American Civil Liberties Union

Lesbian and Gay Couples Win Freedom to Marry in California

2008-05-15T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court ruled today that the state can no longer exclude same-sex couples from civil marriage.

ACLU Urges LGBT People To "Get Busy, Get Equal"

2008-05-13T12:00:00-05:00

NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union launched a new version of its Get Busy, Get Equal online activist toolkit, www.aclu.org/getequal . Get Busy, Get Equal now incorporates new technology to make it easier for LGBT people to work for change in their communities. The website offers tools for ending gay and transgender discrimination, making schools safe, and winning recognition for LGBT relationships.

Federal Judge Rules That Students Can’t Be Barred From Expressing Support for Gay People

2008-05-13T12:00:00-05:00

PANAMA CITY, FL – After a two-day trial in which a Florida high school principal testified that he believed clothing or stickers featuring rainbows would make students automatically picture gay people having sex, a federal judge today ruled that the school violated students’ First Amendment rights of students. The case was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of a junior at the school who had been forbidden by her principal to wear any sort of clothing, stickers, buttons, or symbols to show her support of equal rights for gay people.

ACLU Takes On High School Principal For Discriminating Against Male Couple

2008-04-29T12:00:00-05:00

MEMPHIS – A public high school principal who posted the names of two boys on a list of students believed to be couples, revealing their relationship to their parents as well as other students and teachers, violated the students' constitutional right to freedom of association, the American Civil Liberties Union charged today. In a letter to school board officials in Memphis, Tennessee, the ACLU demanded today that the school reprimand the principal and take steps to ensure such actions never happen again.

Virginia Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Same-Sex Couple's Interstate Custody Dispute

2008-04-17T12:00:00-05:00

Richmond, VA - The Virginia Supreme Court this morning heard arguments in a long-running custody dispute over a child born during the Vermont civil union of two women. The Lambda Legal Defense Fund, the ACLU of Virginia, and Equality Virginia represented Janet Miller-Jenkins, the non-biological mother, who has asked Virginia to honor a Vermont court's ruling, which awarded her visitation rights after the civil union was dissolved.

H&R Block Tells Gay Couples In Connecticut: “We Don’t Support Connecticut Civil Union Returns”

2008-03-25T12:00:00-05:00

HARTFORD, CT – The American Civil Liberties Union sent a demand letter to H&R Block today demanding that it change its online tax preparation system to accommodate gay couples in Connecticut with civil unions. The ACLU is representing a couple with a civil union who attempted to file their taxes on the company’s website through their online service, TaxCut Online, but were told, “We don’t support Connecticut civil union returns.” Through its website, the company said the couple would have to work with one of their professionals, by phone or at one of their office locations, which would be more time consuming and substantially more expensive.

Georgia Appeals Court Overturns Contempt Conviction of Lesbian Mother

2008-03-24T12:00:00-05:00

ATLANTA - A long nightmare has ended for Elizabeth Hadaway, who was convicted of criminal contempt of court last year for not handing her daughter over to foster care after she lost custody solely because she's a lesbian. A year and one day after a county court judge sentenced Hadaway to 10 days in jail, the Georgia Court of Appeals today overturned her contempt conviction. The American Civil Liberties Union, which represented her in the appeal and secured the little girl's return home from foster care last May, applauded the court's decision.

ACLU Urges Konica Minolta Not to Terminate Domestic Partner Health Insurance of 9/11 Survivor

2008-03-19T12:00:00-05:00

Boise, Idaho – Seeking to maintain health insurance for a 9/11 survivor, the American Civil Liberties Union today sent a demand letter to the New Jersey offices of Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (KMBS) urging the company to interpret its policy on domestic partner health insurance so that more employees will have access to the insurance. KMBS currently interprets its policy as requiring employees to re-register as domestic partners with the state every time that they move, even though many states have no way for same-sex partners to do so.

After Pressure From ACLU, Gay Georgia Man Allowed To Join State Insurance Plan

2008-03-04T12:00:00-05:00

ATLANTA — After pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, Georgia's Commissioner of Insurance has agreed to allow Jon Lawson, a gay man, to purchase health insurance through a state plan designed to help people who are uninsured. Although the plan only requires that an applicant is insured for 18 months before joining the plan, Commissioner John Oxendine's office rejected Lawson's application, claiming that he was ineligible because had been covered as a domestic partner through his previous insurance plan.

Same-sex Couples Ask California Supreme Court to Strike Down Marriage Ban

2008-03-04T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO - Attorneys for same-sex couples presented arguments to the California Supreme Court today in a historic lawsuit seeking to strike down a state law that bars lesbians and gay men from marriage. Fifteen same-sex couples, Equality California, and Our Family Coalition were represented at oral arguments by Shannon Price Minter, Legal Director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, which is serving as co-counsel with Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, Heller Ehrman LLP and the Law Office of David C. Codell.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Says Municipalities Can't Intervene to Fight ACLU Lawsuit Seeking Domestic Partner Health Insurance

2008-02-07T12:00:00-05:00

MADISON, WI – The Wisconsin Supreme Court decided today that a number of municipalities had no right to interfere in a lawsuit brought by lesbian Wisconsin state employees seeking domestic partner health insurance for their partners from their state employers. The six lesbian couples, who have had to go without adequate health insurance for their families while this issue has been litigated, will now have their chance to prove that it is unconstitutional for the state to bar them from receiving the same compensation as their straight colleagues.

California High Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Historic Marriage Case on March 4

2008-02-06T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO – The California Supreme Court announced today that it will hear oral arguments on March 4 in the cases challenging the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage.

Appeals Court Says State Must Recognize Canadian Marriage of New York Lesbian Couple

2008-02-01T12:00:00-05:00

NEW YORK – In a unanimous decision, a New York appellate court today ruled that marriages of same-sex couples entered into outside of New York must be recognized. The case, filed by the New York Civil Liberties Union, is the first appellate court decision in the state and the first known decision in the country to hold that a valid same-sex marriage must be recognized here.

ACLU Sues Florida High School for Suppressing Free Speech

2008-01-31T12:00:00-05:00

PONCE DE LEON, FL - A Florida high school has been trampling the First Amendment rights of students who support equal rights for gay people, according to a federal lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union. In its lawsuit, the ACLU described an atmosphere of fear and censorship at Ponce de Leon High School, where the school board's attorney says even expressions like a rainbow sticker may mean students are members of an "illegal organization."

Federal Appeals Court Says It's OK for School to Teach Children's Book Encouraging Tolerance for Gay People

2008-01-31T12:00:00-05:00

BOSTON – A Massachusetts federal appeals court today ruled that an elementary school can continue to use children's books that encourage tolerance for gay people. The ACLU cheers the decision, which rejected the claims of parents who said exposing their children to such books violated their ability to direct the religious training of their children.

ACLU Demands Virginia High School Stop Censoring Gay Student

2007-12-20T12:00:00-05:00

PORTSMOUTH, VA – The American Civil Liberties Union today demanded that a high school that punished a student for wearing a t-shirt featuring a lesbian pride symbol apologize to the student and guarantee that it will no longer illegally censor her in the future. School officials at I.C. Norcom High School had threatened the 17-year-old senior with suspension because a teacher was upset by her t-shirt, which bears an image of two overlapping female gender symbols.

Hate Crimes Provision Stripped from National Defense Authorization Act

2007-12-06T12:00:00-05:00

Washington, DC – The ACLU today expressed its disappointment that Congress has stripped from the National Defense Authorization Act a provision that would have extended federal civil rights protections to individuals targeted for violent crimes based on their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability. The Matthew Shepard Amendment would allow federal law enforcement officials to step in to prosecute hate crimes where local law enforcement can not, or will not.

Library of Congress Can Be Sued for Discriminating Against Transgender Veteran, Says Federal Court

2007-11-28T12:00:00-05:00

WASHINGTON – Rejecting the federal government's attempt to throw out a transgender veteran's sex discrimination lawsuit against the Library of Congress, a federal judge ruled today that the case can go forward. The American Civil Liberties Union brought the lawsuit in June 2005 on behalf of 25-year U.S. Army veteran Diane Schroer who was offered a job as a senior terrorism researcher but was later told she was not a "good fit" after her future boss learned she was in the process of transitioning from male to female.

ACLU Challenges Dismissal of Lesbian Major From Air Force

2007-11-05T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit today will hear oral arguments in a lawsuit challenging the dismissal of a decorated U.S. Air Force flight nurse on the grounds that she engaged in homosexual conduct. The ACLU is representing Major Margaret Witt in her appeal of a lower court rejection of the lawsuit she filed in 2006.

Federal Court Agrees with ACLU: Schools Can Protect Both Gay Students and Religious Speech

2007-10-26T12:00:00-05:00

CINCINNATI - A federal appeals court today agreed with the American Civil Liberties Union, ruling that a school policy designed to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students from harassment went too far in squelching the right of some religious students to express their views on homosexuality.

African American Leaders Launch "Maryland Black Family Alliance"

2007-10-25T12:00:00-05:00

BALTIMORE – In a landmark effort to foster dialogue within black communities across Maryland on the principles of fairness, justice and equality for all families, a group of prominent Maryland African American allies of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities gathered today at Morgan State University to announce the formation of the Maryland Black Family Alliance (MBFA). The founding members of the MBFA come from all walks of life -- elected officials, ministers, professors, medical doctors and community activists. The group is a growing coalition of black families and leaders of many faiths who know that discrimination is wrong and that it damages everyone when any group of Americans is excluded from the legal protections that other Americans enjoy.

House Committee Advances ENDA Legislation that Splits LGBT Community, ACLU Urges One Bill for One Community

2007-10-18T12:00:00-05:00

WASHINGTON – The House Committee on Education and Labor today passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), a bill the ACLU cannot support because it abandons the transgender community. The first iteration of ENDA this session would have made it illegal to discriminate in the workplace based on sexual orientation and gender identity, but the bill that passed out of committee today would allow transgender workers to suffer from discrimination at work with no protection or recourse.

ACLU Urges Wisconsin Supreme Court to Bar Municipalities from Becoming Parties to Lawsuit Seeking Domestic Partner Health Insurance

2007-10-03T12:00:00-05:00

MADISON, WI – In an appearance before the Wisconsin Supreme Court today, the American Civil Liberties Union urged the court to deny requests from a number of municipalities to become parties to a lawsuit seeking domestic partner benefits for lesbian and gay employees of the state. The ACLU explained that there is no reason to allow the municipalities to become parties to the lawsuit, which is already being vigorously defended by the state’s attorney general.

ACLU Cheers Free-Speech Friendly Hate Crimes Legislation

2007-09-27T12:00:00-05:00

Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the passage of the Matthew Shepard Amendment to the Defense Department authorization bill that for the first time punishes hate crimes without infringing on free speech. The amendment, offered by Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR), will broaden the definition of hate crimes and give more resources to local districts unable to investigate them single-handedly.

Religious, Civil Rights, and Child Advocacy Groups Support Same-Sex Couples in Legal Battle to Marry

2007-09-26T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO - In 30 amicus briefs submitted today to the California Supreme Court, scores of religious, civil rights, and child advocacy organizations, along with numerous California municipal governments, bar associations, and leading legal scholars, urged the court to put an end to state laws that deny same-sex couples the protections of marriage.

School Board Allows Gay-Straight Alliance Club in Rockton, Illinois

2007-09-20T12:00:00-05:00

ROCKTON, IL -- After months of controversy and warnings from the American Civil Liberties Union that blocking a gay-straight alliance club from forming would violate federal law, a school board in Rockton, Illinois voted late Wednesday night to allow the club to meet on campus. The board's 5-2 vote reversed an earlier decision by a board committee that had recommended the board ban the club.

ACLU Asks Georgia Appeals Court to Dismiss Jail Sentence for Lesbian Mother

2007-09-19T12:00:00-05:00

ATLANTA -- The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss a county judge's contempt order and jail sentence against a lesbian mother. Earlier this year, Wilkinson County Judge John Lee Parrott ordered that the child Elizabeth Hadaway hopes to adopt be taken away for three months because Hadaway is a lesbian, and now Hadaway is battling an order from the same judge that she spend as many as ten days in jail.

ACLU and Equality Maryland Denounce 4 to 3 Decision by Maryland High Court Denying Marriage Protections for Same-Sex Couples

2007-09-18T12:00:00-05:00

ANNAPOLIS, MD - The American Civil Liberties Union and Equality Maryland today denounced the divided Maryland Court of Appeals decision upholding a state law that bars same-sex couples from marrying and accessing the hundreds of family protections provided to married couples and their children under state law.

New ACLU Report, Working in the Shadows, Explains Why Congress Should Pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act

2007-09-17T12:00:00-05:00

WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union issued a report today that shows why Congress should pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). The act is expected to be voted out of committee later this month. Working in the Shadows: Ending Employment Discrimination for LGBT Americans uses the stories of workers from across the country who have experienced workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity to make the case for passage of the bill.

ACLU Praises House Subcommittee Hearing on Employment Non-Discrimination Act

2007-09-05T12:00:00-05:00

Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee of the House Education & Labor Committee for its consideration of HR 2015, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). Co-sponsored by Representatives Barney Frank (D – MA), Deborah Pryce (R – OH), Tammy Baldwin (D – WI), and Christopher Shays (R –CT), this bipartisan legislation is aimed at protecting individuals from workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Marriage Lawsuit Advances to California Supreme Court

2007-08-17T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO -- In briefs filed today with the California Supreme Court, the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and Lambda Legal argue that California violates its own constitution by denying same-sex couples the freedom to marry.

ACLU Joins National Gay Rights Groups Calling on Fort Lauderdale City Commission to Condemn Mayor's Anti-Gay Remarks

2007-08-02T12:00:00-05:00

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida today announced it has joined forces with the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in an open letter calling on the Ft. Lauderdale City Commission to promptly pass a resolution condemning Mayor Naugle's recent series of hostile remarks about the City's gay community. In recent years the City has become a prime vacation venue for gay tourists.

Federal Judge Reunites Gay Couple Barred from Seeing Each Other After Release from Prison

2007-08-01T12:00:00-05:00

PHILADELPHIA - A federal judge issued an opinion today allowing a long-term gay couple to resume contact with each other while completing the period of supervision imposed on them as part of a drug sentence. The ACLU, which represented the couple, cheers the court’s historic decision recognizing that same-sex couples are equally protected by the Constitution and must be treated the same as other families.

ACLU Tells Federal Court It Can Protect Both Gay Students and Free Speech

2007-07-25T12:00:00-05:00

CINCINNATI – The American Civil Liberties Union today told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit that a school policy designed to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students from harassment went too far in squelching the right of some religious students to express their views on homosexuality. The group insists, however, that schools can protect students from anti-gay harassment constitutionally.

The Chuck and Larry Next Door: 10Couples.org Features Same-Sex Couples Who Face Hardships Because They Cannot Marry

2007-07-18T12:00:00-05:00

NEW YORK - After moviegoers have a laugh at Adam Sandler and Kevin James pretending to be a gay couple in the new film I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, the American Civil Liberties Union is urging them to visit 10Couples.org to find out what it’s really like to be denied legal protections for your family. The website, developed by Public Interest and the ACLU, features videos of 10 same-sex couples who explain the difficulties of trying to protect their families without access to the many protections that come automatically through marriage.

Censorship of Gay Student Is Discriminatory Free Speech Violation, Says ACLU of New Jersey

2007-06-25T12:00:00-05:00

NEWARK -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey in a letter sent today called on the Newark Public Schools to rescind last week's decision to censor hundreds of East Side High School yearbooks that included a photo of a male student kissing his boyfriend. The ACLU-NJ advised the school district that its censorship of this photo violates free speech and New Jersey's Law Against Discrimination.

ACLU of Massachusetts Celebrates Vote to Preserve Marriage Equality

2007-06-14T12:00:00-05:00

BOSTON - The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts celebrates today's momentous vote in the legislature defeating a proposed amendment to end marriage equality in Massachusetts. The final vote to defeat the amendment was 151 to 45.

ACLU Secures Return of Seven-Year-Old to Lesbian Mother in Georgia

2007-05-21T12:00:00-05:00

ATLANTA – After almost three months, a seven-year-old girl has been reunited with the woman in whose care she’d thrived for almost a year before being sent to live in a crowded foster home. The child had been held in foster care by the Wilkinson County Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) since February 20, when a judge took her away from her home after he learned that she was being raised by a lesbian.

Chicago Woman Challenges Blatant Discrimination: Denied Access to Homeless Shelter Because She is a Lesbian

2007-05-21T12:00:00-05:00

CHICAGO – A Chicago woman denied access to a City-funded homeless shelter on a cold November evening because she is a lesbian is challenging the blatant discrimination she experienced. The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois today announced the filing of complaints with the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations and the State of Illinois Department of Human Rights on behalf of Michelle Wang, a 27-year-old woman denied space at New Life Shelter after she told a staffer at that shelter she is a lesbian. Only intervention by a thoughtful, concerned Chicago city employee prevented Ms. Wang from spending another night on the streets.

ACLU of Ohio Applauds Governor for Signing Order Providing Equality for all State Employees

2007-05-17T12:00:00-05:00

COLUMBUS, OH – The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio today applauded Governor Ted Strickland for signing an executive order that protects Ohioans working for the state government from job discrimination based on their sexual orientation and gender identity. This executive order marks the first time gender identity discrimination has been banned by an Ohio governor and restores an earlier order by former Governor Richard Celeste banning sexual orientation discrimination.

ACLU of Massachusetts Applauds State Attorney General’s Defense of Marriage Equality

2007-05-16T12:00:00-05:00

BOSTON - Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley recently made a forthright statement of her well-founded legal judgment in a speech to the Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association: marriage equality in the Commonwealth must be defended in the event that a proposed constitutional amendment survives the next legislative step onto the ballot. The ACLU of Massachusetts applauds Martha Coakley's leadership on this issue.

Responding to ACLU Demands, California Prisons Allow Same-Sex Couples Access to Family Visitation

2007-05-15T12:00:00-05:00

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has agreed that it will no longer bar lesbian and gay prisoners access to overnight family visitation with their registered domestic partners. The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has requested the statewide policy change in response to demands by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of a gay man who was told by prison officials that domestic partners were barred from family visits. As required by state law, the department is conducting a public hearing on the proposed policy change today in Sacramento.

ACLU Gives Tennessee High School an F in Civics for Censoring Gay and Gay-Supportive Students

2007-05-14T12:00:00-05:00

Jonesborough, TN -- After a high school principal suspended a student for participating in a silent demonstration to raise awareness about anti-gay violence, the American Civil Liberties Union demanded today that David Crockett High School apologize to the student and promise not to punish students who take part in such actions in the future.

ACLU Cheers House Passage of Hate Crimes Legislation

2007-05-03T12:00:00-05:00

Washington, DC - The American Civil Liberties Union today cheered the House of Representatives for passing H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, with strong bipartisan support. This legislation would allow federal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute hate crimes offenses in cases where local law enforcement lacks the resources, or in some cases the willingness to do so.

ACLU Asks Georgia Judge to Return Seven-Year-Old to Lesbian Mother

2007-05-02T12:00:00-05:00

ATLANTA – In a hearing today, the American Civil Liberties Union urged Wilkinson County Superior Court to return a vulnerable seven-year-old girl to the woman in whose care she had been thriving for a year. The county’s Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) has held the girl in foster care since February 20, when a judge took her away after he learned that she was being raised by a lesbian.

ACLU of Massachusetts Welcomes New Hampshire Civil Unions Law

2007-04-27T12:00:00-05:00

BOSTON - Today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts welcomed passage of legislation in New Hampshire to provide the option of civil unions for lesbian and gay couples, with important rights, benefits and protections at the state level.

ACLU Praises House Judiciary Committee for Passing Hate Crimes Legislation

2007-04-26T12:00:00-05:00

WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union applauded the House Judiciary Committee for passing H.R. 1592, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, by a vote of 20-14 late yesterday. As introduced by Representative John Conyers (D - MI), this legislation expands federal law enforcement ability to investigate and prosecute hate crimes.

Iowa Legislature Outlaws Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

2007-04-26T12:00:00-05:00

DES MOINES – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the Iowa legislature for approving a bill outlawing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The bill, which was approved earlier by the Iowa Senate, passed the Iowa House of Representatives late last night by a vote of 59-37. Governor Chet Culver has already said that he would sign the bill into law.

ACLU Praises Introduction of Employment Non-Discrimination Act

2007-04-24T12:00:00-05:00

Washington - The American Civil Liberties Union today expressed strong support for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) introduced today by Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA), Deborah Pryce (R-OH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Christopher Shays (R-CT). This legislation would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in all aspects of employment, including hiring, firing, promotion, compensation, and most conditions of employment.