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ACLU Enters Court at 'Ground Zero' in National Debate Over Religious Freedom and Anti-Gay Discrimination Laws (05/31/2000)

Citing Threats, Intimidation and 'Clear Danger' to Citizens, ACLU Presses Forward To Repeal Puerto Rico's Sodomy Law (05/22/2000)
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO -- Opening a new front in its battle against one of the country's starkest examples of the dangers of discriminatory sodomy laws, the American Civil Liberties Union today asked an appeals court to reconsider its ruling dismissing a massive legal challenge to Puerto Rico's anti-gay "crime against nature" law.

Unprecedented Group of Civil Rights, First Amendment Advocates Join ACLU in Urging U.S. Supreme Court to Block Boy Scouts Bias (04/26/2000)
NEW YORK - Assembling one of the broadest, most powerful coalitions ever to come before the U.S. Supreme Court in a lesbian and gay rights case, the American Civil Liberties Union, joined by 18 of the nation's leading civil rights groups, today urged the Court to rule that Boy Scouts of America cannot discriminate against gay people.

Supreme Court Looks at Implications of Gays in Boy Scouts (04/26/2000)
WASHINGTON -- The question before the Supreme Court today was whether the Boy Scouts have a constitutional right to exclude gay members, but the Justices did not seem particularly interested in either Boy Scout policy or the future of gay rights, The New York Times reported.

Groups File Groundbreaking Lawsuit Against Kentucky and State-Funded Religious Group That Fired Lesbian Employee (04/17/2000)
LOUISVILLE, KY - In a first-of-its-kind case that may change the landscape of the national debate over whether religious groups that discriminate should receive taxpayer funds, the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State today filed a lawsuit against the Commonwealth of Kentucky and a publicly-funded religious organization that fired a lesbian employee.

Louisiana Supreme Court to Consider Sodomy Law As States Nationwide Strike Down Similar Measures (04/10/2000)
NEW ORLEANS -- As state courts nationwide continue striking down laws that criminalize private, non-commercial sexual intimacy between consenting adults, the Louisiana Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday on whether the state's "crime against nature" law violates the right to privacy guaranteed in the Louisiana Constitution.

Unprecedented Group of Civil Rights, First Amendment Advocates Join ACLU in Urging U.S. Supreme Court to Block Boy Scouts Bias (03/29/2000)
NEW YORK -- Assembling one of the broadest, most powerful coalitions ever to come before the U.S. Supreme Court in a lesbian and gay rights case, the American Civil Liberties Union today filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of a dozen groups urging the Court to rule that Boy Scouts of America cannot discriminate against gay people.

Gay Death Row Inmate to be Freed in Texas (03/03/2000)
Harris County, TX -- It wasn't bad enough that the prosecutor argued for execution because prison is "fun" for gay men. Calvin Burdine's conviction was finally tossed out because his lawyer slept through the defense, Planet Out reported.

Slated Release of Gay Texas Inmate Further Reveals Death Penalty's Injustice, Merits Statewide Moratorium (03/02/2000)
NEW YORK -- Citing the release of a gay man yesterday whose sexual orientation was used as a basis for sentencing him to die, the American Civil Liberties Union today called on the Governor of Texas to impose an immediate moratorium on the death penalty statewide.

Previewing National Battle, ACLU Backs Fairness Campaign In Bid to Protect Non-Discrimination Ordinance (12/13/1999)
LOUISVILLE, KY-- After finally triumphing in a decade-long battle to pass city- and county-wide sexual orientation and gender identity non-discrimination laws, the Fairness Campaign, backed by the American Civil Liberties Union, today began to fight off a man's claim that the measures violate his religious liberty.

ACLU Announces Settlement of Lawsuit Against Healthcare Providers Who Discriminated Against Lesbian Patient (08/31/1999)
LOS ANGELES -- The ACLU of Southern California announced a settlement today in its sexual orientation discrimination lawsuit against a health care provider and one of its physicians who refused to treat a lesbian woman.

ACLU of Illinois Lauds Court Ruling That Boy Scouts Cannot Discriminate Based on Sexual Orientation (08/13/1999)
CHICAGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois today hailed a Cook County Circuit Court decision barring the Boy Scouts from considering the sexual orientation of applicants in employment decisions.

New Jersey High Court Says Ban on Gays in Boy Scouts Must Go (08/04/1999)
TRENTON, NJ -- In a unanimous decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court today said that the Boy Scouts of America's practice of excluding or dismissing a member solely on the basis of sexual orientation is illegal under the state's anti-discrimination law. The Court also rejected the Scouts' claim that the First Amendment gives them the right to discriminate.

ACLU Demands San Diego End Public Subsidy of Boy Scouts (08/04/1999)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties and the Tom Homann Law Association today demanded that the City of San Diego stop subsidizing the activities of the Boy Scouts as long as it persists in discriminating on the basis of religion and sexual orientation.

ACLU Claims First Victory In Texas Public Library Censorship Case (07/20/1999)
WICHITA FALLS, TX -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas was granted a temporary restraining order against the City of Wichita Falls in federal district court today in a challenge to the constitutionality of removing two books from the children's area of the city's public library.

ACLU Sues Texas City for Public Library Censorship (07/16/1999)
WICHITA FALLS, TX -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas today filed suit in federal district court against the City of Wichita Falls challenging the constitutionality of removing two books from the children's area of the city's public library.

Employment Protection Bill Reintroduced; Measure Would Protect Gays in the Workplace (06/23/1999)
WASHINGTON -- A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers today reintroduced a federal bill banning workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation, saying that every American should have the equal right to be free from bias at their jobs.

ACLU Files Suit Against Healthcare Providers Who Discriminated Against Lesbian Patient (05/12/1999)
In June of 1998, having just received her health benefits from her new employer, Michelle Dupont was seen for an initial appointment with Dr. Ronald Axtell, who was to be her primary care physician. During the course of the appointment, Dr. Axtell asked Ms. Dupont what type of birth control she used, and she replied that she did not use birth control because she is a lesbian. 

ACLU of Illinois Sues to End Government Sponsorship of Boy Scout Programs (04/14/1999)
The suit charges that because the Boy Scouts exclude individuals who do not affirm a belief in God, the government agencies that operate these programs are in violation of the constitutional requirement of separation of church and state. 

Citing "Chilling Effect" of Puerto Rico's Sodomy Law, Judge Says ACLU Challenge Must Go Forward (03/08/1999)
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO--Saying that an American Civil Liberties challenge to Puerto Rico's sodomy statute must go forward, a Superior Court judge here rejected the government's contention that nobody is injured by the law.