Blog of Rights: Official Blog of the American Civil Liberties Union http://www.aclu.org/blog en Will Health Care Reform Protect Your Reproductive Rights? http://www.aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/will-health-care-reform-protect-your-reproductive-rights Well, many of us thought this day would never come: the House of Representatives is finally prepared to vote on the Affordable Health Care for America Act. It's hard to understate the historic nature of this particular vote.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/will-health-care-reform-protect-your-reproductive-rights#comments 2009-11-06T18:19:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20153 at http://www.aclu.org Rays Of Sunlight in the House Judiciary Committee http://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/rays-sunlight-house-judiciary-committee Good news on national security legislation. I know! I can hardly believe it myself!


The USA Patriot Amendments Act was marked up this week in an epic House Judiciary Committee meeting that spanned two days. The bill, though a bit watered down, still managed to maintain some of its civil liberties protections including:

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/rays-sunlight-house-judiciary-committee#comments National Security Letters Rendition 2009-11-06T18:14:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20152 at http://www.aclu.org Victory in Washington: Domestic Partnerships Win the Popular Vote http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/victory-washington-domestic-partnerships-win-popular-vote Although the ballots are still being counted, last night news outlets called Washington State’s domestic partnership referendum in our favor! As of late Thursday, we were wining by 52 to 48 percent, a deficit the Seattle Times called “insurmountable” for the opponents of gay rights.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/victory-washington-domestic-partnerships-win-popular-vote#comments 2009-11-06T17:56:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20151 at http://www.aclu.org "Give Us Our Books, Don't Treat Us Like Crooks" http://www.aclu.org/blog/human-rights-racial-justice/give-us-our-books-dont-treat-us-crooks So went the call for change on the steps of New York City Hall. On October 22, folks from the New York Civil Liberties Union and I participated in a rally at City Hall to raise public awareness about and garner support for the Student Safety Act.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/human-rights-racial-justice/give-us-our-books-dont-treat-us-crooks#comments 2009-11-06T13:15:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20120 at http://www.aclu.org A Promising First Step in Protecting Illinois Teenagers' Health and Safety http://www.aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/promising-first-step-protecting-illinois-teenagers-health-and-safety In a legal challenge brought by the ACLU, an Illinois state court yesterday issued an emergency order blocking a law that prevents teens from having an abortion unless they notify a parent or go to court. This victory ensures that teens throughout Illinois will continue to be safe and able to obtain the care that they need.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/reproductive-freedom/promising-first-step-protecting-illinois-teenagers-health-and-safety#comments 2009-11-05T16:30:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20014 at http://www.aclu.org Privacy For Sale http://www.aclu.org/blog/technology-and-liberty/privacy-sale Ron Peterson has a variety of exciting aliases. "In Florida I'm a female prostitute (named Ronnie); in Texas I'm currently incarcerated for manslaughter," Peterson, a California resident, said. "In New Mexico I'm a dealer of stolen goods. Oregon has me as a witness tamperer. And in Nevada — this is my favorite — I'm a registered sex offender." All of this is thanks to the unregulated data aggregation industry.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/technology-and-liberty/privacy-sale#comments 2009-11-05T11:16:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 20001 at http://www.aclu.org Senate to Hold Landmark ENDA Hearing — ACLU to Tweet LIVE! http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/senate-hold-landmark-enda-hearing-aclu-tweet-live Tomorrow morning at 10 a.m., the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a hearing on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). This will be the first Senate hearing on ENDA since 2002. The legislation would help to ensure workplace equality by protecting LGBT workers from employment discrimination.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/senate-hold-landmark-enda-hearing-aclu-tweet-live#comments enda 2009-11-04T17:17:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 19981 at http://www.aclu.org Accountable for Torture…In Italy http://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/accountable-torture%E2%80%A6-italy Today, an Italian court convicted 23 Americans for the “extraordinary rendition” of a Muslim cleric who was kidnapped in Milan in 2003. The case is the first of its kind to hold Americans accountable for the rendition of terrorism suspects overseas.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/national-security/accountable-torture%E2%80%A6-italy#comments Rendition 2009-11-04T17:09:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 19980 at http://www.aclu.org One Big Disappointment, Lots of Victories http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/one-big-disappointment-lots-victories I’m not going to try to spin it: Our loss in Maine yesterday, where voters rejected a law that would have given same-sex couples the right to marry, was deeply disappointing and discouraging. All of us here at the LGBT Project started yesterday hopeful and were further encouraged by reports that turnout was well above what was expected.

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/one-big-disappointment-lots-victories#comments 2009-11-04T13:25:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 19962 at http://www.aclu.org ESPN Documentary to Explore Crack Disparity’s Misguided Origins http://www.aclu.org/blog/drug-law-reform/espn-documentary-explore-crack-disparity%E2%80%99s-misguided-origins As part of ESPN’s 30 for 30 series of documentary films, they will be airing Without Bias tonight at 8pm (with additional airings on their various sister networks over the coming months).

]]> http://www.aclu.org/blog/drug-law-reform/espn-documentary-explore-crack-disparity%E2%80%99s-misguided-origins#comments 2009-11-03T17:10:00-05:00 suzanne_ito 19941 at http://www.aclu.org