[7][15] In 2006, Clarke joined the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, where she co-led the political participation group and focused on voting rights and election law reform.

[16] In 2011, Clarke was appointed director of the civil rights bureau of then-Attorney General of New York Eric Schneiderman, where she led initiatives on criminal justice issues and housing discrimination.

Under this initiative, the bureau reached agreements with retailers on racial profiling of their customers, police departments on policy reform, and with school districts on the school-to-prison pipeline.

[20] In early 2020, Clarke said that she was "deeply concerned that African American communities are being hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, and that racial bias may be impacting the access they receive to testing and healthcare.

"[22] In the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, Clarke described the pandemic, record rates of unemployment and racial injustice caused by police brutality as a "perfect storm" for social unrest in the United States.

[28] The investigation was about "ensuring equal protection under the law for all New Yorkers, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals who live and work in New York.

"[29] In July 2015, her office secured an agreement with the Boy Scouts of America to end their policy of excluding openly gay adults from serving as leaders in the organization.

In an editorial with Chad Griffin, she called for policymakers and the public to treat the recent wave of hate-motivated violence toward trans women of color as a national crisis.

The book examined the racial impact of the disaster and the failure of governmental, corporate and private agencies to respond to the plight of the New Orleans black community.

[47] After the suit was filed, she said: "Black churches and other religious institutions have a long and ugly history of being targeted by white supremacists in racist and violent attacks meant to intimidate and create fear.

"[citation needed] On January 7, 2021, President-elect Joe Biden chose Clarke to head the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.

Clarke said in response, "If I am fortunate enough to be confirmed, we will turn the page on hate and close the door on discrimination by enforcing our federal civil rights laws.

[62] Four days later, Tucker Carlson and Fox News revealed a letter Clarke wrote to The Harvard Crimson as an undergraduate claiming that Blacks had "superior physical and mental abilities" due to their higher levels of melanin.

[69] The Jewish News Syndicate also noted Clarke's role as leader of Harvard's Black Student Association in 1994 in inviting antisemitic conspiracy theorist professor Tony Martin as a guest speaker on campus.

"[71] During her confirmation hearing, Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Clarke's skills and experiences would help the Department of Justice combat discrimination "in areas from housing to education to employment" and "ensure accountability for law enforcement misconduct.

[80][81] Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee accused Clarke of lying to Congress and asked Attorney General Merrick Garland to remove her from office.