A 2-1 decision this week by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld the Military Commissions Act. This is a misguided endorsement of the Bush Administration's view that Guantanamo is a place without law and the Guantánamo detainees are people without rights. Unfortunately, the decision is likely to be seen by the Bush Administration as a green light to continue its policy of arbitrary and indefinite detention.
The war on terror is not an excuse to abandon our commitment to fundamental fairness. The burden is now squarely on Congress to restore the right to meaningful judicial review that the Military Commissions Act repealed. If Congress does not fulfill its responsibility, the Supreme Court will be forced to step in once again and correct the balance.
But the recently introduced “Restoring the Constitution Act of 2007” (S.576) is an important first step. The bill restores due process and the Constitution’s habeas corpus rights for detainees being held indefinitely at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere. It enforces the Geneva Conventions as the law on how we treat people. And it holds government officials accountable so that due process violations and torture stop, and never happen again.
We've got a long battle ahead of us to restore the Constitution and reverse the damage done by the Military Commissions Act. You'll be hearing more about this campaign in the coming weeks, but you can take a first step today by contacting your senators and asking them to co-sponsor S. 576, the "Restoring the Constitution Act of 2007."
>> Speak out with other consumers and phone company shareholders. Take action today.
>> In dozens of states, the ACLU is calling for oversight by the utility commissions who regulate the phone companies. See what's happening in your state and around the country.
>> On January 31, the ACLU urged the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to exercise its proper authority, uphold our initial ACLU v. NSA victory, and require the president to shut down his program of unchecked NSA wiretapping. Learn more about ACLU v. NSA.
Phone companies are voluntarily turning over millions of customer records to the National Security Agency.
The ACLU is backing a resolution by AT&T shareholders to force the company to disclose more about its role in the recent National Security Agency (NSA) illegal spying scandal and to tighten its policies to better protect customer privacy.
If you are a shareholder or customer of AT&T or Verizon or just a concerned citizen your voice can make a difference in this effort. It only takes a few minutes to email AT&T and Verizon and let them know you want them to protect your privacy not help the government invade it.
Acting without a court order or the knowledge or consent of their customers, AT&T and Verizon are providing the government with potentially intimate details about who you know and who you talk to -- details that are stored in giant databases, and may be mined by the NSA's supercomputers to scan through your associations and interests for "suspicious" signs, whatever that means.
With support from the ACLU, shareholders and consumers are working to force these companies to disclose their handling practices for customers' personal information, any legal issues with assisting in government spying and amounts that the companies have spent in connection with the spying scandal.
Both AT&T and Verizon are attempting to obstruct shareholder discussion, by appealing to the Securities and Exchange Commission for permission to block proposed resolutions.
Corporations are accountable all of their shareholders, who have a right to vote on issues they feel are vital to preserve their company's reputation and protect their long-term investments and the privacy of the customers. AT&T and Verizon users, board members and shareholders must be aware of all the issues inherent in assisting the government with its spying.
Help hold AT&T and Verizon accountable and protect your privacy by taking action today.
ACLU’s Real ID "Scorecard" Provides a Checklist for Evaluating Upcoming Regulations
This week, the ACLU released a "scorecard" for evaluating new Real ID regulations expected to be released soon by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The rules will provide the states with precise instructions on how to implement the problematic Real ID act.
The 2005 legislation would turn your state driver’s license into a genuine national identity card and impose numerous new burdens on taxpayers, citizens, immigrants, and state governments while doing nothing to protect against terrorism.
Nationwide, there is a growing rebellion against Real ID within the states. In January, the Maine legislature passed a resolution rejecting participation in the ID scheme, and similar legislation has been passed by one chamber in the legislatures of Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Vermont and Wyoming. Bills rejecting Real ID have also been introduced in Hawaii, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oklahoma, Washington and West Virginia, with more expected in the coming weeks.
"Real ID has given DHS the daunting task of creating a uniform national driver’s license with a set of instructions that are riddled with problems," said Barry Steinhardt, Director of the ACLU’s Technology and Liberty Project. "The scorecard allows users to systematically measure whether they have been successfully addressed."
You can download the scorecard and be prepared to make your own assessment of the new regulations and their success in your state. Once the regulations are released, the ACLU will be filling in the scorecard and rating the performance of the new rules and DHS. The rules will then be subject to a mandated public comment period.
Our Real ID scorecard is available now at: www.realnightmare.org/resources/106
For comprehensive and up-to-the-minute information on the Real ID Act go to: www.realnightmare.org/
“Ghosts of Abu Ghraib”: In New Documentary, Firsthand Accounts of Abuse
Director Rory Kennedy
Jameel Jaffer, ACLU
It's been over two and a half years since the publication of the notorious photos depicting the torture and abuse of detainees in U.S. custody at Abu Ghraib prison. While a small number of low-ranking soldiers have been prosecuted, the Bush administration has steadfastly refused to hold high-level officials accountable for creating the policies and tolerating a permissive climate that resulted in these abuses.
In a powerful new documentary, acclaimed filmmaker Rory Kennedy investigates the abuse and torture of prisoners in the infamous Iraqi prison. "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" features interviews with prisoners, court-martialed abusers, military personnel and legal experts, among others.
In an exclusive ACLU podcast, Rory Kennedy talked about her new film with Jameel Jaffer, deputy director of our National Security Program and a lead attorney in the fight against unlawful detention and abuse.
To hear the podcast and learn more about "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" and the ACLU's challenges to unlawful detention go to: www.aclu.org/ghostsofabughraib
Being LGBT Shouldn't Be a Job Hazard
Judge Bans Federal Monopoly on Medical Marijuana
Professor Lyle E. Craker is appealing the DEA's denial of application to grow marijuana for medical research.
Last week, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) judge ruled that it is in the public interest to end the government's sixty-five year monopoly over marijuana used in FDA-approved research.
The ACLU represents University of Massachusetts-Amherst Professor Lyle Craker, who petitioned the DEA for a license to grow research-grade marijuana for use in privately-funded studies that aim to develop the plant into a legal, prescription medicine.
The ruling marks a major step forward in the six year struggle by Professor Craker to gain a license to grow research-grade marijuana for use by other scientists in privately funded, government-approved studies. The DEA must now either accept or reject the court’s recommendation, and scientists, doctors and medical marijuana patients nationwide, along with the ACLU, urged the agency to comply with the court’s finding and halt federal obstruction of medical marijuana research.
Marijuana is the only Schedule I drug that DEA has prohibited from being produced by private laboratories for scientific research. Other controlled substances, including LSD, MDMA (also known as "Ecstasy"), heroin and cocaine, are available to researchers from DEA-licensed private laboratories, such as the one Professor Craker plans to establish, which will grow high-quality medical marijuana for research purposes.
Learn more about the Craker case, including client profiles, hearing transcripts, a full selection of legal documents, and letters of support from lawmakers and scientists at: www.aclu.org/medicalmarijuana
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