The Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) has one of the most important roles in state government – so important that the Michigan Civil Rights Commission (MCRC) is enshrined in the Michigan Constitution: to investigate alleged discrimination and to secure the equal protection of civil rights. In 1964, Michigan became the first state in the nation to include civil rights protections in its constitution. Article 5, Section 29 calls on the Michigan Civil Rights Commission to “...investigate alleged discrimination against any person because of race, religion, color or national origin in the enjoyment of the civil rights guaranteed by law…” MDCR was created in 1965 to carry out the work of the Commission. Passage of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act and the Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act in 1976 further clarified the specific protections guaranteed under Michigan law.
You may file a complaint of discrimination using the online complaint form, call 1-800-482-3604, or email MDCRServiceCenter@michigan.gov.
The Michigan Department of Civil Rights has compiled a list of reading and literacy programs and resources available for K-12 students, parents and educators throughout Michigan. We will update the list as information on additional resources becomes available.
We collectively acknowledge that Michigan’s state government, specifically the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, occupies the ancestral, traditional, and contemporary Lands of the Anishinaabek – the Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoples. In particular, the Lansing office sits on land ceded in the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw. We recognize, support, and advocate for the sovereignty of the twelve federally-recognized Tribal nations who share geography with Michigan, for those Indigenous peoples who were forcibly removed from their homelands, for Indigenous individuals and Tribal communities who live here now, and for the next seven generations.
By offering this Land Acknowledgement, we affirm Indigenous sovereignty and affirm our agency’s commitment to upholding government to government relationships and collaborating with Native nations.
