As a young man in the 1940s, Morris Dees worked the cotton fields with blacks and witnessed firsthand social and economic injustice at its worst. Throughout his life, Dees has fought against hate groups and social inequities.

One hundred-fifty people attended the Merit Award Dinner on March 2, hosted by the Decalogue Society of Lawyers, honoring Dee’s, a legendary civil rights lawyer  for his lifetime achievements in fighting

for equality.

The evening started with a reception at 6 p.m.  and continued with a dinner, during which Dees discussed his journey to becoming a successful civil rights lawyer .

Dees founded the Southern Poverty Law Center in 1971, and has defended civil rights for 39 years in an effort to fight hate groups and racism.

Dees has represented Southern Poverty Law Center in a number of high-profile legal victories against hate and extremist groups. These victories included lawsuits against the Ku Klux Klan, The United Klans of America and the White Aryan Resistance.

“I think that it’s important from the highest level, from the president of the United States  down to the schools, communities and organizations, that we have a community of openness of people of all different beliefs, sexual orientation, gender and religion,” Dees said. “We’re always going to have switches and changes, and who has the power and who the powerless might be.”

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center Web site, the number of hate groups has increased by 54 percent since 2000.

“There has been a tremendous increase in hate groups, primarily in the past seven or eight years because of the economy, Latino migrations and especially in the last couple years because of having President Barack Obama, an African American as president,” Dees said.

The Southern Poverty Law Center Web site also states that there are currently 926 known hate groups operating in the United States, and 22 of those groups are located in Illinois. The law center tracks the activities of hate groups and domestic terrorists across America, and launches innovative lawsuits that seek justice against networks of radical extremists. They use the courts to win systematic reforms on behalf of victims of bigotry and discrimination. They also provide educators with free resources that teach school children to reject hate, embrace diversity and respect differences.

“The Southern Poverty Law Center tries to anticipate problems before they become real mainstream issues,” Dees said. “For example, today we have a litigation section that deals with the rights of migrant workers by suing companies that bring them in because we find that these people are being taken advantage of, sort of close to slavery.”

The Decalogue Society has a prestigious list of past Merit Award winners including Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg of the U.S. Supreme Court, Eleanor Roosevelt and Albert Einstein.

“We have a committee that comes together, and Morris Dees has been on our list for a number of years,” said Barry Goldberg, president of the Decalogue Society of Lawyers. “We have requested him to receive our highest award, which is our Merit Award.”

The Merit Award given by the Decalogue Society recognizes Dees’ lifetime achievements and contributions to the betterment of humanity.

“It’s very important to get an award from an organization that stood for fairness and justice in a time when discrimination against Jews was rampant,” Dees said.

The Decalogue Society of Lawyers is America’s oldest Jewish bar association and has fought for over 75 years against discrimination and anti-Semitism with the help of other organizations and minorities.

Kitty Kurth, president of Kurth Lampe, a Chicago-based strategic communications firm, has been a big fan of Dees since she was little.

“I think the Merit Award Dinner went great,” Kurth said. “Morris Dees talked about how he got into civil rights, and how he used his career as a lawyer to enhance his fight against hate and social injustice. The event was very well attended and I was very happy to meet Morris.”

Dees has received numerous awards for his work. Trial Lawyers for Public Justice named him Trial Lawyer of the Year. and in 2009 he was inducted into their Hall of Fame.

“This nation has always been a land of liberty and justice for all,” Dees said. “We’ve taken three steps forward a couple steps backward and like Dr. Martin Luther King said, ‘The arch of justice is long, but it bends slowly towards fairness and justice.’”