News & Commentary

Now that President Donald Trump has nominated Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court, it will be up to the Senate to fully vet him so that the American people can determine whether he will uphold the basic civil rights and liberties relied on by everyone in this country. This is particularly true when it comes to abortion rights, where Kavanaugh’s prior opinions on the subject, coupled with the fact that Donald Trump vowed to only nominate justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, give rise to serious concern about women’s continued ability to access abortion if Kavanaugh is confirmed.  The ACLU as a matter of policy does not endorse or oppose nominees to the Supreme Court. But we do think it’s

Now that President Donald Trump has nominated Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court, it will be up to the Senate to fully vet him so that the American people can determine whether he will uphold the basic civil rights and liberties relied on by everyone in this country. This is particularly true when it comes to abortion rights, where Kavanaugh’s prior opinions on the subject, coupled with the fact that Donald Trump vowed to only nominate justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, give rise to serious concern about women’s continued ability to access abortion if Kavanaugh is confirmed.  The ACLU as a matter of policy does not endorse or oppose nominees to the Supreme Court. But we do think it’s

Now that President Donald Trump has nominated Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court, it will be up to the Senate to fully vet him so that the American people can determine whether he will uphold the basic civil rights and liberties relied on by everyone in this country. This is particularly true when it comes to abortion rights, where Kavanaugh’s prior opinions on the subject, coupled with the fact that Donald Trump vowed to only nominate justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, give rise to serious concern about women’s continued ability to access abortion if Kavanaugh is confirmed.  The ACLU as a matter of policy does not endorse or oppose nominees to the Supreme Court. But we do think it’s

On June 26, a federal judge issued a national injunction in the ACLU’s class action lawsuit against the Trump administration’s policy of separating children and parents at the border. He ordered the government to reunite all children under five with their parents by Tuesday, July 10, and all remaining children by July 26.  Since then, the administration has been scrambling to create a plan and process to meet the court’s deadlines

Few times in recent memory have demanded a more careful examination of our nation's history than now — the year we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the 14th Amendment’s passage. At a time when the Trump administration is throwing asylum seekers in jail without due process and undermining efforts to desegregate schools, it is critical to remember that the “pervading purpose” of the 14th Amendment was to eliminate the oppression of historically subjugated minorities and to provide equality of opportunity.  The amendment's ratification in 1868, shortly after African-Americans were emancipated from slavery, repr

On the issue of LGBT rights, Justice Kennedy played a critically important role in transforming the lives of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people in America. The landmark rulings he authored in this area transported us, as LGBT people, from being criminals in the eyes of the law to having the freedom to marry the people we love most in the world. With Justice Kennedy’s spot now open on the court, Congress must ensure that his replacement demonstrates that same dedication to upholding the basic American values of nondiscrimination and equality, which are essential to allowing LGBT people to live our lives freely and openly.  But while the U.S. Senate braces for what is certain to be an all-consuming, months-long confirmation battle

When reporter Joshua Vaughn of The Appeal told me that some Pennsylvania police have charged people with “ethnic intimidation” — the state’s version of a hate crime — for saying offensive things to the officers who arrest them, I thought, “Not again!” No, really. This is another version of “contempt of cop,” the police practice of punishing people who defy them wit

Children are crying for their parents while being held in small cages. The attorney general tells us the Bible justifies what we see and the White House press secretary backs him up. Be horrified and angered, but not because this is a new Trump transgression against real American values. America was in the business of separating families long before Trump.  I am not talking about spurious claims that Obama did the same thing or the valid comparisons to how our criminal jus

After spending years as the prison capital of the world, a new report indicates that Louisiana has finally shed this shameful title thanks to the historic package of criminal justice reforms passed last year. According to the Prison Policy Initiative, Louisiana’s incarceration rate is now the second highest in the nation, below that of Oklahoma. This is a major milestone and a testament to the diverse grassroots coalition that came together to pass