A/HRC/11/36/Add.3 page 13 40. The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice highlighted its proactive role in the aftermath of Katrina, reflected in the launching of Operation Home Sweet Home in February 2006. While the initiative had a nationwide focus, it initially concentrated on the areas where Katrina victims were relocated, increasing the reach of its testing programme to identify cases of housing discrimination. Emphasis was also place in areas where a surge of hate crimes had occurred, as these crimes are often correlated with housing discrimination.17 41. The Department of Housing and Urban Development noted actions developed to provide adequate housing to those displaced by Katrina. These include additional disaster-relief funding for the affected areas; limited extensions of a foreclosure moratorium; grants for home-owners whose houses were damaged or destroyed; and funding to local public housing projects. The Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at HUD also developed proactive actions to raise awareness in the Gulf coast region about fair housing obligations, in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which leads relief efforts. 42. The Special Rapporteur also makes reference to the United States latest periodic report to CERD, which analyzed concerns about the disparate effects of Katrina on racial or ethnic minorities. In the report, the United States stated that “recognizing the overlap between race and poverty in the United States, many commentators conclude nonetheless that the post-Katrina issues were the result of poverty (i.e., the inability of many of the poor to evacuate) rather than racial discrimination per se”.18 H. Immigration 43. The Special Rapporteur met with the Office of Citizenship at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (CIS), and was briefed concerning CIS’s policy to reinvigorate assimilation efforts, particularly in what concerns English proficiency of migrants. Officials pointed out that they viewed assimilation of migrants into the United States as a key element for integration into the labor market, the educational system and social life more broadly, but this did not imply the abandonment of cultural or religious diversity, upon which the United States was founded. The Special Rapporteur was informed that CIS had intensified its efforts to diminish the backlog in citizenship applications and thus respond more rapidly to applicants.19 44. CIS officials referred to the naturalization exam, which has been recently reformed in order to become more uniform nationwide. The naturalization test contains an English reading and writing section as well as questions on U.S. history and government. CIS produces and 17 See speech by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney-General Rena Comisac in Jackson, Mississippi on 12 July 2006. Available at http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/speeches/rc_speech_ july_12_2006.php. 18 19 CERD/C/USA/6, para. 255. See, for example, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Backlog Elimination Plan: Fiscal Year 2006, 3rd Quarter Update. Available at http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/ backlog_FY06Q3.pdf.