavor. We can do 
this by ensuring that HBCUs receive equitable resources, close 
the significant disparity between our security challenges and 
our funding, and also counter those disparities thus ensuring 
sustainability.
    I think we all know the history of HBCUs, that our 
institutions were founded to educate newly-freed Black people 
who could not attend the already-established colleges and 
universities. Today there are over 100 Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities in this country. Together we have 
educated millions, helping them realize the American Dream that 
was elusive to their ancestors.
    The intended disruption of HBCUs, like Jackson State 
University, is an intentional assault on the economic drivers 
of this country. It is a deliberate attempt to destroy these 
cultural spaces where intellect and diverse thought thrives. We 
cannot sit idly by and wait for something to happen to these 
hallowed spaces. We cannot afford to be reactionary.
    While we share similarities with other colleges and 
universities, the truth is, unlike our counterparts, we have 
been routinely underfunded for years, which has led to deferred 
maintenance and deficiencies within our infrastructure. This is 
a significant mismatch between our security challenges and 
adequate funding levels to address this incongruity, which 
often puts us in a reactionary position due to our historical 
and persistent under-resourcing.
    But there is a way forward. At JSU, we aim to be a part of 
the solution by partnering with this body and others in 
addressing these deep-rooted issues. Our close collaboration 
with the Department of Homeland Security through their Office 
of Academic Engagement offers an exceptional opportunity to 
expand our capacity and access to these much-needed resources.
    We seek the resources to develop and utilize data science 
technology, so that we may better understand and motivate 
resilience strategy while we build trust in the most vulnerable 
communities.
    We anticipate long-term investments to expand and sustain 
our criminal justice and urban planning programs in order to 
elevate and develop local and State-wide solutions to serve as 
a National model and resources. Developing a tiered approach to 
resolving HBCU security issues and concerns is a must. We must 
also develop partnerships with our local school districts to 
jointly pursue those initiatives for early intervention.
    I would like to close by saying that we shall not be moved 
or paralyzed by malevolent threats. I am calling on you to help 
us bolster our arsenals because we all have the responsibility 
of ensuring our students can develop in environments free of 
violence, racism, and intolerance. We must protect our HBCUs, 
so that transformational education can and will always prevail.
    Thank you so much for your time.
    [The prepared statement of Mr. Hudson follows:]
                 Prepared Statement of Thomas K. Hudson
    Good morning.
    Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to speak with you today. 
I am Thomas Hudson, 12th president of Jackson State University.
    While I wish my presence before you were due to other 
circumstances, I believe this is a conversation or testimony of 
necessity. The recent bomb threats against the institution I lead, my 
alma mater, Jackson State University, and the almost 2 dozen other 
HBCUs, make a mockery of how far we have come as a Nation.
    There is always a group of individuals who will attempt to drag us 
back to the time when terrorizing our communities were frequent 
occurrences--often without admonishment.
    The threat we received on Feb. 1, 2022, was an attempt once again 
to incite mass anxiety and fear reminiscent of yesteryear. The 
targeting of Black schools and sacred institutions has taken place in 
this country since their inception. Then and now, these threats are 
designed to intimidate and impede our sense of safety and freedom in an 
environment where our students deserve to feel protected at all times 
by all costs.
    At JSU, we were fortunate that our local, State, and Federal law 
enforcement agencies rallied behind us during this time. We appreciate 
the efforts of the Jackson Police Department, State of Mississippi 
Capitol Police and the FBI, who responded not just in words but in 
action, helping to provide the necessary resources to mitigate this 
threat. And of course, we thank the JSU Department of Public Safety, 
who on this day and every day work hard to protect our campus and 
students.
    Collectively, it is our responsibility to create safe environments 
for our campus community. They should be able to receive a nurturing 
learning experience in a protected environment free from distraction.
    But what will it take for us to ensure the long-term protection of 
not only our students, faculty, staff, and stakeholders but the 
historical assets that are HBCUs? And, it is with this context that I 
would like to address the 3 key areas in which this committee may 
assist us in meeting the moment. And we meet this moment by helping 
HBCUs:
   Receive equitable resources;
   Close the significant disparity between security challenges 
        and funding; and
   Counter those disparities thus ensuring sustainability.
    I think we all know the history of HBCUs in America. That our 
institutions were founded to educate newly-freed Black people who could 
not attend the already-established colleges and universities. Today, 
there are over 100 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in this 
country, and together we have educated millions--helping them realize 
the American Dream that was elusive to their ancestors.
    Over the past 75 years, HBCUs have provided undergraduate training 
for 75 percent of all Black Americans holding a doctorate degree, 75 
percent of all Black officers in the armed forces; and 80 percent of 
all Black Federal judges, according to the U.S. Department of 
Education.
    The intended disruption of HBCUs, like Jackson State University, is 
an intentional assault on the economic drivers of this country. It is 
also a deliberate attempt to destroy these cultural spaces where 
intellect and diverse thought thrives. And now, in 2022, we cannot sit 
idly by and simply wait for something to happen to these hallowed 
places. We cannot afford to be reactionary.
    While we share similarities with other colleges and universities--
indeed threats of violence may occur at any number of colleges--the 
truth is, unlike our counterparts, we have been routinely underfunded 
for years, which has led to deferred maintenance and deficiencies in 
our infrastructure.
    This long-term under-funding has consequences it limits our ability 
to pivot in an emergency.
    There is a significant mismatch between our security challenges and 
adequate funding levels to address this incongruity. This frequently 
puts HBCUs in a reactionary position due to our historical and 
persistent under-resourcing.
    While we do our best to manage risks, preparedness has to be the 
priority in order to deal with relative threats and close security gaps 
routinely experienced in HBCU environments.
    In short, our institutions need capacity-building resources for 
preparedness, mitigation, and prevention. Because it is true that many 
of us sit in Urban locations with open campuses; JSU is located in the 
heart of the capital city. While these settings contribute to the 
vibrant culture found at HBCUs, they also make us especially vulnerable 
to the very threats being discussed today.
    In addition, the lack of resources, unfortunately, finds many of 
our institutions with minimal staffing and sometimes limited on-the-
ground expertise, especially in cybersecurity. The long-term 
infrastructure issues--some of which are finally being addressed thanks 
to Members of this body--and the resulting years of deferred 
maintenance further compromises the physical security on our campus.
    But there is a way forward.
    At JSU, we aim to be a part of the solution by partnering with this 
body and others in addressing these deep-rooted issues. Our close 
collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security through the 
Office of Academic Engagement offers an exceptional opportunity to 
expand our capacity and access to much-needed resources.
    We seek the resources to develop and utilize Data Science 
technologies. . . .so that we may better understand and motivate 
resilience strategies while we build trust in the most vulnerable 
communities. We do this as we search for meaningful solutions in 
collaboration with local and regional partners.
    We also anticipate long-term investments to expand and sustain our 
criminal justice and urban planning programs in order to elevate and 
develop local and State-wide solutions and to serve as a National model 
and resource. These include:
   Building our capacity to on-board and graduate talented 
        students--thus allowing us to deploy skilled criminal justice 
        talent and human capital Nation-wide through the establishment 
        of a Center for Excellence.
   Collaborating with State, local, and Federal law enforcement 
        to identify emerging crime and security vulnerability trends.
   Improve the translational value of relevant data for those 
        with decision-making authority.
    We also need to acquire advanced security monitoring systems. Most 
HBCUs possess security data capture systems (often with limited 
distribution). However, these institutions often have low bandwidth and 
limited human resources for continuous monitoring. Further, enough 
server space may likely not be available for long-term data storage. 
These constitute major security challenges.
    Developing a tiered approach to resolving HBCU security issues and 
concerns is a must. We must also develop partnerships with our public-
school districts to jointly pursue initiatives for early interventions, 
conflict resolution training, and de-escalation protocols.
    Last, we must ensure sustainability so we do not find ourselves 
once again repeating the past. This means access to the critical 
expertise necessary to conduct comprehensive security vulnerability 
assessments. . . .assessments that will help to identify gaps and 
challenges and ensure we appropriately address physical, logistical, 
and digital resilience campus-wide.
    As HBCUs are major employers and economic drivers in our respective 
communities, it is vital that our institutions develop a community of 
practice principally focused on securing and strengthening the HBCU 
ecosystem for continued training, education, research, and economic 
development.
    I would like to close by saying we shall not be moved or paralyzed 
by malevolent threats. I am calling on you to help us bolster our 
arsenals because we all have the responsibility of ensuring our 
students can develop in environments free of violence, racism, and 
intolerance. We must protect our HBCUs, so that transformational 
education can and will always prevail.
    Thank you so much for your time.

    Chairman Thompson. Thank you, Dr. Hudson, for your 
testimony. I now recognize Attorney Nelson to summarize her 
statement for 5 minutes.

  STATEMENT OF JANAI NELSON, PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR-COUNSEL, 
                    NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND

    Ms. Nelson. Thank you and good morning, Chairman Thompson, 
Ranking Member Katko, and Member of the committee. My name is 
Janai Nelson and I am the president and director-counsel of the 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Thank you for the 
opportunity to testify about the escalating threat of violence 
against Black institutions and for your example of bipartisan 
partnership and leadership in introducing H.R. 6825.
    The Legal Defense Fund is a Black legacy institution 
founded in 1940 under the leadership of Thurgood Marshall, a 
graduate of two Historically Black Universities, Lincoln 
University and Howard University School of Law. LDF was 
launched at a time of wide-spread, State-sponsored violence and 
inequality. As the organization that litigated Brown v. Board 
of Education, which ended legal apartheid in the United States, 
LDF has long led the struggle for education equity and that 
struggle is on-going.
    On January 4, 2022, at least 8 HBCUs received what would be 
the first of an escalating number of bomb threats in just the 
first 3 months of this year. Following this initial rash of 
bomb threats, the FBI released a statement that they were being 
``investigated'' as racially- or ethnically-motivated violence 
extremism and hate crimes.
    As Chairman Thompson mentioned, this is a National security 
threat. The attacks did not stop. During the month of February, 
Black History Month, there was not a single week in which the 
safety and security of an HBCU and its predominantly Black 
student populations were not threatened with terrorist 
violence. An estimated 57 HBCUs and churches have received bomb 
threats this year alone.
    To understand why HBCUs are the target of such vitriol, we 
must understand their history. HBCUs were established in the 
early 19th century in direct resistance to State-sponsored 
denial of education for Black people. HBCUs were created to be 
safe havens for people for whom education was previously 
illegal or out of reach. They provided and continue to provide 
to this day the opportunity for predominantly Black student 
populations to receive equality, post-secondary education in a 
nurturing environment that lays bare the myths of White 
supremacy and Black inferiority.
    Although HBCUs make up only 3 percent of the country's 
colleges and universities, they enroll 10 percent of all Black 
students and product almost 20 percent of all Black graduates, 
including Howard University alumna Kamala Harris, the first 
Black woman Vice President of the United States.
    There is a long and ignominious history of bomb threats 
made and realized upon other Black institutions in the United 
States. As Reverend Manning mentioned, in 1963, the KKK 
infamously bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church, killing 4 
young girls and terrorizing more than 400 congregants. Black 
churches have remained a target of White extremist hate and 
violence as evidenced by the horrific mass killing at Mother 
Emanuel in 2015.
    This Nation also has a shameful history of using the powers 
of the State and private acts of violence to prevent Black 
people from receiving an education. HBCUs sit at the 
intersection of these painful histories of violence against 
Black people, Black legacy institutions, Black advancement, and 
Black education.
    Although White extremist activity and violence are not new, 
there has been a disturbing increase in recruitment, 
propaganda, and visibility of such groups in recent years. In 
2021, the FBI warned this very committee that the top threat we 
face from domestic violent extremists stems from those we 
identify as racially, ethnically motivated violent extremists.
    Indeed, racism is our greatest threat to National security. 
The bomb threats made to HBCUs are evidence of increased 
violence across the country.
    To reverse this harmful trend, in addition to the on-going 
investigation by the FBI, this committee must conduct a 
parallel investigation to ascertain the specific animus of 
these attacks, to determine how future occurrences can be 
prevented, and to issue findings and solutions to prevent this 
on-going threat. Congress must also ensure that HBCUs and other 
legacy institutions have the necessary funding to protect 
themselves from future attacks.
    To that end, Congress should pass H.R. 6825, the Nonprofit 
Security Grant Program Improvement Act, which would expand and 
strengthen the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. Despite these 
threats of terrors, HBCUs have remained resilient in their 
mission and Black religious organizations continue to serve as 
a central institution in Black communities across the Nation.
    But the continuing threat of racialized violence and the 
targeting of Black institutions is a scenario that no student, 
faculty, or staff member, religious leader, devotee, or 
institution should have to endure in 2022. We call on Congress 
to bring the full power and resources of the Federal Government 
to protect these hallowed institutions that strengthen and 
enrich our society, and to ensure the safety and security of 
every resident of this country regardless of race or ethnicity, 
especially those who are targets of domestic racial terror. 
Thank you.
    [The prepared statement of Ms. Nelson follows:]
                   Prepared Statement of Janai Nelson
                             March 17, 2022
    Good morning Chairman Thompson, Ranking Member Katko, and Members 
of the committee. My name is Janai Nelson, and I am the president and 
director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc 
(``LDF''). Thank you for the opportunity to testify regarding the 
targeting of Black institutions.
    LDF is the country's first and foremost civil rights law 
organization.\1\ Founded in 1940 under the leadership of Thurgood 
Marshall--a graduate of a Historically Black College and University 
(``HBCU'')--LDF was launched at a time when the Nation's aspirations 
for equality and due process of law were stifled by wide-spread State-
sponsored racial inequality. From that era to the present, LDF's 
mission has been transformative--to achieve racial justice, equality, 
and an inclusive society, using the power of law, narrative, research, 
and people to defend and advance the full dignity and citizenship of 
Black people in America.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ LDF has been an entirely separate organization from the NAACP 
since 1957.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    LDF's litigation, policy advocacy, organizing, and public education 
programs seek to ensure the fundamental rights of all people to quality 
education, economic opportunity, the right to vote and fully 
participate in democracy, and the right to a fair and just judicial 
system. As the organization that litigated Brown v. Board of 
Education,\2\ the landmark Supreme Court case that struck down 
segregation in public schools, LDF has long led the struggle for equal 
education in the United States. That struggle continues today, in our 
commitment to building K-12 and higher education learning institutions 
that foster diversity and advance racial justice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\ 347 U.S. 483 (1954).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
             overview and severity of the attacks on hbcu s
    On January 4, 2022, at least eight HBCUs received bomb threats: 
Howard University, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Prairie 
View A&M University, North Carolina Central University, Florida 
Memorial University, Norfolk State University, Spelman College, and 
Xavier University of Louisiana.\3\ The threats generally arrived during 
the afternoon or evening via an anonymous caller. In response, schools 
were forced to order evacuations or lockdowns, and to work with local 
law enforcement to secure their campuses. Although no bombs were found 
on any campus, students reported feeling distressed after the anonymous 
threats were called in. One Spelman student noted the similarities 
between these threats and past violence on HBCU campuses, stating 
``Black people are still facing discrimination and acts of violence . . 
. [t]he same way our ancestors faced during the civil rights movement 
and prior.''\4\ Another student remarked, ``I've never felt completely 
safe in this country as a Black woman and as a queer person. But this? 
This was a very tangible threat to not only my safety but the safety of 
my community, not just at Howard but across the country. HBCUs are very 
visible Black spaces. And that makes them very visible targets for 
White supremacists.''\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\ Andrew Jeong and Susan Svrluga, Howard University and at least 
7 other HBCUs receive bomb threats, triggering evacuations and 
lockdowns, Washington Post (Jan. 5, 2022), https://
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/01/05/hbcu-bomb-threats-howard-
university/.
    \4\ Petula Dvorak, Bomb threats damage us, even when nothing 
explodes, Washington Post (Feb. 10, 2022), https://
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/02/10/hbcu-bomb-threats-racial-
violence/.
    \5\ Esther Schrader, HBCU students and leaders `lean into history' 
amid bomb threats, Southern Poverty Law Center (Feb. 9, 2022), https://
www.splcenter.org/news/2022/02/09/hbcu-presidents-students-react-bomb-
threats.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    On January 31, 2022, we saw another series of bomb threats 
targeting at least 6 HBCUs: Southern University and A&M College, Howard 
University, Bethune-Cookman University, Albany State University, Bowie 
State University, and Delaware State University.\6\ After these attacks 
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (``FBI'') stated it was ``aware of 
the series of bomb threats around the country'' and was ``working with 
our law enforcement partners to address any potential threats.''\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \6\ Paulina Firozi, At least six historically Black colleges and 
universities receive bomb threats, Washington Post (Jan. 31, 2022), 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/01/31/university-bomb-
threats-hbcu/.
    \7\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The next day, on February 1, 2022, the first day of Black History 
Month, another round of bomb threats were received at 16 HBCUs: Rust 
College, Tougaloo College, Jackson State University, Alcorn State 
University, Mississippi Valley State University, Fort Valley State 
University, Spelman College, Morgan State University, Coppin State 
University, Harris-Stowe State University, Kentucky State University, 
Xavier University of Louisiana, Philander Smith College, Edward Waters 
University, Howard University, and the University of the District of 
Columbia.\8\ Immediately following the February 1 attacks, the FBI 
released a statement that the threats were being ``investigated as 
racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism and hate 
crimes.''\9\ However, the attacks did not stop. During the month of 
February, Black History month, there was not a week without a bomb 
threat made to HBCUs.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \8\ Lauren Lumpkin and Susan Svrluga, Fear, anxiety follow third 
wave of bomb threats targeting HBCUs, Washington Post (Feb. 1, 2022), 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/02/01/hbcu-bomb-threats-
campus-reactions/.
    \9\ FBI Statement on Investigation into Bomb Threats to 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Houses of Worship, 
(Feb. 2, 2022), https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-
statement-on-investigation-into-bomb-threats-to-historically-black-
colleges-and-universities-and-houses-of-worship.
    \10\ On February 8, 2022, Spelman College received a bomb threat. 
On February 14, 2022, both Howard University and Fisk University 
received bomb threats. On February 16, 2022, 3 institutions received 
bomb threats: Fayetteville State University, Claflin University, and 
Winston-Salem State University. On February 23, 2022, Hampton 
University received a bomb threat.\10\[sic] On February 25, 2022, at 
least 3 institutions received a bomb threat: Norfolk State University, 
Elizabeth City State University, and Dillard University. Testimony of 
Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough President, Dillard University Chairman, Council 
of Presidents, United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Before the U.S. Senate 
Committee on the Judiciary (March 8, 2022), https://
www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Kimbrough%20testimony1.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        importance of hbcu s and the effects of violent threats
    HBCU's were established in the early 19th Century to provide 
undergraduate- and graduate-level educational opportunities for people 
of African descent. Many of the 101-accredited HBCUs were founded 
toward the end of the Civil War when it was still dangerous to educate 
freed slaves or their progeny. HBCUs were created in direct resistance 
to the limitations placed on education for Black people.\11\ They were 
created to be safe havens, primarily for people for whom education was 
previously illegal or out of reach but provided the opportunity to 
receive an education to everyone who applied--regardless of race or 
ethnicity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \11\ Historically Black Colleges and Universities, National Center 
for Education Statistics (last visited Mar. 12, 2022), https://
nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=667.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Today, HBCUs continue that legacy. They provide students with a 
safe space to earn a quality education. Though HBCUs make up only 3% of 
the country's colleges and universities, they enroll 10% of all African 
American students and produce almost 20% of all African American 
graduates.\12\ In science, technology, engineering, and mathematics or 
``STEM'' fields, HBCUs produce 24% of all bachelor's degrees received 
by African Americans.\13\ Concentrated in 19 States, the District of 
Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, HBCUs enroll nearly 300,000 
students, approximately 80% of whom are African American.\14\ HBCUs 
have historically produced some of the most accomplished and 
trailblazing individuals in this country.\15\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \12\ HBCUs Make America Strong: The Positive Economic Impact of 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities, United Negro College 
Fund: Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute (last visited Mar. 15, 
2022), https://cdn.uncf.org/wp-content/uploads/HBCU_Consumer_Bro- 
chure_FINAL_APPROVED.pdf?_ga=2.249529666.474259404.1647352517585719881.1
64- 6852182.
    \13\ K.M. Saunders and B.T. Nagle, HBCUs Punching Above Their 
Weight: A State-Level Analysis of Historically Black College and 
University Enrollment Graduation, UNCF Frederick D. Patterson Research 
Institute (2018). Available at https://cdn.uncf.org/wp-content/uploads/
PATW_Report_FINAL0919.pdf?_ga=2.87072989.474259404.1647352517-
585719881.164- 6852182.
    \14\ U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education 
Statistics. (2020). Digest of education statistics 2019 [Table 313.20]. 
Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/tables/
dt19313.20.asp.
    \15\ Thurgood Marshall, a civil rights lawyer, the first Black 
Supreme Court Justice, and the founder of LDF, graduated Lincoln 
University in Pennsylvania. Who Was Thurgood Marshall, NAACP Legal 
Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (last visited Mar. 14, 2022), 
https://www.naacpldf.org/about-us/history/thurgood-marshall/; Scholar 
and civil rights activist, W.E.B. Dubois, attended Fisk University in 
Nashville, Tennessee before becoming the first African American to 
receive a doctorate from Harvard College. W.E.B. Du Bois, Hutchins 
Center for African & African American Research, Harvard University 
(last visited Mar. 14, 2022), https://hutchinscenter.fas.harvard.edu/
web-dubois; Toni Morrison graduated from Howard University, in 
Washington, DC before going on to become the first African American 
woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Toni Morrison, National 
Women's History Museum (last visited Mar. 14, 2022), https://
www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/toni-morrison; 
George Edward Alcorn, pioneering physicist and engineer noted for his 
aerospace and semiconductor inventions, graduated from Howard 
University. George Edward Alcorn X-Ray Spectrometer, National Inventors 
Hall of Fame (last visited Mar. 14, 2022), https://www.invent.org/
inductees/george-edward-alcorn; Former chair of Microsoft Corporation 
and lead independent director of the Microsoft Board of Directors, John 
W. Thompson, is a graduate of Florida A&M University. Executive 
Officers, Microsoft (last visited Mar. 14, 2022), https://
news.microsoft.com/exec/john-w-thompson/. Media mogul, journalist, 
celebrity, philanthropist, and entrepreneur, Oprah Winfrey graduated 
from Tennessee State University. Oprah Winfrey, Britannica (last 
visited Mar. 14, 2022), https://www.britannica.com/biography/Oprah-
Winfrey; See generally, DeNeen L. Brown, How crucial are historically 
black colleges? Just look at who's graduated from them, Washington Post 
(May 10, 2017), https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/
05/08/from-mlk-to-oprah-winfrey-historically-black-colleges-educate-
african-american-pioneers/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    These bomb threats disrupt college routines for students, interrupt 
teaching for faculty, and disrupt the work of administrative staff of 
HBCUs. The threats have prompted colleges and universities to 
temporarily cancel in-person classes, lock down buildings and ask 
people to shelter in place in order to ensure the safety of everyone on 
campus. Most notably, these attacks terrorize students, professors, and 
staff. The constant threat of violence reminds everyone on these 
campuses that they are not safe at school. Indeed, the FBI's 
investigation of these threats of violence indicate they are intended 
to intimidate students and to stoke fear among campuses specifically 
because HBCUs are known to predominately serve Black students.\16\ 
Recently, the FBI reported that the people calling in these bomb 
threats claim to be affiliated with Neo-Nazi group the Atomwaffen 
Division (``AWD'').\17\ The Southern Poverty Law Center has designated 
AWD as a hate group.\18\ AWD believes that its mission--a fascist 
political order--can only be achieved through acts of violence aimed at 
the state, Jewish people, Black people, and people of color, liberals, 
and those who stand in solidarity with such communities. Indeed, 
members of AWD call themselves ``accelerationists'' because they 
embrace violence as an essential part of their political 
revolution.\19\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \16\ FBI Statement on Investigation into Bomb Threats to 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Houses of Worship, 
(Feb. 2, 2022), https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-
statement-on-investigation-into-bomb-threats-to-historically-black-
colleges-and-universities-and-houses-of-worship; Michael Levenson, 
Katie Benner and Giulia Heyward, Six Juveniles Are Persons of Interest 
in Threats to Historically Black Colleges, New York Times (Feb. 2, 
2022), https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/02/us/hbcu-bomb-threats.html.
    \17\ Jeff Martin and Michael Balsamo, HBCU bomb threat caller 
described elaborate plot: police, Associated Press (Feb. 2, 2022), 
https://apnews.com/article/education-florida-race-and-ethnicity-bomb-
threats-daytona-beach-1643a14133f9a395502ea336892ec8f3.
    \18\ Atomwaffen Division, Southern Poverty Law Center (last visited 
Mar. 12, 2022), https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-
files/group/atomwaffen-division.
    \19\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The visibility of HBCUs has increased in recent years, particularly 
following the election of Howard University alumna Kamala Harris as the 
first Black woman Vice President of the United States. As HBCUs have 
become more visible, they have also become more apparent targets for 
those who would sow hate. HBCUs are targeted specifically because they 
represent the independence, resilience, and unbounded intellectual 
capacity of Black Americans, which is a threat to White supremacist 
ideology.
    Additionally, these threats create significant, unexpected 
financial costs for institutions that have been systematically 
underfunded by State legislatures and the Federal Government for 
decades.\20\ Many HBCUs are land-grant institutions, or schools founded 
by State legislatures to foster agricultural research and instruction 
and receive much of their funding through State legislatures. Compared 
to their White counterparts, Black land-grant universities have been 
underfunded by at least $12.8 billion over the last 3 decades.\21\ 
Funding for land-grant institutions is distributed at the discretion of 
the State legislature and in many cases, State legislatures choose to 
overfund White land-grant institutions while barely meeting the 
required funding for Black land-grant institutions. For example, in 
2020, the Tennessee General Assembly provided $69.4 million in land-
grant dollars, or $2,460 per student, to the University of Tennessee. 
That is more than 4 times its required match of funding.\22\ Notably, 
77% of the University of Tennessee's student population is White. By 
contrast, the Tennessee General Assembly provided Tennessee State 
University, an HBCU, $8.7 million or $1,318 per student--12% above its 
required match. Moreover, reports suggest that the Tennessee General 
Assembly only started meeting its matching requirement for Tennessee 
State University in 2017.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \20\ Susan Adams and Hank Tucker, For HBCUs Cheated Out Of 
Billions, Bomb Threats Are The Latest Indignity, Forbes (February/March 
2022), https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2022/02/01/for-hbcus-
cheated-out-of-billions-bomb-threats-are-latest-indignity/
?sh=7cf01fd3640c.
    \21\ Id.
    \22\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    At least in part because of funding disparities, HBCUS are more 
tuition-dependent than other colleges and universities. Without 
redress, these bomb threats could serve to reduce enrollment at HBCUs 
and therefore have a long-term impact on revenue and viability. The 
bomb threats also impose immediate costs for security measures and 
other actions that HBCUs may be forced to undertake in order to 
maintain the safety of their campuses and the mental health and 
physical safety of their students. In a letter to all students, Howard 
University Chief of Police Marcus Lyles noted that, although the bomb 
threats against the university had not been credible, they were ``a 
drain on institutional and municipal resources.''\23\ To increase 
security personnel, augment surveillance equipment, install physical 
barriers, or integrate safety procedures more closely with local police 
departments could prove to be a significant financial burden for HBCUs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \23\ A Message from Chief Lyles on Bomb Threat Safety, Howard 
University (Jan. 31, 2022), https://howard.edu/node/841.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     historical significance of bomb threats to black institutions
    There is a long and horrific history of bomb threats made and 
realized upon Black institutions in the United States. Infamously, in 
1963 members of the Ku Klux Klan (``KKK'') planted bombs in the 16th 
Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, terrorizing the more than 
400 congregants, injuring more than 20 people, and killing 4 young 
girls.\24\ African American churches such as the 16th Street Baptist 
Church were fundamental in the organization of protest activity 
throughout the Civil Rights Movement. As hubs of power, imagination, 
and community, Black churches were often targeted with violence and 
terror.\25\ Indeed, in an effort to intimidate demonstrators, members 
of the KKK would routinely telephone churches with bomb threats 
intended to disrupt meetings of organizers and protestors as well as 
regular church services.\26\ The attack on the 16th Street Baptist 
Church exemplifies the tragic outcomes when threats become reality.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \24\ Four Black Girls Killed in Church Bombing in Birmingham, 
Alabama, Equal Justice Initiative (last visited March 11, 2022), 
https://calendar.eji.org/racial-injustice/sep/15.
    \25\ Sarah Kaplan and Justin Wm. Moyer, Why racists target black 
churches, Washington Post (Jul. 1, 2015), https://
www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/07/01/why-racists-burn-
black-churches/; Matthew Cressler, Why White Terrorists Attack Black 
Churches, Slate (June 19, 2015), https://slate.com/news-and-politics/
2015/06/charleston-ame-church-shooting-dylann-roof-is-the-latest-in-a-
long-line-of-white-terrorists-terrified-by-the-political-power-of-
black-churches.html; Michael Eric Dyson, Love and Terror in the Black 
Church, New York Times (June 20, 2015), https://www.nytimes.com/2015/
06/21/opinion/michael-eric-dyson-love-and-terror-in-the-black-
church.html.
    \26\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Black churches remained a target of White supremacist hate and 
violence through the 1990's and to the present. From 1994 to 1996 Black 
churches across the southeast were fire-bombed, prompting Congressional 
hearings to address the violence.\27\ In 2015, a White supremacist 
walked into Bible study at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal 
Church in Charleston, South Carolina--often referred to as Mother 
Emanuel--and opened fire. The perpetrator murdered 9 people who 
welcomed him into their sacred space to discuss scripture, specifically 
because they were Black.\28\ Mother Emanuel had long been a target of 
racialized violence. In 1822, it was burned as a result of its 
association with Denmark Vesey, a formerly enslaved Black man who tried 
to organize a slave revolt.\29\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \27\ Conor Friedersdorf, Thugs and Terrorists Have Attacked Black 
Churches for Generations, the Atlantic (June 18, 2015), https://
www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/06/thugs-and-terrorists-have-
plagued-black-churches-for-generations/396212/.
    \28\ Yamiche Alcindor and Doug Stanglin, Affidavits spell out 
chilling case against Dylann Roof, USA Today (June 19, 2015), https://
www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/06/19/dylann-roof-charleston-
police-charged-murder-black-church/28975573/.
    \29\ Kat Chow, Denmark Vesey And The History Of Charleston's 
`Mother Emanuel' Church, National Public Radio (June 18, 2015), https:/
/www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2015/06/18/415465656/denmark-vesey-
and-the-history-of-charleston-s-mother-emanuel-church.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    This Nation also has a shameful history of using the powers of the 
State and private acts of violence to prevent Black people from 
receiving an education. Before and during the Civil War, States 
instituted laws forbidding enslaved people from learning to read or 
write.\30\ Between 1740 and 1834, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, 
Mississippi, North and South Carolina, and Virginia all passed anti-
literacy laws.\31\ Many of these laws made teaching enslaved people to 
read or write punishable by fines, imprisonment, and physical 
punishments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \30\ See South Carolina Act of 1740; Virginia Revised Code of 1819.
    \31\ Peri Stone-Palmquist, Still Not Free: Connecting The Dots Of 
Education Injustice, Dignity in Schools (Feb. 13, 2020), https://
dignityinschools.org/still-not-free-connecting-the-dots-of-education-
injustice/
#:?:text=Between%201740%20and%201834%2C%20Alabama,fines%2C%20- 
imprisonment%20and%20physical%20punishments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Efforts to prevent Black people from earning an education continued 
even after the end of the Civil War. In 1865, an arsonist set fire to 
Wilberforce University, in Ohio, the first college owned and operated 
by Black people.\32\ In 1866, LeMoyne-Owen College, a private HBCU in 
Tennessee, was destroyed in a fire during a race massacre that summoned 
Federal troops to the area.\33\ In 1876, a suspicious fire destroyed an 
administrative building at Claflin University, a private HBCU in South 
Carolina and in 1905 a fire destroyed Roger Williams University, an 
HBCU in Nashville, Tennessee.\34\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \32\ Charlie Tyson, For Storied Institution, a Historic Low, Inside 
Higher Ed (June 30, 2020), https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/06/
30/wilberforce-university-countrys-oldest-private-historically-black-
institution-could#:?:text=In%201865%2C%20on%20the%20night,the%20- 
latter%20'seems%20more%20likely).
    \33\ LeMoyne-Owen College, Our History, (last visited Mar. 3, 
2022), https://www.loc.edu/about-us/our-history/.
    \34\ Testimony of Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough President, Dillard 
University Chairman, Council of Presidents, United Negro College Fund 
(UNCF) Before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary (March 8, 
2022), https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Kimbrough%20- 
testimony1.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Educational institutions, houses of worship, and other community 
institutions have historically been regarded as safe spaces for all 
people--sanctuaries for communities to gather, share, learn, 
fellowship, and build relationships. This is particularly true for 
communities of color.
    The bomb threats against more than one-third of all HBCUs have 
shaken this sense of safety and security. Though White supremacist 
activity and violence is not new, there has been a disturbing increase 
in recruitment, propaganda, and visibility of such groups in recent 
years. According to data from the Anti-Defamation League, White 
supremacist propaganda distribution on college campuses steadily 
increased from 2016 to 2019.\35\ On college and university campuses, 
propaganda messages have both subtly and explicitly attacked minority 
groups, including Jews, Blacks, Muslims, non-White immigrants and the 
LGBTQ community.\36\ In addition to increased recruitment on college 
campuses, the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University 
identified on-line video-games and streaming platforms as another space 
that is ripe with White supremacist recruitment efforts.\37\ Internet-
based platforms, websites, and social spaces have also been levied by 
such groups to increase fundraising, communicate and organize members 
between different countries, and to amplify messages of hate. Notably, 
the FBI reported more than 8,000 hate crimes in 2020, the highest total 
in more than a decade.\38\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \35\ White Supremacists Continue to Spread Hate on American 
Campuses, Anti-Defamation League (June 27, 2019), https://www.adl.org/
blog/white-supremacists-continue-to-spread-hate-on-american-campuses.
    \36\ Mallory Simon and Sara Sidner, White supremacists increase 
recruiting efforts at colleges, ADL says, CNN (June 28, 2019), https://
www.cnn.com/2019/06/27/us/white-supremacist-recruiting-efforts-at-
colleges-soh/index.html.
    \37\ A National Policy Blueprint To End White Supremacist Violence, 
Center for American Progress (Apr. 21, 2021), https://
www.americanprogress.org/article/national-policy-blueprint-end-white-
supremacist-violence/; David Gambacorta, Hate crimes are soaring. White 
supremacists have a new recruitment tool: Video games, Philadelphia 
Inquirer (Jan. 3, 2022), https://www.inquirer.com/news/pennsylvania-
researchers-combat-white-supremacists-extremism-philadelphia-
20220103.html.
    \38\ FBI Releases Updated 2020 Hate Crime Statistics, Federal 
Bureau of Investigations (Oct. 25, 2021), https://www.fbi.gov/news/
pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-updated-2020-hate-crime-
statistics.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The bomb threats made to HBCUs must be considered as part of the 
evidenced increase in activity of White supremacist violence across the 
country. Congress cannot avoid confronting this particular scourge of 
violence as a form of domestic terrorism and addressing it as a matter 
of National security. Indeed, just last year, the FBI testified before 
this committee that ``the top threat we face from domestic violent 
extremists stems from those we identify as racially/ethnically 
motivated violent extremists.''\39\ As instances of White supremacist 
violence continue to increase throughout the country, and as White 
supremacist groups continue to increase recruitment efforts on-line and 
on college campuses, Congress must take seriously the threat of 
violence in Black and minority communities especially as it relates to 
National security.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \39\ Christopher Wray, Worldwide Threats to the Homeland, Statement 
Before the House Homeland Security Committee, Federal Bureau of 
Investigations (Sep. 17, 2020), https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/
worldwide-threats-to-the-homeland-091720.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                the urgent need for congressional action
    Recently, both chambers of Congress passed Resolutions condemning 
the string of bomb threats made to HBCUs.\40\ However, more must be 
done to ensure the safety of students, faculty, and administrators at 
HBCUs. The egregious nature of these crimes, their scope and scale, and 
the racist motivations behind them deserve specific and immediate 
attention. The bomb threats, like increased violence and defacement 
against synagogues,\41\ demonstrate an increased and brazen willingness 
to attack institutions of minority communities. Such communities have 
faced discrimination and attack for years and deserve the support and 
protection of the Federal Government.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \40\ H.Con. Res. 70: Condemning threats of violence against 
historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and reaffirming 
support for HBCUs and their students, 117th Congress (2021-2022). 
Available at https://www.Congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-
concurrent-resolution/70; S.Res. 534--A resolution condemning threats 
of violence against historically Black colleges and universities and 
reaffirming support for the students of historically Black colleges and 
universities, 117th Congress (2021-2022). Available at https://
www.Congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-resolution/534.
    \41\ Six Facts About Threats to The Jewish Community, Anti-
Defamation League (Jan. 16, 2022), https://www.adl.org/blog/six-facts-
about-threats-to-the-jewish-community.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Congress must act to ensure everyone can pursue the education of 
their choice, free from threat, terror, or hate. In addition to 
ensuring that the FBI completes a thorough investigation of these 
attacks, this committee must conduct a parallel investigation to 
ascertain the specific underlying animus, determine how to prevent 
future occurrences, and issue findings and solutions to prevent this 
on-going threat.
    Congress must also ensure HBCUs have the funding necessary to 
protect themselves from these attacks. HBCUs should be encouraged--and 
given the financial support--to preemptively work with local law 
enforcement to assess campus readiness and communicate to students and 
faculty the appropriate steps to take if the university comes under 
threat. Ensuring that HBCUs and other Black institutions have the 
necessary resources for safety, including the implementation of 
preventative protocols or systems, must be a priority of this committee 
and Congress. The American Rescue Plan provided a record-breaking $2.7 
billion in HBCUs to be used as direct financial relief to students and 
to assist in the maintenance of quality education throughout the COVID-
19 pandemic.\42\ This investment should expand to include emerging 
safety concerns at HBCUs which, if left unaddressed, could undermine 
the commitment Congress and this administration has made to the 
vitality of these institutions. Additionally, Congress should look to 
the White House's Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, 
Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans 
(``Initiative'') for policy recommendations from those most impacted by 
these threats of violence. The Initiative provides youth and other 
impacted people with the opportunity to share effective programs, best 
practices, and policy recommendations designed to ensure all students 
feel and are safe and supported throughout their education.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \42\ FACT SHEET: State-by-State Analysis of Record $2.7 Billion 
American Rescue Plan Investment in Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities, White House Statements and Releases (March 7, 2022), 
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/03/
07/fact-sheet-state-by-state-analysis-of-record-2-7-billion-american-
rescue-plan-investment-in-historically black-colleges-and-
universities/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Finally, Congress should pass H.R. 6825 the Nonprofit Security 
Grant Program Improvement Act which would expand and strengthen the 
Nonprofit Security Grant Program (``NSGP''). Although the NSGP was 
appropriated at $180 million during fiscal year 2021--doubling funding 
from the previous year--the rate of applications to NSGP and the recent 
threats made to HBCUs warrants additional expansion of the grant 
program.\43\ The Nonprofit Security Grant Program Improvement Act would 
address this increased need by increasing funding to $500,000,000 for 
each fiscal year 2023 through 2028.\44\ It would also establish an 
office within the Federal Emergency Management Agency to exclusively 
handle grant requests, process applications, and provide outreach, 
engagement, and public education support. Funding for public awareness 
campaigns and community outreach is critical in this moment as White 
supremacists target HBCUs, Black churches, synagogues, mosques and 
other institutions with increased frequency and random selection. The 
bill been endorsed by the Jewish Federations of North America, the 
Anti-Defamation League, the Sikh Coalition, the Secure Community 
Network, and the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, 
National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc. and has broad bipartisan 
support.\45\ It's passage is critical in ensuring that HBCUs and other 
institutions have the funding necessary to continue to operate and 
ensure the security of their members.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \43\ In fiscal year 2021, there were a total of 3,361 NSGP 
applicants requesting approximately $400 million reflecting more than a 
$200 million delta between requests and funding. Fiscal Year 2021 
Nonprofit Security Grant Program Fact Sheet, DEPT. OF HOMELAND 
SECURITY, https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/
fema_fy2021-nsgp-nofo_3-2-2021.pdf (accessed Jan. 25, 2022).
    \44\ H.R. 6825 Nonprofit Security Grant Program Improvement Act of 
2022, 117th Cong. Available at https://www.Congress.gov/bill/117th-
congress/house-bill/6825/all-info.
    \45\ Thompson, Katko Introduce Legislation to Expand Grant Program 
to Protect Nonprofits and Houses of Worship, Committee on Homeland 
Security (Feb. 28, 2022), https://homeland.house.gov/news/legislation/
thompson-katko-introduce-legislation-to-expand-grant-program-to-
protect-nonprofits-and-houses-of-worship.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                               conclusion
    HBCUs continue to provide high-quality education to their students, 
and safe work environments to their faculty and staff in the face of 
alarming and disruptive threats of violence. The perpetrators of the 
most recent racist threats to HBCUs has yet to be found, and the 
specter of violence continues to loom. Though the sense of terror on 
campuses has not dissipated, HBCUs have remained resilient in their 
mission and HBCU students, faculty, and administrators have not been 
silenced, nor have they been deterred from their goals. Nevertheless, 
the continuing threat of racialized violence and targeting of HBCs is a 
scenario no student, faculty, or staff member, or institution should 
have to endure. We call on Congress provide the necessary resources to 
protect HBCUs, which continue to strengthen our society as a whole and 
to ensure the safety and security of students, faculty, and 
administrators on HBCU campuses.

    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. I appreciate the 
witnesses for their excellent testimony.
    At this point, I will ask some questions and then refer to 
the Ranking Member for his.
    President Hudson, normally when people send their children 
to a college or university, there are some assumptions about 
safety and security. Can you share with the committee what 
impact those threats have with both student, faculty, and the 
parents of those young people attending Jackson State 
University?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, Mr. Chairman. First of all, it brings a 
sense of anxiety and fear, introduces that to the learning 
process, which should never be a part of the learning process. 
The hardest part about being a student should come in the 
classroom and not outside the classroom. What this does, it has 
introduced a level of anxiety.
    It also, with respect to our parents, who, again, want to 
ensure their student's safety, it causes them to look at the 
university and look to us for what additional steps we may be 
able to take to ensure that these things don't happen again. As 
you are aware, most HBCUs, like JSU, sit in urban centers. 
While these add to the culture of the university, they do make 
us more vulnerable.
    For JSU, we are having to take steps around the 
infrastructure of the campus to really work toward ensuring and 
give those ensures to the parents that we do have the ability 
to make their children safe. It is an on-going effort. It does 
impact learning, but we are determined to mitigate that as much 
as possible.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. I assume with that 
comes a price tag.
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, sir, it does. It does. Also, I might add, 
you know, security data systems, which is a primary weakness 
for a lot of HBCUs, just the ability to store that level of 
data that allows us to better monitor the campus and the areas 
around campus, all of those things come with a price tag. 
Again, the underfunding that I discussed earlier does play a 
role in kind-of keeping up behind in that effort.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. Reverend Manning, 
again, the assumption is that when people come to church there 
is an expectation that as a house of worship you are safe. The 
experience at Mother Emanuel is quite the opposite. Can you 
tell us in the wake of what occurred what you as a church have 
put together to secure the safety and security of those persons 
worshiping there?
    Rev. Manning. Well, Chairman Thompson, I would say, 
initially, of course, what we did and part of my testimony was 
the short-term, which was developing a security plan, then, of 
course, rolling out multiple cameras across the entire campus. 
Now, of course, pre-COVID, when we would gather for worship or 
even Bible Study or meetings of the church we would have off-
duty police officers to continue to provide at least a form of 
comfort for all the parishioners that are coming in.
    We also have a security detail within Mother Emanuel, as 
well, who are premilitary and also have experience in the law 
enforcement area. So, we have done our very best to ensure that 
the members are safe when they come into the worship service.
    One of the things that we have been kind-of slow to do is 
to work through an active-shooter scenario, just by virtue of 
the fact that this is still a crime scene. Many members are 
still traumatized even when they see yellow signs that are on 
the outside of the church.
    So, we have tried to gently as we possibly could, being 
trauma-informed, to do our very best to ensure that all the 
members are safe when they do come in, as I said before, by 
hiring off-duty police officers, deploying cameras, having key 
fobs, and also various other security measures.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. Given what you have 
heard, Ms. Nelson, and your experience with your organization, 
do you see the value of a Nonprofit Security Grant in helping 
these institutions in order to secure themselves? If you have 
some recommendations as to other things we could do as a 
Congress, I would love to hear from you at this point.
    Ms. Nelson. Yes. Thank you, Chairman. I absolutely think 
that the expansion of funding for HBCUs for other nonprofit 
institutions and places of worship is essential as a preventive 
measure for additional violence. The threat against Black 
institutions continues to loom large. It continues to impact 
the psyches of students and parishioners who attend religious 
institutions. It also has a significant financial impact.
    These institutions are now required to provide security in 
a way that many other institutions don't have to worry about 
simply because of the racial or religious make-up of their 
constituencies. This requires not just additional physical 
infrastructure, but technological support. It also, for HBCUs 
in particular, may require additional resources around mental 
health services. Students have been traumatized by these 
threats of violence that disrupt their learning environment and 
that subject them to a constant threat of potential violence in 
a space that is meant to be a safe haven for their education.
    So those resources can serve to improve the campus 
environment and improve the safety and protect those 
populations both on campuses and at religious institutions 
across the country.
    Chairman Thompson. The Chair recognizes the Ranking Member.
    Mr. Katko. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Reverend Manning, when 
I was listening to your testimony, I was recalling the carnage 
that your congregation experienced and it is just--it is 
unfathomable to me as a father and as a husband and a former 
prosecutor. It really--I remember that day and my only regret 
is that I wasn't able to leave this job and prosecute that 
individual myself.
    But going forward, I heard from you, you mentioned the 
security plan and the Chairman asked about it, and I want to 
talk to you a little bit more about that. But I wanted to know 
what President Hudson said, as well, is that you said words to 
the effect that we shouldn't be intimidated by these threats, 
and I couldn't agree more. But you also mentioned the anxiety 
and fear that students--and I think the Reverend talked about 
the anxiety and the fear that people are experiencing because 
of these threats and because of these horrific acts.
    To some extent, based on my experience with some of the 
other religious institutions that have been subject to attacks 
like these, that fear can be ameliorated by a really good 
security plan. That is really what I want to talk about.
    Reverend, when I heard you talk about the security plan and 
it cost you more than $50,000, I started doing the math in my 
head. Even though I stink at math, it doesn't take a genius to 
figure out that before too long the numbers get real as to the 
numbers we need to help you with these grants.
    So, Reverend Manning, when you talk about--I think you said 
the security plan you had cost more than $50,000. What time 
period are you talking about for that?
    Rev. Manning. Thank you, Ranking Member Katko. Well, I 
think--not I think, that plan actually--or that cost has been 
since 2015 up to present day.
    Mr. Katko. OK, thank you very much.
    Rev. Manning. So----
    Mr. Katko. That is helpful. You know, there are a lot of 
churches, right? Now we have this threat to universities. 
President Hudson, have you ever tried to put a dollar figure on 
what it would cost to make your campus more secure and what 
would that entail?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes. Before I cite the specific number, I must 
add that holistically you are looking at more training for your 
campus security, campus police. You are looking at better data 
science capabilities, increasing your bandwidth, increasing 
your ability to store the type of data you need so you can do 
your threat assessments and go back and provide that historical 
analysis.
    You are talking about the overall infrastructure of campus. 
As I mentioned before, most of our HBCUs and a lot of 
universities in general sit in those urban areas with open 
access. It does make us more vulnerable to attack. So, how do 
you fix the infrastructure around campus to make your campus--
while you still want to be accessible to the community, it does 
provide a few more checkpoints and does help with that overall 
safety?
    From a price tag standpoint, the infrastructural 
improvements alone, the physical improvements cost around $10 
million is our price tag. When you get into data----
    Mr. Katko. One university?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, one university, correct. When you get into 
data access, data security, access to data, increasing your 
bandwidth, you can tack on a couple of more million just for 
that. But, again, that is going to be an on-going cost. Those 
are monthly things that you have to continue to monitor. So, 
those are just some of them.
    Certainly, the grants, the $50,000 grant, will help in some 
of the training efforts that you need to really help get you 
started and also in helping you develop those holistic plans, 
which themselves have a price tag before you even get to the 
real work.
    So, it is going to be an on-going effort. This is something 
we will forever deal with. Threats can come at any time. You 
always have to take those steps to mitigate those risks and 
those threats. Again, appreciate this committee for working 
with us and really being partners with us in how do we become--
provide solutions not only for JSU, but other HBCUs and 
universities across the Nation.
    Mr. Katko. Thank you very much. You know, I think about the 
very first bill I had passed in Congress was to honor Gerardo 
Hernandez, a TSA officer who was shot and killed at an airport 
just by doing his job in an airport in Los Angeles. That bill 
mandated training, like active-shooter training situations and 
trying to get people to think actively about what to do if the 
situation arises. That is something I think we need to think 
about going forward. I would strongly encourage however many 
dollars we can get you that that be a high priority because 
active-shooter training really does work and really does help 
save lives. So, I would just respectfully offer that, as well.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my 
time.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. You are absolutely 
correct.
    The other thing we are trying to put together is a packet 
of resources that we can offer colleges, universities, houses 
of worship from the training and coordination standpoint. 
Because when these things happen, it is not just the security 
apparatus of that institution involved, it is all the other 
people who come, so.
    Mr. Katko. Yes, it is clearly a holistic effort and that is 
the essence of what homeland security is about, so I agree with 
you totally.
    Chairman Thompson. That is right. The Chair recognizes the 
gentleman from Rhode Island, Mr. Langevin, for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Langevin. Thank you, Chairman. Can you hear me OK?
    Chairman Thompson. Yes, we can.
    Mr. Langevin. Very good. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to 
say good morning to our witnesses. Thank you for your very 
poignant, very insightful, and important testimony today.
    It really seems reasonable to me that we should expect 
HBCUs to handle addressing these increasing threats of violence 
alone. I am glad that we're having this hearing today. The same 
goes for other Black institutions, like houses of worship, as 
illustrated by Reverend Manning's poignant testimony this 
morning.
    I just want to begin by commending my friend Chairman 
Thompson for his efforts to invigorate the Nonprofit Security 
Grant Program to address this issue. Increasing the funding for 
this program, as this Congress did last week, and as the 
Nonprofit Security Grant Improvement Act will do even further, 
I believe is a critical step. I also think it is critical to 
raise awareness of the security resources that are available 
for Black institutions at this time of increased racially-
motivated violence.
    If I could start with President Hudson and Ms. Nelson, in 
your testimony you spoke of the funding challenges that face 
HBCUs, like Jackson State University, but also of how the 
increase in bomb threats at HBCUs is creating new costs for 
these universities as they move to invest not only in the 
security of the campuses, but also in the physical and mental 
health of their students. So, I wondered can you speak in more 
detail of how these new costs could impact the resources that 
HBCUs are able to put toward academics or toward other programs 
that are essential to student life?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, and thank you so much for that question. 
What this does and what these threats do is really expose some 
of the underlying issues that have been caused by the 
historical underfunding. So when you look at these issues, they 
expose the gaps that we have had in our security. They expose 
gaps we have had in our infrastructure, which does, you know, 
again, make our campuses more vulnerable. Even gaps we might 
have in our ability to offer those mental health services to 
our students.
    There is only a finite pool of resources that are available 
to us. We obviously are going to prioritize our core mission, 
which is the education, the teaching, and learning of our 
students. But those things that affect teaching and learning, 
when you have a bomb threat, the ability to offer extra 
security, the ability to upgrade your data systems, those cost 
additional resources that are just often not available.
    So, for HBCUs, what you are really looking at is the result 
of that historical underfunding showing some of the 
vulnerabilities that come about when you have such a public 
issue, such as HBCU bomb threats and other potential acts of 
violence.
    So, again, you know, we have to remain vigilant. We are 
going to do what is necessary to make sure we always protect 
our students. But those funding sources have to come from 
somewhere and often they will be at the expense of our 
educational endeavors.
    Mr. Langevin. Thank you.
    Ms. Nelson. Thank you for the question. I will add that 
HBCUs have been systematically underfunded, not only not only 
by State legislatures, but also by the Federal Government. Many 
HBCUs are land grant institutions. These are schools that were 
founded by State--that are funded by State legislatures to 
foster agricultural research and instruction. Often that 
funding that they receive from State legislatures is 
inadequate.
    Compared to their White counterparts, Black land grant 
universities have been underfunded by at least $12.8 billion 
over the last 3 decades. Funding for land grant institutions is 
distributed at the discretion of the State legislature. In many 
cases, these State legislatures choose to overfund White land 
grant institutions while barely meeting the required funding 
for Black land grant institutions.
    There are specific examples that we cite in our written 
testimony about the University of Tennessee and the Tennessee 
General Assembly awarding land grant dollars in a way that is 
quite disparate, more than 4 times the required match of 
funding that the university should have received.
    So, if you think about the underfunding compounded by the 
fact that there are unexpected costs imposed by these threats 
of domestic terror, the financial hit to HBCUs is quite 
significant.
    I will add that many HBCUs, because of the underfunding, 
are more tuition-dependent than other institutions. The threat 
of violence on these campuses has the potential to reduce 
enrollment, has the potential to cast a chilling effect on the 
desire of students to attend these institutions that are 
targeted by violence. That has the potential to impact not only 
immediate revenue, but also long-term viability.
    Mr. Langevin. Thank you. I know my time is expired. Thank 
you for your answers. We are determined that you are not going 
to have to go it alone and we are going to do everything we can 
to provide the right resources to back you up. So, thank you, 
Mr. Chairman. I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you. The gentleman's time has 
expired. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from North 
Carolina, Mr. Bishop.
    Mr. Bishop. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to begin 
by saying that Pastor Manning's message is worthy of an 
audience in this Congress every day. The rash of bomb threats 
against the HBCUs is of great concern. They occurred--it 
started on January 31 and continued through February and into 
March.
    I would certainly love to see, I don't know what the law 
permits, but I understand that there are 6 persons of interest 
identified by the FBI who are perhaps juveniles. I think the 
Nation needs for those persons' identities to be disclosed. So, 
I take note of all that.
    I take note that the gist of the testimony is a plea for 
resources. I wanted to address a related issue.
    Ms. Nelson, I have a tweet here from your Twitter account 
from March 8, 2021, that retweets an article from The Guardian 
titled ``These U.S. Cities Defunded Police: `We're transferring 
money to the community.' '' Your tweet text was, ``The 
reimagination of public safety includes the reallocation of 
funds to agencies, services, and community-based nonprofits 
that are better equipped to protect and serve.''
    Do you continue today to support defunding police as 
expressed in that tweet?
    Ms. Nelson. I continue to wholeheartedly support the 
reimagination of public safety, which means a rethinking of how 
we allocate resources in ways that better serve all of our 
communities. We have been talking about a number of mental 
health issues that pervades society following--not following, 
we are still in the midst of a pandemic. We also know that 
police are often stretched and required to respond to matters 
that are well beyond their professional capacity.
    Crime solving, investigation of threats of domestic terror 
like the ones we are discussing today are an appropriate use of 
funding for law enforcement.
    Mr. Bishop. Thank you, ma'am. I would ask for unanimous 
consent to submit for the record the tweet and the Guardian 
article I just referenced.
    Chairman Thompson. Without objection.
    [The information follows:]
    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
    
    Mr. Bishop. You know, it is interesting how we end up 
prioritizing things here in Congress and our time and our 
resources. I have an article here from The Washington Post, 
actually written--originated with Bloomberg on February 23, 
2022, that notes that in 2020, we saw a 30 percent increase in 
homicides across the country, an additional 5,000 deaths across 
the country, going from 16,425 to 21,570. If we examine that 
data with an examination from the perspective of race, it is 
perhaps even worse. African Americans, it says, make up 13.5 
percent of the U.S. population, but they make up 55.6 percent 
of homicide victims and 65.6 percent of the increase in 
homicides relative to 2019.
    I wonder if perhaps we are not missing a bigger issue than 
even this disturbing information about a state of bomb threats 
against HBCUs. I mean, we are talking about, as the article 
goes on to say, Black Americans in 2020 represented 13,654 of 
those homicides across the country, an increase of 3,300.
    Mr. Chairman, I would ask unanimous consent to submit this 
article for the record.
    Chairman Thompson. Without objection.
    [The information follows:]
    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
    
    Mr. Bishop. In the Judiciary Committee yesterday we had a 
hearing that focused on domestic terrorism with an emphasis on 
White supremacy. These matters here are certainly animus race--
animus-based crimes. The HBCU attacks, there is a hearing in 
the OGR today on the same thing.
    But I looked back, there has not been a hearing in 
Congress, in this Congress, about that increase in homicides 
and the share of those homicides that are borne by Black 
Americans.
    Ms. Nelson, do you believe that the emphasis on reimagining 
the police as you put it, or defunding police as others put it, 
has been responsible for any share of the increase in homicides 
that Black Americans have suffered?
    Ms. Nelson. No, I don't believe that there is any data, any 
credible research that links any of the calls to reform our 
public safety system and any increase in crime. We all know 
that we are living in the midst of a pandemic that has not only 
increased economic burdens across society, mental health 
burdens across society, but there are other ways in which our 
law enforcement resources are not operating as efficiently as 
possible.
    If we look at the crime-solving success of law enforcement, 
it pales in comparison to the resources that are invested in 
law enforcement. I think that is an area worthy of 
interrogation.
    Mr. Bishop. Would you say that issue deserves careful 
examination by Congress, the increase in homicides across the 
country and particularly that share borne by Black Americans?
    Ms. Nelson. I think that we should be examining crime and 
what the underlying causes are and looking at the social ills 
that produce those crimes and addressing those with social 
policy.
    Mr. Bishop. Thank you, ma'am. My time has expired, Mr. 
Chairman.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman's time has expired. The 
Chair recognizes the gentlelady from Texas, Ms. Jackson Lee.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chairman, thank you so very much for 
this most crucial and timely hearing. I am glad and I am so 
glad Mr. Bishop is here, thank him for his concern along with 
our colleagues. I am enormously gratified that with the 
leadership of Joseph Biden, the President, and Vice President 
Kamala Harris and the Congress, we have Chairman Thompson, 
Chairman Nadler, Chairwoman Jackson Lee over the Crime, 
Terrorism, and Homeland Security Committee that had a similar 
hearing just a few weeks ago, now in Oversight.
    What a difference, finally, the death or the potential 
death of Black people have risen to a level of respect that it 
should be. For too long, of course, in the sag of the civil 
rights movement, bodies were strewn across the South and no one 
cared. We found the remnants of people who had been killed on 
dark nights and dark streets because they were Black.
    We saw the civil rights soldiers, including Viola Liuzzo 
and others who were of the majority community, killed 
violently. The 3 boys in Mississippi whose families still 
mourn.
    So, this is a preventative hearing, a recognition hearing. 
I would offer to say to my friends justice and holding police 
accountable is not mutually exclusive. Giving police more 
resources to, in essence, shed those resources to mental health 
needs and to training needs and to understanding de-escalation, 
and to understand issues dealing with excessive force, there is 
no crime in that.
    I would also commend my good friend to work with me on H.R. 
40, a commission to study slavery and develop Reparation 
proposals as it determines the impact on the lives of African 
Americans today.
    I wonder whether or not--whether it is a youth or whoever 
it might be, all of that falls into where we are as people of 
color in the United States today. Are we the most easily 
attackable? Are we the most easily vulnerable? Are we the 
greatest target? This hearing today, in the short time that I 
have, says that.
    I would like to ask the Chairman to submit into the record 
a letter from Texas Southern University that wrote and said the 
impact of those attacks, those threats on them. I ask unanimous 
consent.
    Chairman Thompson. Without objection.
    [The information follows:]
                 Letter From Texas Southern University
Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee,
United State Congress, 2079 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, 
        DC 20515.
    Dear Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee: We write you in your 
capacity as a Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security to 
share the perspective and experience of Texas Southern University 
faculty and students during the domestic bombing threat that occurred 
in January 2022. At Texas Southern University, the health, safety, and 
well-being of our students, faculty, and staff is always top priority. 
TSU condemns any threats or acts of violence, especially those that are 
targeted to specific groups of people based on race or ethnicity.
    TSU, which was born in the midst of segregation, has worked 
tirelessly to build bridges and help its students overcome all odds in 
the face of discrimination and bigotry. As we continue to do this work 
in the face of increased threats, we believe a threat to one HBCU is a 
threat to all HBCUs.
    Since the threat happened on campus, the chief of our campus 
department of public safety has represented all HBCUs as a liaison 
between the HBCU community and the FBI. We were fortunate that the 
threat here was during a time when the University was not in session. 
That has not been the case for our peer institutions.
    We are thankful for the progress the FBI has made in identifying 
persons of interest. We also remain concerned that there may be other 
people who would act nefariously toward our institutions. We also 
acknowledge that these threats have heightened the urgency of the 
message that HBCUs need more resources to handle these types of 
investigations, and the need for a coordinated response. Thank you to 
our elected representatives for their care and concern for our campus 
during these challenging days, as demonstrated by their tireless effort 
to ensure a proper Federal response.
    Parents, students, staff, and alumni were concerned for our campus. 
We assure our campus is strong. It is united. And it is safe. We stand 
with all HBCUs demanding an end to these cowardly acts of terror. We 
have come too far to look the other way.

    Ms. Jackson Lee. They indicate they were born in the midst 
of segregation, worked tirelessly to build bridges, but they 
write to indicate that at Texas Southern ``the health, safety, 
and well-being of our students, faculty, and staff is a top 
priority.''
    They indicated that since the threat happened on the 
campus, ``The chief of our campus Department of Public Safety 
has represented all HBCUs,'' but they realize that this has 
been a devastating impact on their campus. The last sentence 
says, ``We have come too far to look the other way.''
    May I ask the president of Jackson State and if you can 
state for me, Mr. President, the deep emotional impact on your 
students and faculty based upon their connection to the 
movement of civil rights, but the history of their families, 
and how a bomb threat even is deeper in those students.
    Then I would appreciate if Pastor Manning, I came to 
Charleston. We have been fighting for the Charleston loophole 
through our great leader, Mr. Clyburn. If you would tell me the 
impact on your parishioners ever today. President Hudson.
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, thank you so much, Congresswoman Jackson 
Lee. You are correct in terms of that impact, the emotional 
impact on our students, our faculty, and staff, and really the 
entire JSU family. You know, those threats, as I remind people, 
you know, I live on the campus, and those threats affect me and 
my family, as well. What it does is it is meant to disrupt that 
learning process. It is meant to disrupt the progress HBCUs 
have made over the years.
    You know, it is no secret that these threats coincided not 
only with the start of Black History Month, but they also 
coincided with the fact that HBCUs have had somewhat of a 
reawakening in the eyes of many in terms of our importance, in 
terms of the value that we bring to this great Nation. These 
threats were meant to deter that. They were meant to diminish 
those accomplishments.
    At Jackson State University we are always going to be 
mindful of that direct lineage between some of the incidents of 
the past, Congressman Thompson referenced the 1970 shootings, 
which we still acknowledge on a yearly basis, all the way up to 
today with these current persistent threats. It shows us why we 
must always remain vigilant, we must always be prepared, we 
must be proactive in addressing these issues so that we are 
ready when these inevitable situations come about.
    So, our goal at Jackson State is to always be ready on-call 
to deal with these issues while also making sure that our 
students, their mental health, and the overall emotional impact 
is accounted for, as well.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Pastor. Pastor.
    Rev. Manning. Can you hear me?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Yes, can hear you now.
    Rev. Manning. OK, thank you. So, the attacks, of course, 
that we still see even today impact the congregation in many 
ways. It takes us right back to the horrific act that we 
suffered here on June 17, 2015, and it continues to rob the 
members of the congregation with the safety that is needed when 
they come to worship. So, from that particular perspective, as 
I believe I did say in testimony, that there are still several 
members who still have not been able to return even to this 
day. That continues to rob many members of their right to just 
worship God in spirit and in truth and in freedom.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you. The gentlelady's time has 
expired. The Chair recognized the gentleman from Louisiana, Mr. 
Higgins.
    Mr. Higgins. I thank the Chairman and the Ranking Member 
for holding this hearing today.
    Mr. Chairman, as a police officer, I have personally 
responded to many bomb threats. I say many, probably 8 or 10 
during the course of my career. It is always, you know, a 
mischievous, young, disturbed man or girl that is calling these 
threats in. You know, you generally get past the clearing of 
the building and order is restored and the institution's 
business continues. It is usually a school. But the lingering 
fear and the impact of that criminal action is a particular 
concern.
    I appreciate the hearing held today. I just left a 
Oversight hearing that focused on the same issue. Same issue. 
Because it deserves attention and must put this in perspective 
as a Nation historically, especially regarding our Historically 
Black Universities and churches because there is just no place 
for fear to exist as a common factor for our citizenry. It 
should not be a consideration that any American has to deal 
with on a regular basis. It should be rare and then it should 
be aggressively investigated.
    In south Louisiana very recently, a couple of years ago, we 
had 3 historically Black churches burned to the ground in a 
very short period of time. Many of you maybe recall that. It 
was a tremendous amount of media about it. Because any 
reasonable man looking at those burnings would presume this is 
likely a hate crime racially motivated.
    Well, the investigation moved forward very effectively by 
local and State law enforcement. They were closing in on 
identifying a subject. When the father of the suspect figured 
out it was his son, the father was professional law enforcement 
and he turned his son in, brought his son in. The investigation 
revealed that it was not a racially motivated hate crime. It 
was a religiously motivated hate crime. This young man had been 
indoctrinated into some kind of a bizarre satanic belief system 
and wanted to videotape the falling of its steeple into flame.
    So, of course, the media went away because it didn't quite 
fit the narrative. But the impact has been long-lasting. Our 
law enforcement agencies have a specific duty to respond 
aggressively to these threats and actions.
    Reverend Manning, if you are with us, sir, I would like to 
ask you specifically your church and your congregation of 
Children of God have been impacted specifically. I would like 
to know as a result of the attack recently can you share with 
this committee, and I will give you the balance of my time, 
best practices and security measures that your congregation has 
to now deal with? What would you recommend to your fellow 
churches across the Nation reflective of your own experienced, 
Reverend?
    Rev. Manning. Well, again, thank you. So, the best 
practices that I would say is plan. We did talk about that 
briefly in our testimony, to develop detailed security plans. 
Unfortunately, this is the world that we are in right now, 
always being aware of your surroundings, making sure that you 
have enough cameras on the place that would be able to record 
the various activities that are coming around your places and 
your houses of worship. It is a sad state.
    Unfortunately, as I said before, it is something that we 
deal with here on a daily basis. When mail comes, sometimes as 
I look over my left side of my desk, there is what I call love 
mail. Of course, that is not really love, it is hate mail that 
I get from various people throughout the country. That we are 
never really prepared for, so we just have to continue to do 
what we--to do the best thing that we possibly can, which is to 
be mindful of our surroundings, have the wherewithal to make 
sure that we have a security plan, and as well, as we have 
already articulated, making sure that there are enough 
financial resources that are able to undergird those churches 
in the rural community.
    Mr. Higgins. Thank you, Reverend. My time has expired. Mr. 
Chairman, I yield.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman yields. The Chair 
recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Payne, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Payne. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ms. Nelson, as you have 
been made aware, threats the Black institutions face today are 
not new. Black churches, for example, have been terrorized long 
before we were ever using the term ``domestic violent 
extremists.''
    You discussed this in your testimony, but can you elaborate 
on how threats to Black institutions have evolved over time?
    Ms. Nelson. Certainly. Thank you for the question. Black 
institutions have been threatened since their inception. If we 
think about Black institutions in a very broad sense we can go 
as far back as thinking about the burning of Tulsa, we can 
think about the burning of Greenwood, we can think about the 
deconstruction of any signs of Black progress, any 
establishments that reject the notion of White supremacy and 
Black inferiority.
    Our Black churches are an exemplar of Black resilience and 
stand at the center of Black communities throughout our Nation. 
Our Black HBCUs are also an exemplar of Black excellence and 
the ability of Black people to learn together in a safe and 
nurturing environment, independent and resilient.
    It is those institutions that are the targets and have been 
the targets over time of White extremist violence. We are 
seeing an uptick in hate crimes, an uptick in the creation of 
White extremist groups, and these institutions are a ready-made 
target for those individuals and entities. It is essential, 
therefore, that these entities have the ability to protect 
themselves and to build the necessary infrastructure to secure 
the populations that attend these institutions. But it is also 
not only for those individuals, this is an investment that this 
country should make because these institutions are essential to 
its historical identity and to its present diversity.
    So, that is why we are calling upon Congress to invest as 
many resources as possible to ensure that these institutions 
are viable, that they are safe, and that they continue to 
contribute to the fabric of our broader American society.
    Mr. Payne. In what ways would you connect the attacks on 
Black institutions to the larger universe of threats posed by 
White supremacy and extreme right-wing ideology?
    Ms. Nelson. Well, I connect them directly because right now 
we are in the midst of an assault on truth, we are in the midst 
of an attempt to erase the lived experiences of Black Americans 
and people of color. It is not only Black people who are under 
severe attack. As we see, there have been many instances of 
violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander persons in 
this country, against people from various religious 
backgrounds, synagogues, mosques, places of learning and 
worship have been targeted.
    But we do know that Black institutions have endured this 
unfortunate legacy of violence for their entire existence and 
it is now escalating at a time when we should have evolved as a 
society toward a more peaceful and respectful coexistence. That 
is the reason that we demand that Congress address this issue 
before we find ourselves in a more retrogressive state.
    Mr. Payne. Thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, we have to 
continue to explore these incidents and continue to bolster the 
support that this committee gives to the homeland and 
institutions here in this country, and try to understand why 
since their inception these Black institutions have not been 
given the opportunity to ever thrive as other groups have in 
this Nation.
    With that, I will yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman yields back. The Chair 
recognizes the gentlelady from Iowa, Mrs. Miller-Meeks, for 5 
minutes.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, 
Ranking Member Katko and our witnesses who are here.
    I like many others were horrified at what began to 
transpire at the beginning of this year, but, as has been 
indicated, is not the first time. None of us want our children, 
our young adults to, you know, attend college and fear for 
their safety, or a synagogue or a church or even walking to 
their elementary school. So, we were horrified at that and we 
are pleased that you are here to offer your testimony to us.
    Secretary Mayorkas, along with Education Secretary Cardona, 
met with HBCUs on January 24, 2022, to discuss grant programs, 
training resources, research opportunities, and other tools 
available to increase campus safety and security. In fact, they 
heavily prioritized campus safety and they offer a cadre of 
tools that are available.
    Were you or a representative, Mr. Hudson--Dr. Hudson, of 
Jackson State present at that meeting? If so, what DHS grants, 
programs, and trainings did Secretary Mayorkas discuss with you 
that may be helpful?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, we were. We did have a representative 
present at that meeting. There were a multitude of 
opportunities, the Nonprofit Grant Program that, you know, 
allows for us to make those security enhancements, those campus 
upgrades, particularly with respect to data sciences I 
mentioned. Being able to upgrade our ability to monitor, to 
store the type of historical data we need to make those 
continuous assessments on our campus is necessary.
    You know, as I said from the outset, we are thankful to law 
enforcement for their response, but it was just that, it was 
response. Being proactive means doing those types of things, 
doing the type of infrastructural improvements, cybersecurity 
data science improvements necessary to be proactive and 
necessary to help us mitigate those risks before they happen. 
That is the space that we want to move in. That is where 
historical underfunding really makes an impact, on your ability 
to be proactive.
    So, those programs mentioned by Secretary Mayorkas and 
Secretary Cardona were necessary. We at Jackson State are in 
the process of applying for several of those in order to 
enhance our ability to, again, proactively mitigate some of 
those issues before we get into a response mode.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. So, I was unclear if you had developed 
or utilized the on-line trainings that were offered.
    Mr. Hudson. Yes.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. But in one of your comments Tougaloo 
College, one of the victims of this year's slew of bomb 
threats, is a recipient of FEMA's Nonprofit Security Grant 
Program funds, having received $150,000 for safety and security 
in fiscal year 2021. Are you aware of the 501(c)(3) Jackson 
State and other nonprofit HBCUs that are eligible for this type 
of funding and did you apply?
    Mr. Hudson. We are aware of that type of funding and we are 
applying for those funds. Yes, ma'am.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Great. Then how can Congress support 
HBCUs applying for security grant funding to ensure 
applications are successful?
    Mr. Hudson. Well, and that is the most important part 
because there are a multitude of programs out there, grant 
opportunities out there. But in terms of capacity, you know, 
there is a human capital that is needed in order to make a 
successful application. So, workshops such as the ones you 
mentioned are very important. Us participating in those on-
going efforts, the program support that those funding agencies 
offer, are very critical in helping guide our institutions in 
terms of making a successful application.
    So, I am glad you brought that up because that is the next 
step. Once those funding opportunities are out there, how can 
we work with HBCUs and other institutions to improve their 
ability to successfully navigate the actual process in order to 
successfully obtain those funds that are so very needed?
    At Jackson State we try to take advantage of every 
opportunity, you know, whether it is any type of learning 
opportunity, any type of webinar, that helps us successfully 
navigate those processes, and we will continue to do so.
    So, to the extent they do offer those, we do take advantage 
of those.
    Mrs. Miller-Meeks. Yes. As a former director of public 
health, we certainly offer them when it comes to health-related 
programs, so that there is training to increase your capacity 
to apply for grant programs. So, thank you for that, I 
appreciate it.
    Mr. Chair, I yield back my time.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you. The gentlelady yields back. 
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California for 5 
minutes, Mr. Correa.
    Mr. Correa. I want to thank the Chairman and the Ranking 
Member for this most important hearing. I want to thank our 
witnesses here today for your testimony.
    Mr. Chairman, you talked a little bit about sanctuaries. It 
is interesting today to think about a safe place in our 
society. It is not our home anymore, not a church. It is not a 
school or a university.
    Just last Friday, I was at home and got alerted to a bomb 
threat, Santa Ana High School, 3,300 students, a bomb threat. 
The school locked down. For those moments, I can tell you 
everybody in my community was praying for a good outcome. We 
did have a good outcome, but to think of those moments that it 
took for the police to get to the school, even though we have 
police at the school, it wasn't enough. In those sheer moments, 
we realized we had holes in the system. Those few precious 
minutes make a difference between saving lives and not.
    I do believe, I agree with both of our witnesses, that this 
investment is an investment well-made. The tragedy of something 
horrible happening, the toll, the human cost, and, of course, 
the psychological cost of knowing that you always got to look 
behind you and you always got to try to figure out if you are 
safe, that is not American. But we have to change it back to 
what America was.
    This funding goes a long way. My specific question to our 
witnesses here today is how well do you work with the local 
public agencies? We have these things called fusion centers 
with local public police, FBI, other groups work together. Do 
you feel like you have communication with these groups? Do you 
feel like there is a two-way conversation here to make sure 
that we prevent the unspeakable from happening? Thank you.
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, we do. We have developed wonderful 
relationships with our local, our State, and our Federal law 
enforcement agencies.
    You know, in terms of response, as I said before, they were 
very much involved in helping us get through what was a pretty 
scary time when you have a bomb threat at that time. You know, 
4 in the morning is when it happened to us. But, again, the 
need to be proactive, the need to continue those conversations, 
the need to engage in those opportunities to build our capacity 
and utilizing their expertise and helping us do so is the next 
step that we do have to take in terms of those relationships.
    Mr. Correa. Mr. Hudson, I believe you don't leave any stone 
unturned when it comes to being proactive, would have, could 
have, should have, no second chances to look back. What is it 
that you need? What is it that you think we need to do to make 
sure that we cover the most obvious bases when it comes to the 
safety of our children and our community?
    Mr. Hudson. Well, the first thing we need when we talk 
about funding it has to start with a plan. We are working with 
our local law enforcement and with the Federal agencies, with 
the State agencies. What is the plan for Jackson State if and 
when a situation such as this occurs?
    Obviously, we have safety protocols and measures in place, 
but the plan has to be inclusive of that tiered approach that I 
discussed earlier. Campus infrastructure, how do we make our 
campus as a whole, the actual property more secure? How do we 
work in terms of training, making sure that our officers are 
trained in such a way that their response, you know, is 
appropriate for the actual situation? Again, how do we work on 
the after effects? You know, what are some of the steps we take 
to mitigate the damage that is done as it relates to our 
students?
    Mr. Correa. Ms. Nelson, I will let you take your drink.
    Ms. Nelson. Go ahead. Thank you.
    Mr. Correa. Any thoughts?
    Ms. Nelson. Yes. I am glad that you mentioned the need to 
protect schools, as you suggested. One of the things that I 
don't think we have emphasized enough in this conversation is 
the need to prosecute these crimes as hate crimes and to 
recognize them as the vehicles for racial animus that they are. 
That is also a potential deterrent. We certainly don't want 
these crimes to occur, but it is important that we send a 
message immediately when they do or even when they are simply 
threatened because that is a form of domestic terror and that 
is an opportunity to send a broader message that these types of 
crimes and these threats of violence will not be tolerated.
    Mr. Correa. Thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, out of time. 
Thank you very much.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. The Chair 
recognizes the gentleman from Mississippi for 5 minutes, Mr. 
Guest.
    Mr. Guest. Good afternoon. I want to thank you all for 
visiting with us and thank you for some of the things that you 
all are doing along with some of the other universities in 
Mississippi. You make myself and Congressman Thompson extremely 
proud to represent our great State.
    Congratulations on a great football season. I wish you 
would have brought Coach Prime with you, but maybe next time 
that you are here he can join you.
    I just want to ask you a little bit. Tell us a little bit, 
and just let me know, these recent threats that you all 
received, the impact, No. 1, that it had on the university, the 
faculty, the students; and then also, talk to me a little bit 
about the law enforcement response and the things that they did 
after this was reported. So if you could just share those with 
me for a few minutes, I would greatly appreciate that.
    Mr. Hudson. OK. Thank you so much and I certainly thank you 
for your well wishes.
    You know, in terms of the impact, I think it is important 
to remember that once, you know, when you do the sweep, you 
determine that the immediate threat is not there as it relates 
to the bomb, the impact remains, the impact of the thought that 
this can happen to your campus, this can happen on your campus. 
There are enough examples in history of these things having 
been executed successfully. Acts of terrorism have been 
executed successfully for us to always remain vigilant no 
matter what was the outcome of that specific situation on that 
day.
    For Jackson State University, February 1 was a day that 
reminded us that we are always under threat. There is always a 
threat of attack and we always have to remain vigilant for what 
could happen.
    With respect to our Federal, State, and local law 
enforcement, I couldn't be happier and more thankful to them 
for the way they responded, again, not only in words, but in 
action. Specifically, the FBI Special Agent in Charge Jermicha 
Fomby, I was able to call him and talk to him personally and 
get his personal assurances that the FBI was on top of it, they 
were aware of everything that was happening, and really get his 
personal assurance that we had his full support.
    With the State of Mississippi Capitol Police, you know, I 
was able to talk to the associate commissioner, Keith Davis, 
who actually sent a couple of units to campus to help assist 
our patrols and to supplement our police efforts. The city of 
Jackson did the actual sweep and was able to do so in a way 
that allowed us to reopen that same day. Obviously, there was 
some disruption, there was some lingering anxiety and concern, 
but they did their jobs in such a professional way that we were 
able to somewhat mitigate the disruption to the learning 
process. Of course, again, our own, you know, campus police, as 
they do every day, made sure that they swept the campus and 
made sure that we are safe.
    Moving forward, when we look at solutions, I can't talk 
enough about infrastructure. You will hear me say that often, 
but the campus itself has to be designed in a way that 
encourages safety and encourages the security of our students. 
That means because we sit in an urban area, which, again, adds 
to the culture of the campus and we are very proud to sit in 
the heart of Jackson, Mississippi, but because we sit in that 
area, we do have to take additional steps to decrease the 
vulnerability that that brings with it: The open access; some 
of the various ways, the thoroughfares through campus. That is 
really the next step for Jackson State to take.
    Again, I also can't emphasize enough the ability to provide 
training for our officers, the ability to provide the type of 
training for our faculty, staff, and students, what do you do 
when these situations occur?
    I will end where I started, that there have been enough 
successful examples of these type of threats being executed for 
us to always remain vigilant of the threat, even though, again, 
these individuals were apprehended and we are thankful for 
that. But the threat remains and we have to remain forever 
vigilant.
    I will be sure to send Coach Prime your well wishes.
    Mr. Guest. Yes, sir. You talk a little bit about 
infrastructure, training for campus police, and then as far as 
technology, things that would be beneficial there for the 
security of the campus. Can you just talk very briefly? I have 
only got about 30 seconds. The Chairman may allow me to go over 
very briefly, but can you talk about maybe some technology 
needs that you have there at Jackson State where the Federal 
Government can partner with your campus to make sure that you 
have those needs met?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes. One of the things, you know, when we talk 
about those advanced security monitoring systems, you know, one 
of the effects of underfunding is that we possess those 
security data capture systems, but we do so with limited 
bandwidth, sometimes older technology. What that does is it 
doesn't allow us that continuous monitoring, doesn't allow us 
that long-term storage that allows us to do the type of threat 
assessments that you can do when you have the historical data. 
That is one specific area where we really need to upgrade, and 
that is an expense that most institutions just cannot cover in 
their normal operating budget.
    Also, you look at things like the increase of insurance 
costs. You know, it costs a lot more oftentimes to be in the 
areas that we are, especially when you have a threat such as 
this. Institutions have to cover those things. So, again, these 
things that fall outside your normal operating budget, which 
are already pretty stretched thin, these things that are 
outside of the normal expertise of an institution of higher 
learning, how do we work with the Department of Homeland 
Security, how do we work with the Department of Justice, law 
enforcement agencies to ensure that we have the funding we need 
to expand our capacity in those specific areas?
    Mr. Guest. Thank you again, President Hudson, and thank you 
for being with us today.
    Mr. Hudson. Thank you so much.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman yields back. The Chair 
recognizes the gentlelady from Michigan, Ms. Slotkin, for 5 
minutes.
    Ms. Slotkin. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Welcome to our 
witnesses. Thanks for being here on this topic.
    I am from Michigan and this topic is very relevant for a 
whole bunch of reasons. One, because we just announced that we 
are restarting an HBCU in Detroit and so we will join the 
legions of States who are proud to have those institutions, but 
also because we have had a real problem with racially-motivated 
attacks and incidents in our State. In one of my counties, 
Ingham County, we had 26 incidents against churches in the last 
2 years.
    We have had repeated problems with Zoom bombing, where 
literally White supremacists jump onto a Zoom during COVID, 
show pictures of people giving the Nazi salute, and start 
basically attacking via Chat the pastors, the leaders. In 
addition to our African American institutions, we have had 
mosques--you know, violent incidents at mosques. We have had 
our Hillel at Michigan State attacked. We have had a lot of 
these incidents. It really struck me that a lot of the leaders 
of these institutions have had to become security professionals 
in addition to the spiritual leader or the, you know, senior 
educational leader at these institutions.
    So, can you talk about, you know, Mr. Hudson, in your role, 
just kind-of how you have to do your job differently because 
you have to think about security all the time?
    Mr. Hudson. That is a great point. You do have to think 
about those things one would consider outside of the normal 
purview, if you will, of a higher ed leader. But when you think 
about it, when you house students on your campus, when you have 
students who are there 24/7, that is where they live, security 
becomes a heightened priority for your institutions. For 
Jackson State University, it has to be first and foremost. How 
can we create the proper environment where our students can 
learn, where they can be nurtured, where they--whether they can 
thrive. These types of threats disrupt that effort, our effort 
to provide those things. So, again, we have to become security 
personnel, so we do that by making sure, first of all, we have 
people around us who have the expertise, you know, in terms of 
campus public safety.
    We also make sure we do that by partnering with our local, 
our State, our Federal law enforcement agencies to ensure that 
we have the proper connections and the proper partnerships that 
help us expand our capacity and our ability to secure the 
campus. Again, we work with the Department of Homeland 
Security, you know, our efforts with the Department, with the 
Office of Academic Engagement, allows us, again, to expand our 
capacity, expand our expertise through training, through 
academic programming that helps us become a part of that 
solution needed to deal with those various issues.
    The other part we have to make sure we talk about is the 
mental health aspect. How do we expand our services on the 
mental health side to make sure that our students, the anxiety 
that comes with being under the potential of attack, if you 
will, how do we help our students deal with that while they are 
still doing the normal things: Going to class, you know, 
participating in campus activities? How do we make sure that is 
a part of the process, as well?
    So, it is a holistic multi-tiered approach that you do have 
to take as a campus administrator in order to deal with these 
types of issues.
    Ms. Slotkin. Yes. It just strikes me that for institutions, 
universities, colleges, and religious institutions that have 
to--they sort-of have to build in and price out the additional 
costs associated with security, physical security, but then 
also all the work that goes into making people feel, as you 
say, sort-of mentally safe. You know, this committee, I think, 
has been a strong supporter of the Nonprofit Security Grants, 
you know, these grants for institutions. But it is just sad 
that we have to have those grants and that there is just this 
added tax on being a targeted institution in this day and age. 
I appreciate your work on that.
    I will also say I think one of--sadly, in Michigan, one of 
the ways that this security threat has played out is that 
different religious and ethnic groups have been helping each 
other as new groups become victims of new security threats. We 
had a number of incidents at one of my large mosques, and we 
brought in the Jewish community who knows, you know, very well 
on how to secure their institutions. It is sad, but I do think 
that it is an area where, unfortunately, we have to help each 
other across lines. I just appreciate you coming here and 
speaking to your experience because it is something that, 
unfortunately, many, many institutions have to be thinking 
about.
    So, with that, I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. Maybe the 
Methodists and Baptists can get together in Mississippi.
    The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri, Mr. 
Cleaver, for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Cleaver. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Am I audible?
    Chairman Thompson. Yes, you are on. We hear you.
    Mr. Cleaver. Thank you. I want to thank you for this 
hearing. One of the things I want to make sure that the 
university presidents of HBCUs understand is that last year, 
due in no small part to Congressman Bobby Scott of Virginia, we 
were able to get record amounts of funding for HBCUs. He did an 
amazing job and I think all of you have probably been informed 
about the tremendous increases that he was able to get through 
his committee as the Chair of Education. We are all, Members, 
proud of it.
    I want to go back to an issue earlier, and I hate we are 
getting off the subject, but sometimes, you know, we just have 
to respond. You know, I think this whole issue of talking about 
defunding the police has given some people a license to 
misrepresent, maybe even misunderstand. But to the panel, do 
you see as a synonym defund the police and reengineering, 
redesign, reimagine as either words that are synonyms or they 
are interchangeable?
    Chairman Thompson. Ms. Nelson, we are going to let you take 
that.
    Mr. Cleaver. Yes, I am sorry. The counselor, yes.
    Ms. Nelson. So, if the question is whether those concepts 
are interchangeable, I don't think I can answer that. I think 
they mean different things to different people and there may be 
some common themes.
    I think the one theme and thread among all of those phrases 
and intentions is that something is broken in our public safety 
system. Something is broken and it needs to be fixed, and there 
are many different ways in which people are suggesting we go 
about it. But we saw that millions of Americans in 2020 agreed 
with the notion that our public safety system is broken. They 
did so in powerful protests, peaceful protests throughout this 
country that reverberated on a global scale. So, I do think 
that there is something resonant in all of those slogans that 
just indicates that we have a significant problem to address.
    This gives me an opportunity to share some research that 
the Legal Defense Fund did recently in response to this notion 
about an increase in crime and the idea that that is somehow 
linked to a decrease in law enforcement or cries for reform of 
law enforcement. Our Thurgood Marshall Institute conducted 
research analyzing homicide trends in 61 major U.S. cities and 
we drew samples from the 100 most popular cities in the United 
States, as well. According to our research, cities with higher 
levels of economic inequality experienced the higher increases 
in homicides.
    So, when we talk about crime, it is very important that we 
look in the direction of what the underlying social conditions 
are that produce a rise in crime or produce crimes more 
generally. The focus is not an idea of thinking differently 
about law enforcement and public safety. The focus should be 
thinking about the economic inequality, the health disparities, 
and the other social conditions that lead to crime and 
violence.
    Mr. Cleaver. I appreciate that and I hate that we have to 
go in that direction, but I am not in linguistics or a 
lexicologist, but I do know that you can't just--somebody can't 
take a word or a phrase and then attach some other meaning to 
it. I think that is unfortunate that it is happening. So, you 
know, this is a serious problem. I get hit on both sides. I am 
a graduate of an HBCU and I am going to into my 42nd year as a 
seminary-trained ordained United Methodist pastor. I know the 
money that we have to spend now at our church for security and 
I also understand the trauma that many of the students and 
faculty at HBCUs have experienced.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman, not just for the hearing, but I 
think making sure that this issue does not melt away as so many 
do. Thank you very kindly. I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you. The gentleman yields back. 
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Green, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Green. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I thank the 
Ranking Member, as well. I thank the witnesses for appearing. I 
think the hearing has been most informative and quite 
beneficial.
    I would like to address just a few comments to the 
representative from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Just for 
edification purposes, many people may not know and I think it 
is worthy of mentioning at this hearing, this institution was 
founded by the Honorable Thurgood Marshall, Supreme Court 
Justice Thurgood Marshall. I want to thank you, Ms. Nelson, for 
your position with the organization. I was an NAACP branch 
president for about a decade and have some sense of the 
difficulties that we encounter when we attempt to use these 
grant applications. Sometimes they can be very difficult to 
negotiate.
    So, I thought I would ask you a couple of questions related 
to the grant application process. I am concerned about the 
difficulties you may be having. Is there any difficulty that 
you would call to my attention that I might be able to help you 
with or we might be able to help you with in terms of making it 
easier to negotiate the grant application process?
    Ms. Nelson. Well, thank you very much, Representative Green 
for acknowledging the Legal Defense Fund and its founder, 
Thurgood Marshall. I will defer to Mr. Hudson to talk about the 
grant application process as the Legal Defense Fund is not 
presently applying for a grant application. But we do note that 
there are institutions, other institutions, other nonprofits, 
that want to take advantage of this program. We support the 
increase in funding and the act that is on the floor today that 
would increase funding to the NPSG to $500 million for each 
fiscal year from 2023 to 2028, which we believe is a very 
necessary intervention as Black institutions continue to be 
subject to hateful attacks across the country.
    Mr. Hudson. Thank you so much.
    Mr. Green. I am going to yield to you in just a second, but 
let me ask something. I, too, support H.R. 6825 and would like 
to acknowledge the Chairman, Chairman Thompson, and the Ranking 
Member Katko for putting this before us. I am a cosponsor of it 
and I appreciate your being more specific as it relates to this 
legislation.
    Yes, sir, I now yield to you.
    Mr. Hudson. Thank you so much. I must say that one welcome 
development of the increase in funding is that it allows more 
institutions to be served by these funding opportunities. It 
becomes less of a competition and more of a need-based system 
where, you know, if your application is successful, if you 
demonstrate the need, you have a really good chance of 
receiving that funding. So, that is definitely a plus.
    The other part is the funding agencies, especially I would 
say over the last couple of years, have been really good and 
they have really, you know, increased their efforts to help our 
institutions navigate that application process, navigate the 
bureaucracy, if you will, that comes along with applying these 
funds, applying for these funds, and actually receiving these 
funds. So we have been excited by that development.
    We have taken advantage of as many of those that are 
possible. It has helped our institutions receive more funding 
than we have in the past. We would just like to see that 
continue. We would like to see the availability, the pool of 
funds continue to increase. We would like to see those outreach 
efforts continue that allow us to better access those funds, 
better navigate the application process, and continue to work 
to build our capacity. Because, in the end, this is about 
capacity building, building our capacity in terms of today's 
subject matter to better protect our campuses and to be more 
proactive in assessing and determining these threats before 
they actually happen.
    Mr. Green. Well, one of the aspects of this legislation 
that I am excited about is that it provides feedback to 
nonprofits that do not receive grants. Can you comment on the 
importance of that feedback, please, sir?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, because, obviously, you know, if you don't 
receive funding, at least on your initial application, you do 
want to come back. You do want to reapply for those funds 
because the need still exists. So, that feedback is important 
because it tells you the strengths and weaknesses of your 
application and allows you to go back and sort-of recalibrate 
your efforts and really put forth a better effort in terms of 
application process.
    Also, it provides just that one-to-one connectivity between 
your institution and that funding agency that allows you to 
look at other programs, that allows you to have access to other 
opportunities that may be different than the one that you apply 
for and were maybe rejected from.
    So, those are definitely welcome efforts. Again, it is part 
of that outreach, which I talked about, that we have seen an 
increase in recently. Our goal is to make sure that continues 
and to make sure the availability of those resources, the pool 
of resources, continue to increase, also, so more institutions 
can be assisted by these funds.
    Mr. Green. Thank you. My time has expired. Mr. Chairman, I 
yield back. Thank you for making it clear that Black lives do 
matter by having this hearing.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. The Chair 
recognizes the gentlelady from New Jersey, Mrs. Watson Coleman.
    Mrs. Watson Coleman. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for 
convening us today. I want to thank you and the Ranking Member 
for the legislation that we were considering that will increase 
the resources to these institutions to ensure that they are 
safer and have access to healthier environments, whether or not 
it is your worship environment or your educational environment.
    I want to appreciate the fact that the Members of this 
committee have asked very diverse questions and they basically 
have covered the kind of areas that I was concerned about. What 
sticks out for me is very much is this, though. I think Mr. 
Hudson kind-of put this in my head. When we asked him about 
needs for his campus, he said something about the traditional 
and historic underfunding, that there is at least a $10 million 
need to sort-of harden his campus or make it safer for his 
students to learn. So, I am interested in ensuring that there 
are buckets or pots of money, resources that are available to 
our institutions to make their campuses safer from an 
infrastructure perspective.
    Another thing was the sort of systems, technology training, 
things of that nature. We need to make sure that those buckets 
of money exist or the money--or the programs that are created 
under the legislation we already have allows for this.
    Last, I am very concerned about the whole mental health 
issues, both on the campuses and, you know, Reverend Manning 
raising those issues with regard to his church and members who 
haven't even come back to church since that horrible experience 
9 years ago. I need to know if there are sufficient resources 
for mental health services to both parishioners from our church 
perspectives and from our colleges.
    Last, I just want to say just sort-of generally that hate 
crimes in this country really target Blacks, Asians, Latinos, 
LGBTQ, and anybody else that the White supremacists think are 
just not worthy of our respect and our protection. I want to 
make sure that we have the resources available, that we are not 
having to compete against one another for inadequate resources 
in total.
    So, I just would like to ask if Reverend Manning, Pastor 
Manning, would just comment on the sort of emotional and mental 
impact, this mental health impact, the incident had on his 
congregation and what it means to his congregation.
    Rev. Manning. Thank you for the question. The impact, of 
course, you have initially the struggle with what happened, 
trauma, impacting a favorite place of worship. Then we did have 
a grant from USC that only lasted for 3 years. The problem with 
the grant in that particular perspective, it was kind-of short-
term, did not necessarily give people just enough time to 
realistically come to grips with how they are feeling. It has 
only been recently that several members have started to open up 
the door and allow me to even share with them in regard of how 
they can continuously heal.
    As I said before in my testimony, this should be long-term. 
I do not know how long it will ever take members to heal from a 
mental health perspective and a trauma perspective, especially 
as we are now living in an age where there are other attacks 
coming up against houses of worship.
    So, the mental health component actually is very important. 
It is one that we realized from a spiritual formation 
perspective and it is one that we have to continue to be there 
to help as time goes on.
    Mrs. Watson Coleman. Thank you. Thank you, Pastor. Another 
thought is that the trauma that is associated with active-
shooter training, while necessary, I understand the reluctance 
that you all had in engaging in it, but it certainly is part of 
our readiness, our preparation. So, I just sort-of raise that 
for both you and for Mr. Hudson and commit to you that I will 
work very hard to ensure that you have the resources that you 
need in order to ensure that we can worship safely and that we 
can educate our children, and that our faculty and our 
administration in both the churches and our colleges are 
sufficiently prepared and protected, as well.
    Thank you. I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentlelady yields back. The Chair 
recognizes the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Pfluger, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Pfluger. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to thank 
everyone, all the witnesses and participants today on this 
important hearing. I will focus on my role on this committee, 
which is as the Ranking Member of Intelligence and 
Counterterrorism and trying to, you know, be in the business of 
making sure that our communications between the Federal, local, 
and State law enforcement entities continue to be strong and 
that we have, you know, good information. I hope that as a 
result, as well, as a byproduct of this hearing that all of us 
will stand united in condemning acts of violence throughout the 
United States, regardless of where they occur. Obviously, it is 
unacceptable for any of those to happen. So, again, thank you 
for being here.
    You know, recently, the Intel and Counterterrorism and the 
Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery subcommittees 
held a joint hearing that was based on securing the American 
houses of worship with a specific interest in the Jewish 
community. In that hearing our Members really learned that 
through the Jewish Secure Communities Network, that those 
facilities are able to share information on threats with each 
other and with law enforcement. I am very interested to know, 
you know, if there is anything similar, if there is any sort of 
communications mechanism and how the colleges and universities 
are able to communicate with each other and with local, State, 
and Federal entities to make sure that we are staying vigilant.
    So, anybody can answer that. President Hudson, if you are 
able to answer that, I will yield to anybody that wants to take 
a shot at that.
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, and thank you so much for your question. 
You are absolutely right that coordination between the 
universities that were affected and really all universities and 
those law enforcement entities is vital.
    At Jackson State, we have been fortunate to have great 
communication with all levels of law enforcement and great 
support from those entities.
    The next step, and we have hosted several summits on our 
campus related to, you know, the local issues as it related to 
crime, criminal justice. But really the next step is making 
sure we do have those convenings, those regular convenings, in 
which we review where we are, review our planning, review those 
threat assessments, make sure that we are always vigilant.
    As I said, as wonderful as the response was from our local 
law enforcement agencies, it was response by its very nature. 
We want to be proactive. We want to make sure that before there 
is a threat, we are always in communication, we are always in 
that constant planning mode, and we are always on the same 
page, so we can mitigate even the possibility of the threat and 
certainly the potential fallout.
    I will say again that enough of these threats have become 
real and have become real acts of violence for us to not ever 
take them lightly. We always have to take them seriously. Part 
of taking them seriously is making sure that we are always in 
constant communication and coordination with our local, State, 
and Federal law enforcement agencies to really ensure that we 
are doing the things and taking the steps needed to protect our 
campuses.
    Mr. Pfluger. Yes. Thank you, President Hudson. Does anybody 
else have a different opinion as far as any of the witnesses?
    Rev. Manning. No, the only thing, and thank you for that 
question, I think the only thing that we have to continuously 
do is to build those lines of communication even within all of 
our churches. The work that we have done already, as well, with 
the Tree of Life after their horrific act back in October 2019, 
it was immensely beneficial to be able to come and to share 
with them. I think realistically when we can share all of the 
communications together, then that helps in aiding all the 
house of worship, knowing first and foremost that they are not 
alone. Then second, that there are folks out there who have 
trailblazed the way, as well.
    Mr. Pfluger. Well, thank you, Reverend. Thank you, 
President Hudson. I think your words and your testimony are 
salient to us, that we should always be vigilant of threats. It 
is really sad that we have to even talk about this, to be 
honest. It is very sad to me.
    But, Mr. Chairman, I hope that as a result of this, what 
this committee will do is take these words, take these 
witnesses' testimony today, and take this situation and apply 
it to not only this particular specific situation, but also to 
the greater security needs of our country. That the information 
sharing, whether it is our Southern Border or whether it is 
terrorism abroad, that we will do everything we possibly can to 
secure this country and use the words that we just heard from 
the reverend and the president.
    With that, I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. As you know, that 
is part of the charge of this committee, to do just that. I 
look forward to a cooperative effort to make sure we accomplish 
it.
    The Chair recognizes the gentlelady from Florida, Mrs. 
Demings, for 5 minutes.
    Mrs. Demings. Well, thank you so much, Mr. Chairman, and 
thank you for reminding us of our charge. Certainly, our 
primary responsibility is the safety and security of our 
Nation. I have not forgotten that. But today, we are here to 
talk about domestic terrorist threats against Black 
institutions, houses of worship, and HBCUs. I think our 
children being threatened and worshippers is worth staying very 
focused and giving the--just amount of time and attention to 
that matter. I want to thank our witnesses for being here with 
us today, as well.
    Reverend Manning, you described the violence against Mother 
Emanuel--and it is good to see you, I wish it was under 
different circumstances--as a deliberate and sinful act rooted 
in hate. I just want to repeat those words because I want this 
committee to stay very focused on why we are here.
    President Hudson, you stated that the threats against HBCUs 
are a deliberate attempt to destroy these cultural spaces where 
intellect and diverse thought thrives.
    Reverend Manning, following up on the $50,000 that you 
indicated that Mother Emanuel had to spend on security in 
recent years, I am just curious, have you received any outreach 
at all from any Federal offices about programs that might 
assist your church in provided security at your church?
    Rev. Manning. Thank you for the question. I already 
articulated that we did receive a partial grant with MUSC, but 
that was from a trauma perspective.
    From a security perspective, we have not. A lot of times 
within the church situation, there may be some delay in 
receiving information regarding if those grants are indeed 
available. I think that is something that we definitely have to 
work through.
    Mrs. Demings. Yes, I think it is just almost unbelievable. 
I mean, the Nation watched and, quite frankly, probably the 
world watched a vicious attack against the pastor and the 
worshipers there. I find it almost unbelievable that no Federal 
agency reached out with regard to security at the church.
    President Hudson, I know you have indicated that you were 
aware and certainly of the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. 
Certainly, we know that bomb threats against HBCUs is nothing 
new. We are certainly here today to talk about the recent 
series of threats, but could you just share a little bit? When 
did you become aware or how did you become aware of Nonprofit 
Security Grant Program?
    Mr. Hudson. Well, we became aware of the program quite some 
time ago and we became aware, as we do a lot of the different 
programs. It was through the efforts of our Congressman, my 
Congressman, Congressman Thompson, and his office that really 
does a great job of keeping us abreast of opportunities that 
are available to our colleges, our universities, even outside 
of the very issue we are talking about today.
    Also, our engagement with DHS Office of Academic Engagement 
and that is a more recent effort, we signed an MOU with them 
this past fall, has helped increase the awareness of these 
various programs that you may not otherwise be aware of. You 
know, we put opportunities out in a way where we assume that 
everyone knows. So, when funding agencies, when our 
Congressman, when they are intentional about letting you know, 
and sometimes it is as simple as sending an email, hey, just 
want to make you aware of this opportunity, when those efforts 
happen, it really helps our ability to not only know the 
importance of the issues that these grants may address, but 
also gives you some comfort, if you will, that your 
applications will be reviewed seriously and this is an 
opportunity that they want you to have.
    That is so important. Grant writing oftentimes is 
competitive amongst universities. So, as I said before when you 
upped the pool of resources and make it more available to more 
schools, that helps. When you provide that outreach for the 
opportunities that are available, you are going to get more 
people writing and you are going to open that opportunity up to 
more institutions.
    Mrs. Demings. You know, I think about how critical 
information sharing is and the unbelievable number of houses of 
worship. Thank God for those and the HBCUs, too. But 
disseminating information to all might be quite challenging.
    Are your institutions part of organizations that could help 
disseminate information and coordinate technical assistance if 
needed? We are just trying to find better ways to get 
information out to larger numbers of institutions.
    Mr. Hudson. Absolutely.
    Mrs. Demings. For either one.
    Mr. Hudson. Absolutely for certain colleges and 
universities, HBCUs. For us, we are members of the Thurgood 
Marshall College Fund, and they are a great organization in 
terms of disseminating information to member institutions and 
following up with those, facilitating webinars, facilitating 
Zoom chats in which we can get additional information and 
actually speak with the funding agencies and those officials 
who are responsible for administering those grants.
    So, I would always say that those organizations, you also 
have UNCF, as well, are really key and vital. To the extent 
that those funding agencies work with those organizations, that 
information does filter out better to the individual 
institutions.
    Mrs. Demings. I am out of time. Mr. Chairman, thank you so 
much. I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. The Chair 
recognizes the gentlelady from California, Ms. Barragan, for 5 
minutes.
    Ms. Barragan. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this 
hearing today. It calls attention to the disturbing trend of 
increased bomb threats at Black colleges and Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities. Let us be clear, these acts of 
intimidation are rooted in racism and bigotry, and they should 
outrage all of us.
    In my district, Charles R. Drew University, an historically 
Black graduate institute, received 2 bomb threats in January. 
In their 55-year history, nothing like this has happened 
before. These threats cause terror for their students and staff 
alike.
    Mr. Chairman, thank you for immediately raising the 
seriousness of these threats with the FBI and the Department of 
Homeland Security. I am here to work alongside you and this 
committee to address domestic violent extremism, acts that 
promote dangerous, violent, White supremacist ideologies.
    President Hudson, you spoke about this a little bit in your 
last answer. In my district, Charles R. Drew University is 
still unsure if the bomb threat perpetrator was caught and if 
they were targeted by the same individual or groups as other 
HBCUs across the Nation.
    In your testimony you emphasized the importance of close 
collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security. Do you 
know if the Department is working alongside HBCUs to coordinate 
information about these bomb threats? Do you have any 
recommendations for information sharing?
    Mr. Hudson. Yes, they have been very helpful in terms of 
disseminating information and coordinating with the member 
institutions. I can personally attest that I have heard from 
several individuals through the Department of Homeland 
Security, including my Congressman, through local law 
enforcement, State law enforcement, Federal law enforcement, 
just that personal recognition that we know this is out there, 
we are doing everything we can to assist, that has been very 
helpful.
    Again, I would recommend continuing to work not only 
directly with those institutions, which that personal touch is 
so important, you know, once you have received a threat, but 
also working through those member organizations, those umbrella 
organizations, as I mentioned Thurgood Marshall and there are 
several others. They are very good at getting us all together 
and making sure we are all receiving the same information and 
making sure we are all receiving the same opportunities to 
learn more about resources, to speak with those administrators, 
those high-ranking administrators, that have the ability to 
move the needle as it relates to these issues.
    So, I would just ask----
    Ms. Barragan. Thank you.
    Mr. Hudson [continuing]. That they continue that effort 
along those lines.
    Ms. Barragan. Thank you. Reverend Manning, as our society 
has become more digital and users can post anonymously on-line 
with greater ease, how has Mother Emanuel addressed 21st 
Century on-line threats? Are you aware of the actions that 
other faith-based institutions are taking to make sure their 
congregation members feel safe during this time of increased 
threats?
    Rev. Manning. Yes. Thank you for the question. Let me 
answer the first question--or the last question first.
    So, our work, of course, with the Jewish community, Tree of 
Life has actually borne a lot of fruit in that regard where we 
do talk on a regular basis. Rabbi Jeff Myers and I have a 
personal connection, so we do do that in that regard, as well 
as part of some of the other platforms that we do, that are 
able to plug into. We're able to hear about some of the threats 
locally here within the city of Charleston.
    As far as on-line, when we have those type of attacks that 
may come on our Facebook page, the only thing we can do is, of 
course, go in and remove them and then report them to Facebook 
in that regard. But the on-line presence is indeed something 
that we had to spend some time in because there is so much 
anonymity that is out there, where people can just post and 
then whatever they are going to say, they can say, and then we 
just have to make sure that we are doing our level best to 
remove all of those type of comments that come up.
    Ms. Barragan. Thank you for that. Ms. Nelson, in the wake 
of the recent HBCU bomb threats, the NAACP called for the full 
accountability, arrest, prosecution, and conviction for those 
responsible for these threats. Charles R. Drew University in my 
district still doesn't know if the perpetrator was caught.
    Can you talk about the importance of accountability and how 
Congress can help address the unequal and selective criminal 
justice enforcement measures you have seen over the years?
    Ms. Nelson. Yes, thank you. I want to emphasize how 
important it is for Congress and for Federal law enforcement to 
aggressively investigate and prosecute hate crimes. They are a 
scourge on our society. They represent our very worst 
inclinations. They have the ability to spread to invite copycat 
instances of violence and often involve mass efforts at 
extracting violence against particular communities.
    So, it is something that we are deeply concerned about. We 
have talked about some of the historical instances and events 
that are known to many of us. But there are many, also, that 
fall under the radar and your reference to the threats of the 
schools in your districts are a great example of ones that we 
don't hear about every day in the news, but still wreak the 
havoc that we have been discussing in terms of the terror that 
they produce in individuals and in whole communities.
    Ms. Barragan. Thank you. Thank you all for--all our 
witnesses. With that, Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. Thank you very much. The Chair 
recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Malinowski, for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Malinowski. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman, for 
holding this hearing today. Thank you to our witnesses. I am 
sure we all wish we weren't having to talk about this, but it 
is important that we are.
    We are seeing a staggering increase in the number of 
domestic bombings in the United States. In 2020, the number 
skyrocketed by 71 percent. In the first few months of this year 
alone we have seen an unprecedented wave of 57 improvised 
explosive device threats, or IED threats, against institutions 
like our Historically Black Colleges and Universities and 
places of worship more generally.
    We can talk about the root causes, and I think we have done 
that in this committee and elsewhere, of the rise of domestic 
extremism and generally the role that social media companies 
play in amplifying and recommending violent extremist content. 
But we are here today to ensure that as we deal with those root 
causes, we are also acting to protect the potential targets of 
these attacks.
    We have to do more to help our State and local communities 
and governments and others that serve on the front lines with 
the resources that they need to identify and protect 
institutions most likely to be targeted. That is why I recently 
introduced and the committee unanimously supported the 
Bipartisan Bombing Prevention Act, a bill that formally 
authorizes the Office of Bombing Prevention, or OBP, to provide 
counter IED training and guidance to targeted organizations, 
and working with Federal partners like FEMA to administer 
grants to those institutions that would be most likely to be 
attacked.
    I know since January, OBP has been in contact with over 100 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities, as well as FBI 
and local law enforcement, offering their expertise and 
support.
    So, I wanted to ask Reverend Manning and Mr. Hudson, a part 
of OBP's mission is coordinating a comprehensive National 
counter-IED strategy. I wonder if you could speak to the 
importance of having that kind of holistic and strategic 
approach to bomb prevention.
    Rev. Manning. Well, I would think that it would definitely 
be advantageous. From a conventional AME Church perspective, it 
would help in making sure that all the churches across the 
United States, and dare I say the world, have the most recent 
information, and I think that would help immensely.
    Mr. Hudson. I echo Reverend Manning's sentiments from the 
colleges and universities side, definitely having access, full 
access, to all the information at the same time would be very 
beneficial. It also aligns with the multi-tiered approach that 
is necessary to combat this issue. You have to look at it from 
all levels. Having that type of coordination and that 
dissemination of information amongst colleges and universities 
so we can review best practices, for instance, would be most 
beneficial.
    Mr. Malinowski. Thank you. Say a little bit about the 
support and outreach that you have received from the Federal 
Government along those lines and whether you think there is 
room to grow and strengthen that collaboration.
    Mr. Hudson. Well, we are excited about the collaboration 
and the assistance we have received from the Federal 
Government, just from, again, the opportunities that are being 
provided for funding and the ability to increase the pool of 
those funds, the availability of those funds, and, again, the 
interaction with the funding agencies. So, those things are 
very important. We would just like for that to not only 
continue to be enhanced, but to be enhanced and, again, allow 
for more universities to really improve and increase their 
capacity.
    I will say, you know, for Jackson State, and this is true 
for most HBCUs, without that Federal support it will be 
difficult for us to meet the moment, if you will, and for us to 
build our capacity to properly respond to these ever-increasing 
threats. This is not the last time this will happen. These 
things will continue to happen. History often repeats itself. 
The assistance of the Federal Government is going to be 
necessary to allow us to meet those threats and really build 
our capacity in doing so.
    Mr. Malinowski. Well, I am afraid you are right and we will 
do whatever we can to help. Thank you so much and I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentleman yields back. The 
gentlelady from Texas.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. If you would just allow me a moment to put 
something on the record. I didn't know if you were closing at 
this time, Mr. Chairman. Thank you so very much.
    Thank you all so very much. This has been powerful and 
instructive to all of who represent HBCUs.
    I do want to just reassert the Nonprofit Security Grant 
Program for the nonprofits, but also the recent Vice 
President's announcement that may have been already mentioned 
by the Chairman, but I just wanted to say it again. For our 
HBCU schools, there is a project, School Emergency Response to 
Violence, Project SERV, that you can now immediately get in the 
queue application for $50,000 to $100,000.
    I am certain that this will not happen again. I encourage--
first of all, the Chairman should be thanked because we were 
the first committee, I think, that had the Classified briefing. 
But I encourage the FBI and DHS and others because of the 
overhanging threat to move as expeditiously and thoroughly as 
possible in their ability to give you answers in many 
instances.
    Mr. Chairman, I just wanted to indicate that we are 
collaborating with the administration, we are collaborating 
with Members of Congress in our districts. We hope that you all 
will call upon us so that we can ensure the safety of all of 
you and to use these grants that have now been evidenced.
    Thank you so very much. With that, I yield back.
    Chairman Thompson. The gentlelady yields back. Let me thank 
the witnesses for their testimony and the Members for their 
questions.
    Reverend Manning, you maiden voyage as a witness to 
Congress will be duly noted and let me say you passed with 
flying colors, by the way. We thank you for it.
    However, we will have staff reach out to you directly on 
making sure that you and anyone you suggest would have any and 
all information relative to the nonprofit programs that Mother 
Emanuel can benefit from. You should not have had to spend 
$50,000 of your own money when we have monies available right 
here to help.
    Let me say to Ms. Nelson, your organization has a 
tremendous job to do. You need to help keep the conscience of 
this country on track and make sure we do the right thing. We 
are a Nation of laws and sometimes those laws have been bent to 
the negative impact of others. So, I applaud you for that.
    President Hudson, your institution is a great institution, 
not because I have a degree from there, but I also represent 
it. So, I appreciate you coming in. I know you have a 
tremendous challenge ahead of you.
    The one thing that I want to talk about on our historical 
Black colleges, when threats occur, then all of us who had 
children to go to college, the first thing that comes to our 
mind is it safe? So part of what we have to do is mitigate the 
issue to the extent practical, so that parents don't have to 
wonder when I send my child to college, is it a death sentence 
or is it there so that they can get the expectation of a 
wholesome education? Our committee is committed to doing that.
    That is why the Ranking Member and others have joined me in 
trying to increase this pool of money for institutions and 
other nonprofits to take advantage of it. It is not enough, it 
is a start. But coupled with that is some training and 
coordination that can be equally as helpful as an investment in 
dollars. So, we look forward to that going forward.
    The Members of the committee may have additional questions 
for the witnesses and we ask that you respond expeditiously in 
writing. The Chair reminds Members that the committee's record 
will remain open for 10 business days.
    Without objection, the committee stands adjourned.
    [Whereupon, at 12:19 p.m., the committee was adjourned.]


                            A P P E N D I X

                              ----------                              

     Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Eric S.C. Manning
    Question 1. You testified about the history of White supremacist 
attacks on Black churches and how the church is the heart of the Black 
community.
    In the years following the racially-motivated attack at Mother 
Emmanuel Church, what have been the long-term effects on the 
community's confidence in gathering safely and how can communities like 
yours be supported after immense trauma?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
    Question 2. How have the threats to Black churches evolved over the 
years and what resources do churches need to keep their communities 
safe?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
      Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Thomas K. Hudson
    Question 1a. Since January 4, there have been a total of 59 bomb 
threats, most of which targeted HBCUs and Black churches. The FBI 
states that 31 field offices have been involved in working with local, 
State, and Federal law enforcement to identify those involved.
    Has the Department of Homeland Security helped connect you with 
resources/programs to bolster your security in the wake of these 
events? If so, have you noticed an impact on the student's sense of 
safety and security?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
    Question 1b. What can the Department of Homeland Security do to 
communicate with you more effectively regarding the threats that your 
institutions face?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
    Question 2a. Yesterday, the Department of Education announced that 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that have recently 
experienced a bomb threat are eligible to apply for grant funds under 
the Project School Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV) 
program. Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security has been 
providing resources, assessments, training, and grant funding to 
support emergency management and prevent acts of targeted violence and 
terrorism.
    From your experience, have you found roadblocks to engaging with 
Governmental entities and do you have any thoughts on how they can 
further engage and support HBCUs?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
    Question 2b. Have you have had any experiences with other groups or 
Government officials that have assisted you with the security of your 
institutions? For example, local police, State/local government, non-
profit organizations, or other community groups or associations.
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
        Questions From Congresswoman Dina Titus for Janai Nelson
    Question 1. You testified about the history of White supremacist 
attacks on Black churches and how the church is the heart of the Black 
community.
    You discuss this in your testimony, but can you elaborate on how 
threats to Black institutions have evolved over time?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.
    Question 2. Since January 4, there have been a total of 59 bomb 
threats, most of which targeted HBCUs and Black churches. The FBI 
states that 31 field offices have been involved in working with local, 
State, and Federal law enforcement to identify those involved.
    White supremacy and racially-motivated extremism are not new. With 
that in mind, what unique public policy challenges do Black 
institutions, like HBCUs and Black churches, face as a result?
    Answer. Response was not received at the time of publication.

                                 [all]