American Civil Liberties Union

Professor Adam Habib is one of South Africa’s leading scholars and political commentators. After his visa to travel to the U.S. was revoked without explanation in October 2006, Professor Habib applied for a new visa that would allow him to travel to the U.S. to attend speaking engagements. The State Department refused Habib a visa after months of inaction based on unsubstantiated and vague national security claims. The ACLU filed a lawsuit charging that the government’s exclusion of Professor Habib without any legitimate basis violates the First Amendment rights of U.S. organizations to hear his ideas and engage him in face-to-face debate.