 White House Cuts Backroom Deal on Spying, ACLU Presses Judge for Immediate Halt to Program Patriot Act Reauthorization Fails the American People  Get Involved! Congress Gets Amendment Fever  Celebrate Women's History Month
FreedomWire: Rights, Camera, Action! Stand Up for Freedom Contest Winners Announced! In the States: First Concrete Evidence of FBI Spying Based on Groups' Anti-War Views Ohio's Proposed Immigration Plan Will Disadvantage Community Celebrate Your Right to Vote: Voting is a keystone of democracy. Check out the ACLU Virtual Voting Booth for 2008, from The ACLU Freedom Files. You'll appreciate voting rights in a whole new way! Cast your vote and learn more about the TV series.  YOU CAN HELP PROTECT OUR BASIC FREEDOMS ...by joining with over 500,000 card-carrying members of the ACLU. Our rights as individuals -- the very foundation of our great democracy -- depend on our willingness to defend them, and as an ACLU member, you'll be doing your part. Click here to safeguard our Bill of Rights by becoming an ACLU member. First Concrete Evidence of FBI Spying Based on Groups' Anti-War Views
New evidence was released this week that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting investigations into a political organization based solely on its anti-war views.
Two documents released this week reveal that the FBI investigated gatherings of the Thomas Merton Center for Peace & Justice just because the organization opposed the war in Iraq. Although previously disclosed documents show that the FBI is retaining files on anti-war groups, these documents are the first to show conclusively that the rationale for FBI targeting is the group's opposition to the war.
According to the documents revealed, the FBI initiated a classified investigation of the organization, noting in a November 2002 FBI memo that the center "holds daily leaflet distribution activities in downtown Pittsburgh and is currently focused on its opposition to the potential war on Iraq." The synopsis of the document is provided to "report results of investigation on Pittsburgh anti-war activities." The FBI memo points out that the Merton Center "is a left-wing organization advocating, among many political causes, pacifism."
"All over the country we see the FBI monitoring and keeping files on Americans exercising their First Amendment rights to free expression," said Mary Catherine Roper, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Pennsylvania. "These documents show that Americans are not safe from secret government surveillance, even when they are handing out flyers in the town square -- an activity clearly protected by the Constitution."
For more information about the ACLU's Spy Files project, the documents released this week, and profiles of members of the Thomas Merton Center, go to www.aclu.org/spyfiles Ohio's Proposed Immigration Plan Will Disadvantage Community
Ohio legislators were warned that a new plan to exclude immigrants from the census would harm communities and stretch scarce services for all Ohio families by not getting an accurate count of all those residing in the area. The plan was proposed by a group of Ohio lawmakers.
"Thousands of immigrants work, raise families and pay taxes in Ohio. These legislators want to completely discount their contributions to communities by not including them in the next census," said ACLU of Ohio Executive Director Christine Link.
"With almost 175,000 non-citizens in Ohio, several communities could face losing substantial funds and be forced to stretch already tight budgets because not all of their population will be counted."
Omitting those not born in the United States could also pose serious health and safety risks. Disaster recovery plans, disease management strategies and public health assessments all rely on data gleaned from the census report.
Many organizations rely on attracting talented workers from around the world to live and work in Ohio, including doctors, researchers, college professors, engineers and others. This proposal would communicate to these highly skilled people that they do not count in Ohio, despite their contributions.  Do you know somebody who would be interested in getting news about the ACLU and what we're doing to protect civil liberties? Help us spread the word about ACLU Online -- forward this newsletter to a friend.
|  March 16, 2006 White House Cuts Backroom Deal on Spying, ACLU Presses Judge for Immediate Halt to Program
| Help us check the abuse of executive power and the complicity of Congress in warrantless surveillance on Americans:
Watch Our New Movie!
 "The Spies Have It": Share the movie with friends and ask them to get involved.
Learn More
Read the latest on illegal government spying and the fight to restore the rule of law. | Last week, while Congress was voting on Patriot Act reauthorization, a group of Republican senators brokered a deal with Vice President Dick Cheney that would ratify the President's NSA spying program after the fact, rewriting our laws with less disclosure and less judicial power to check wiretaps on Americans.
Many Americans are appalled that our President has not only ordered warrantless domestic spying, but has unapologetically claimed that he has the power to break the law.
It's at moments like these that our system of checks and balances matters most. The ACLU is aggressively challenging illegal government spying on multiple fronts, including our NSA lawsuit. Last week we asked a federal court to immediately block the illegal spying program. The ACLU v. NSA suit charges that the spying violates all Americans' rights to free speech and privacy under the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution.
Along with our lawsuits, the ACLU is continuing our effort to build support for a complete and independent investigation. White House allies in Congress may be willing to help cover up this illegal program, but there are leaders across the political spectrum who are pressing for a full investigation.
The fact is that the debate in Congress is far from over, and the ACLU's legal challenge to the NSA has only just begun. We must stay vigilant if we want to preserve a democracy where the people are both safe and free. 
Patriot Act Reauthorization Fails the American People
The Patriot Act was reauthorized last week, without several important amendments that could have helped protect the liberty and privacy of innocent Americans.
"Last week's vote failed the American people and the Constitution. Proponents of the law claim that the reauthorization achieves key 'civil liberties protections,' but the facts don't match the rhetoric," Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office, said. "The Patriot Act could have been reformed to protect our security and liberty by focusing the resources on suspected foreign terrorists but, at the Bush administration's insistence, Congress chose to ignore common sense reforms in favor of cosmetic changes."
But the Patriot Act debate is far from over. Even some proponents of the compromise agree that more needs to be done to restore checks and balances. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) and a bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation to require judicial review of the National Security Letters powers, which were made more coercive and punitive under the reauthorization.
The ACLU also continues to pursue our legal challenges to the Patriot Act, including our challenge to the expanded National Security Letter powers. Learn more about where the Patriot Act stands and the continuing struggle for real reform.
Critical Times: Supreme Court and Roe v. Wade
March is Women's History Month. The ACLU Women's Rights Project has worked to empower women and advance equality since 1972. In that year, Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment, and Ruth Bader Ginsberg became the founding director of the Women's Rights Project. Ginsburg stood on the shoulders of many giants in the women's rights arena who put gender equality work on the ACLU's agenda. Ginsburg built precedent upon precedent against gender discrimination, and in many cases, represented men to demonstrate that the sexual stereotypes of the era were not valid.
In Reed v. Reed, the Project's first case to reach the Supreme Court, it ruled that a law categorically providing for differential treatment of men and women violates the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection clause. In Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld, the Supreme Court converted a mother's benefit generated by a man's work into a benefit for either parent based on the spouse's work.
The Project's emphasis broadened from Equal Protection litigation to include more extensive efforts to secure the rights promised to women by Title VII and other anti-discrimination statutes.
Turner v. Dept. of Employment Security in 1975 struck down a law making pregnant women ineligible for unemployment benefits. Numerous cases also helped women gain entry to traditionally "male" jobs.
The program has since expanded to focus on equal access to education, representing pregnant teens denied entrance to the National Honor Society, girls who were told they were too fat to be cheerleaders, and challenged gender-segregated study in public schools. It also addresses employment focusing on low-wage immigrant women workers and women in non-traditional occupations, violence against women and criminal justice. The project has also infused international human rights frameworks and mechanisms into advocacy and litigation in each of these areas.
Get Involved! Congress Gets Amendment Fever
| Oppose Writing Intolerance into the Constitution
Some members of the radical right are aggressively campaigning to amend the U.S. Constitution to deny the right to marry to same-sex couples in committed relationships. These efforts could also invalidate all state and local domestic partnership laws and nullify civil rights protections based on marital status. Take action now!
Take a Stand on the Constitution and Oppose the Flag Amendment
Ever since the Supreme Court barred laws criminalizing flag “desecration” fifteen years ago, a number of lawmakers and interest groups have been lobbying ceaselessly for a constitutional amendment to change the First Amendment to trump the Supreme Court. Take action now!
| Instead of using the limited time of Congress to address pressing issues like domestic wiretapping, the economy or the war, some lawmakers are taking draconian steps to amend the Constitution. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist recently announced that the Senate will vote on two constitutional amendments, the Flag "Desecration" Amendment and the Federal Marriage Amendment, in June.
The Constitution provides a guarantee of equal protection and civil liberties for all. It is no place for politically motivated attacks on individual rights. The First Amendment to the Constitution requires that "Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech." But the Flag Amendment undermines the Bill of Rights by outlawing one type of expression simply because it is offensive. The Federal Marriage Amendment would forever defile the Constitution by writing discrimination into this document that defines our freedom.
Freedom cannot survive if exceptions to constitutional rights are made whenever we reach an election year. The Constitution is no place to play politics with our liberty. Some lawmakers are hoping these proposed amendments to the Constitution will score easy political points. But they forget that Americans from across the political spectrum believe in maintaining constitutional rights, not using the Constitution to advance censorship or discrimination.
The Flag Amendment is closer than ever to passing, a mere one vote away. The Federal Marriage Amendment has become a rallying point for anti-gay activists who want to write discrimination into the Constitution forever. If either measure passes, it would be the first time the Constitution is successfully amended to restrict freedom.
Your active involvement will help defend the Constitution from these attacks.
FreedomWire: Rights, Camera, Action! Stand Up for Freedom Contest Winners Announced!
Ladies and Gentlemen, the judges have reached a verdict. The winners of the second annual Stand Up for Freedom Contest are (drum roll, please) Lauren Humphrey and Steven Gaughan! Lauren will take home $5000 for her PSA submission "You Do," which focuses on the invasiveness of the USA Patriot Act. Steven won in the writing category for his submission "Hide and Seek," a powerful piece on censorship.
To get the full scoop on the contest, visit StandUp, the ACLU's redesigned and renamed website for students and young people. That's right, folks. FreedomWire has retired, and we've hired StandUp as its much hipper, interactive replacement. In addition to spotlighting our contest winners, StandUp features live streaming of Listen Up for Freedom, an ACLU-branded CD sampler featuring songs from top Atlantic Records artists. Check it out today!
Privacy Statement
This mail is never sent unsolicited. You, or someone on your behalf, has subscribed to receive this information from the American Civil Liberties Union. At the ACLU Web site, the ACLU gathers anonymous summary statistics on the responses to our email newsletters in order to better serve list subscribes and ACLU members. To review our Privacy Statement, click here.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment