ACLU NEWS
In a rare public oversight hearing on the Patriot Act last week, the ACLU renewed its call for changes to the 2001 anti-terrorism measure to bring it back in line with the Constitution. "Carefully calibrated changes to the Patriot Act are needed to protect our freedoms," Gregory T. Nojeim, Associate Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office, told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Several key provisions of the Patriot Act are set to expire at the end of the year, and both chambers of Congress are holding hearings to examine the Patriot Act. The ACLU has led the national call for review and reform of the Patriot Act to ensure that law enforcement tools needed to prevent terrorism do not sweep up personal information about innocent Americans. One of the more controversial provisions of the Patriot Act expands the FBI's power to obtain some records in national security investigations without any court review at all. These "national security letters" can be used to obtain financial records, credit reports, and telephone, Internet and other communications, billing or transactional records. The ACLU is also actively challenging this provision in court. "Security and liberty are not mutually exclusive," said Nojeim. "We hope that Congress can cut through the secrecy and see that the Patriot Act went too far, too fast, and must be amended to protect freedom." Read the complete press release and find out more about the Patriot Act and your rights.
An FBI language specialist fired after reporting serious security breaches should be able to go ahead with her case against the government, the ACLU argued before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on April 21. The ACLU challenged the government's "radical theory" that every aspect of Sibel Edmonds' case involved state secrets and therefore could not go forward. Edmonds, a former Middle Eastern language specialist hired by the FBI shortly after 9/11, was fired in 2002 after repeatedly reporting serious security breaches and misconduct. Edmonds challenged her retaliatory dismissal by filing a lawsuit in federal court, but her case was dismissed last July after Attorney General John Ashcroft invoked the so-called "state secrets privilege," and retroactively classified briefings to Congress related to her case. A long-awaited summary of the Inspector General's investigation into Edmond's termination concluded that Edmonds' whistleblower allegations were "the most significant factor" in the FBI's decision to terminate her. "The Justice Department's own Inspector General has now concluded publicly that the FBI fired Edmonds for reporting agency misconduct," said Ann Beeson, Associate Legal Director of the ACLU. "Clearly the FBI is using secrecy not to protect national security but to avoid accountability for its own mistakes." Find out more on the Edmonds' case and other Whistleblower stories.
Concerned viewers got together this month to celebrate two grand American traditions, watching TV and defending free expression. At "Couch Parties Against Censorship," friends gathered to watch the cable shows they like best and to sign letters urging Congress to oppose new restrictions on cable TV programming. "I just wanted to get others involved," wrote one Couch Party host. "I don't want Congress intruding in my life telling me what I can and cannot watch." "We don't get to see each other that often during the academic year, so I was really happy that they were here for the cause, not just to hang out," said a college student who participated. "I cannot recall having a greater sense of joy and accomplishment than when I dropped those letters in the mailbox!" It's not too late to host your own Couch Party! Invite your friends to a Couch Party to celebrate your basic freedoms by watching your favorite cable shows. Use our online tools to invite friends and download a letter to Congress and other materials. "If we are going to stop censorship," says ACLU President Nadine Strossen, "We must make our voices heard now, before Congress passes legislation, or the FCC issues regulations, expanding 'indecency' fines and other forms of suppression to cable TV and the Internet." As another Couch Party host put it: "If you don't like a show, just turn it off. It really is the American way." Learn more and invite friends to your own Couch Party. Take Action! Urge your member of Congress to Support Free Expression on Cable Television and the Internet.
New evidence disclosed in documents released by the Department of Defense confirms that soldiers who abused prisoners were acting with the "seeming approval" of senior command. "These documents provide further evidence that the chain of command in Iraq approved and even encouraged the abuse of detainees held in U.S. custody," said ACLU attorney Amrit Singh. "Instead of holding that chain of command accountable for systemic detainee abuse, the U.S. government continues to thwart efforts to bring the full truth about who was ultimately responsible to light." It is the ACLU's persistent efforts that have brought to light information about the torture and abuse carried out by our government. Most recently, a CD-ROM of 2,200 documents was released in response to a federal court order that directed the Defense Department and other government agencies to comply with our year-old request under the Freedom of Information Act. These latest documents include autopsy reports that provide new, often gruesome details about detainee deaths ruled to be homicides, including death by strangulation and "blunt force injuries." Significantly, the ACLU said, several documents link the abuses to a "command climate" that encouraged brutality. For more details on these latest documents click here. To date, more than 30,000 documents have been released in response to the ACLU's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The latest documents are available online.
The NYCLU, the ACLU and the Council on American-Islamic Relations announced a lawsuit charging that the Department of Homeland Security singled out and violated the rights of American citizens who were returning from a religious conference in Toronto. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of five people to challenge the DHS's policy of detaining, interrogating, fingerprinting and photographing American citizens who are Muslim, solely because they attended an Islamic conference. As attendees of the Reviving the Islamic Spirit (RIS) conference in Toronto arrived at the Canada/U.S. border in December 2004, they were singled out as having participated in the conference, and directed to a nearby building for additional questioning. Several participants wore traditional Muslim dress and were asked about attending the conference before being asked any other questions about their trip to Canada. As more RIS attendees began to amass in the secondary detention area, it became clear that they were victims of profiling. Some were held for as long as six-and-a-half hours overnight. "The government cannot criminalize American citizens for their religious beliefs," said Catherine Kim, a staff attorney with the ACLU. "Americans need to know that they can practice their religion and attend religious conferences without fear of government reprisals." Read the complete story.
The ACLU recently announced the winners of its Youth Activist Scholarship for 2005. Ten high school seniors from around the country were selected to receive $4,000 each to honor their outstanding work to protect civil liberties, especially the rights of young people. The Scholarship was created in 2000 to recognize the efforts of graduating seniors who have demonstrated a strong commitment to civil liberties and civil rights through some form of student activism. Among this year's winners are Hala Saadeh of Massachusetts, who helped raise awareness of religious and ethnic profiling after she was reported as a "suspicious person" on a train and was singled out for a search; Brandon Roane of Maryland, who has become a leader in the fight for increased funding for Baltimore city schools; and Jarred Gamwell of North Carolina, an ACLU client who made national headlines for speaking out against censorship after his pro-gay student government campaign posters were torn down by school officials. Click here for full profiles and photos of the ten winners.
An FBI language specialist fired after reporting serious security breaches should be able to go ahead with her case against the government, the ACLU argued before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on April 21. The ACLU challenged the government's "radical theory" that every aspect of Sibel Edmonds' case involved state secrets and therefore could not go forward. Edmonds, a former Middle Eastern language specialist hired by the FBI shortly after 9/11, was fired in 2002 after repeatedly reporting serious security breaches and misconduct. Edmonds challenged her retaliatory dismissal by filing a lawsuit in federal court, but her case was dismissed last July after Attorney General John Ashcroft invoked the so-called "state secrets privilege," and retroactively classified briefings to Congress related to her case. A long-awaited summary of the Inspector General's investigation into Edmond's termination concluded that Edmonds' whistleblower allegations were "the most significant factor" in the FBI's decision to terminate her. "The Justice Department's own Inspector General has now concluded publicly that the FBI fired Edmonds for reporting agency misconduct," said Ann Beeson, Associate Legal Director of the ACLU. "Clearly the FBI is using secrecy not to protect national security but to avoid accountability for its own mistakes." Find out more on the Edmonds' case and other Whistleblower stories.
Concerned viewers got together this month to celebrate two grand American traditions, watching TV and defending free expression. At "Couch Parties Against Censorship," friends gathered to watch the cable shows they like best and to sign letters urging Congress to oppose new restrictions on cable TV programming. "I just wanted to get others involved," wrote one Couch Party host. "I don't want Congress intruding in my life telling me what I can and cannot watch." "We don't get to see each other that often during the academic year, so I was really happy that they were here for the cause, not just to hang out," said a college student who participated. "I cannot recall having a greater sense of joy and accomplishment than when I dropped those letters in the mailbox!" It's not too late to host your own Couch Party! Invite your friends to a Couch Party to celebrate your basic freedoms by watching your favorite cable shows. Use our online tools to invite friends and download a letter to Congress and other materials. "If we are going to stop censorship," says ACLU President Nadine Strossen, "We must make our voices heard now, before Congress passes legislation, or the FCC issues regulations, expanding 'indecency' fines and other forms of suppression to cable TV and the Internet." As another Couch Party host put it: "If you don't like a show, just turn it off. It really is the American way." Learn more and invite friends to your own Couch Party. Take Action! Urge your member of Congress to Support Free Expression on Cable Television and the Internet.
New evidence disclosed in documents released by the Department of Defense confirms that soldiers who abused prisoners were acting with the "seeming approval" of senior command. "These documents provide further evidence that the chain of command in Iraq approved and even encouraged the abuse of detainees held in U.S. custody," said ACLU attorney Amrit Singh. "Instead of holding that chain of command accountable for systemic detainee abuse, the U.S. government continues to thwart efforts to bring the full truth about who was ultimately responsible to light." It is the ACLU's persistent efforts that have brought to light information about the torture and abuse carried out by our government. Most recently, a CD-ROM of 2,200 documents was released in response to a federal court order that directed the Defense Department and other government agencies to comply with our year-old request under the Freedom of Information Act. These latest documents include autopsy reports that provide new, often gruesome details about detainee deaths ruled to be homicides, including death by strangulation and "blunt force injuries." Significantly, the ACLU said, several documents link the abuses to a "command climate" that encouraged brutality. For more details on these latest documents click here. To date, more than 30,000 documents have been released in response to the ACLU's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The latest documents are available online.
The NYCLU, the ACLU and the Council on American-Islamic Relations announced a lawsuit charging that the Department of Homeland Security singled out and violated the rights of American citizens who were returning from a religious conference in Toronto. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of five people to challenge the DHS's policy of detaining, interrogating, fingerprinting and photographing American citizens who are Muslim, solely because they attended an Islamic conference. As attendees of the Reviving the Islamic Spirit (RIS) conference in Toronto arrived at the Canada/U.S. border in December 2004, they were singled out as having participated in the conference, and directed to a nearby building for additional questioning. Several participants wore traditional Muslim dress and were asked about attending the conference before being asked any other questions about their trip to Canada. As more RIS attendees began to amass in the secondary detention area, it became clear that they were victims of profiling. Some were held for as long as six-and-a-half hours overnight. "The government cannot criminalize American citizens for their religious beliefs," said Catherine Kim, a staff attorney with the ACLU. "Americans need to know that they can practice their religion and attend religious conferences without fear of government reprisals." Read the complete story.
The ACLU recently announced the winners of its Youth Activist Scholarship for 2005. Ten high school seniors from around the country were selected to receive $4,000 each to honor their outstanding work to protect civil liberties, especially the rights of young people. The Scholarship was created in 2000 to recognize the efforts of graduating seniors who have demonstrated a strong commitment to civil liberties and civil rights through some form of student activism. Among this year's winners are Hala Saadeh of Massachusetts, who helped raise awareness of religious and ethnic profiling after she was reported as a "suspicious person" on a train and was singled out for a search; Brandon Roane of Maryland, who has become a leader in the fight for increased funding for Baltimore city schools; and Jarred Gamwell of North Carolina, an ACLU client who made national headlines for speaking out against censorship after his pro-gay student government campaign posters were torn down by school officials. Click here for full profiles and photos of the ten winners.
posted by T. Scott Brineman at 10:46 AM
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