Wisconsin

09/26/2012
War on Drugs

What if Wisconsin Arrested Half as Many People for Marijuana Possession?

By Alex Stamm, ACLU Center for Justice at 2:35pm

Wisconsin and Minnesota are very similar states with very different approaches to marijuana possession. The two states have roughly the same number of people and similar demographics, but Wisconsin arrests twice as many people for marijuana possession. Which makes for an interesting question: what might happen if Wisconsin cut its marijuana possession arrests in half?

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02/05/2013
Single-Sex Education

Another High School Rejects Stereotypes and Returns to Coeducation

By Allie Bohm, Advocacy & Policy Strategist, ACLU at 12:06pm

Central High School in La Crosse, Wisconsin has an anti-discrimination policy that reads pretty much like any other high school's anti-discrimination policy: It is the policy of the School District of La Crosse . . . that no person on the basis of sex, race, religion, national origin, ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, sexual orientation or physical, mental, emotional, or learning disability, may be denied . . . participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any curricular . . . program . . . And, we're happy to report that Central High is finally back in the business of living up to its policy.

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06/04/2012
Voter Suppression

Wisconsin’s Recall Election: State Law Makes Voting An Uphill Battle for Young Voters

By Demelza Baer, Washington Legislative Office at 4:16pm

You remember Wisconsin, right? It’s the place where last year a battle over proposed budget cuts – that would reduce employee benefits and collective bargaining rights – prompted the prolonged protests of thousands of people in the state’s capital, as well as the temporary self-exile of state senators to Illinois to delay a vote on the budget measure. Fiercely-held opinions on both sides of the issues prompted a gubernatorial recall petition drive.

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03/30/2012
Transgender Rights

Victory at the End of a Six-Year Transgender Rights Struggle

By John Knight, LGBT Project at 3:28pm

Earlier this week, we got the good news — the six-year battle was over. Wisconsin's anti-transgender Inmate Sex Change Prevention Act was a thing of the past. The act was a one-of-a kind law banning prison medical care for a medical condition that is unique to transgender persons. The law prevented prison doctors from ever prescribing transition-related medical treatment, including hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery, to transgender prisoners. In May 2010, a federal district court struck the law down as unconstitutional and in August 2011, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed. The third and final act of this legal drama was the U.S. Supreme Court's denial of certiorari on Monday.

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04/05/2012
Voter ID

Let Ruthelle Vote

By Elizabeth Beresford, ACLU at 2:39pm

After multiple lawsuits, 84-year-old Ruthelle Frank was able to vote in Tuesday's Wisconsin primary. But she still might not be able to vote in November.

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