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U.N. Independent Expert On Racism Begins Fact-Finding Mission In U.S. (05/19/2008)
WASHINGTON - Several national civil liberties and human rights groups today welcomed a fact-finding mission to the U.S. by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. The American Civil Liberties Union, Global Rights, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, the U.S. Human Rights Network, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the Rights Working Group and the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty call on the U.S., state and local governments to fully cooperate with the special rapporteur

Nightspot with Racially Discriminatory Policy Settles Case with DOJ; ACLU Lawsuit Pending (02/12/2008)
Virginia Beach, VA—The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement resolving allegations of racial discrimination against the owner of Kokoamos Island Bar, Grill and Yacht Club in Virginia Beach. Kokoamos at one point banned patrons who wore braids, twists, cornrows, or dreadlocks.

ACLU of North Carolina Files “Friend of the Court” Brief in Case Where Police Shot Hispanic Homeowner After Search Based on Racial Profiling (02/05/2008)
RALEIGH – The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) filed an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief last week in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, in a case where police officers admitted under oath that while trying to locate a man named Rudelfo Gonzales who had escaped from his probation officers, Clayton police officers searched the property surrounding the home of Manuel Peña, an Hispanic man, in part because he happened to be Hispanic.

ACLU Calls Civil Rights Act of 2008 Vital to Restoring Equal Protection Under the Law (01/25/2008)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union cheers the introduction of S. 2554, the “Civil Rights Act of 2008” by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA). The companion bill, H.R. 5129, was introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) on January 23, 2008.

Senate Committee Hears Testimony on Need for Fair Pay Legislation (01/24/2008)
Washington, DC – The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee held a hearing today on S. 1843, the “Fair Pay Restoration Act,” which would ensure that victims of workplace discrimination receive effective remedies. The bill’s companion measure, H.R. 2831, passed the House of Representatives in July, 2007. The ACLU urges the committee to support S. 1843 in order to fix a recent Supreme Court decision that undermines protections against discrimination in compensation that have been bedrock principles of civil rights laws for decades.

ACLU Cheers USSC Decision to Apply New Drug Sentencing Guidelines Retroactively (12/11/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s decision to apply recent changes in federal crack cocaine sentencing guidelines retroactively. Thousands of offenders were sentenced under the previous guidelines, which unfairly and erroneously required them to serve more than the mandatory minimum sentence required by law. Thanks to the USSC’s decision, such offenders will now have the opportunity to appear before the court and have their case reviewed by a judge.

ACLU of North Carolina Expresses Deep Concerns Over Racially Segregated Assemblies at Dillard Drive Middle School (12/05/2007)
RALEIGH – The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina (ACLU-NC) today expressed deep concerns over the segregation of students of color who were pulled out of seventh grade classes at Dillard Drive Middle School yesterday afternoon for lectures on zero tolerance, gangs, and school rules. White students were not removed from their classrooms or subjected to these lectures.

Reality Busts Through the Door of the New York Post (12/03/2007)
NEW YORK - Despite Editorial Page's Stance in Favor of Racially Biased Stop-and-Frisk Tactics, the Humiliation of One of their Reporters at the Hands of the NYPD is Too Much to Ignore

ACLU of Massachusetts Warns Boston Residents About Warrantless Searches of Their Homes (11/20/2007)
BOSTON – Citing serious concerns about the threat to civil liberties posed by the Boston Police Department’s “Safe Homes” program, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts today launched a neighborhood outreach campaign to educate people about the constitutional rights they are being asked to surrender by complying with the police program. “Safe Homes” calls on parents to allow detectives to search their private homes without a warrant.

NYCLU Releases NYPD Firearms Discharge Report, Calls on NYPD to Reveal Race of Shooting Victims (10/22/2007)
NEW YORK - In a letter sent this morning to New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, the New York Civil Liberties Union called on the NYPD to release documents identifying the race of all people shot by the police, as well as all of the annual reports the NYPD has compiled about its shooting practices.

Senate Judiciary Committee Must Obtain Iron-Clad Commitments from Judge Mukasey before Moving Forward (10/17/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union calls on the Senate Judiciary Committee to consider the confirmation process of former U.S. District Court Judge Michael Mukasey for Attorney General as an opportunity to address the longstanding and unresolved issues surrounding the Department of Justice. This is also the time for the committee to thoroughly examine Judge Mukasey’s record from his time on the bench.

Jena 6 Hearing a Step in the Right Direction to End School-to-Prison Pipeline (10/16/2007)
Washington, DC – The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing today to examine violence in public schools in light of the Jena Six case, a move the American Civil Liberties Union hopes will inspire Congress to fix the racial disparities in the juvenile and criminal justice system exemplified by the unfair treatment of the six Louisiana students. Specifically, the ACLU hopes Congress will examine the systemic funneling of students from schools into the juvenile and criminal justice systems, known as the school to prison pipeline.

ACLU Demands FBI Rewrite Spying Guidelines in Light of Reports of Spying on Civil Rights Leader Coretta Scott King (08/31/2007)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union today issued a call to change FBI spying guidelines after documents were released revealing that the FBI spied on Coretta Scott King, after the death of her husband Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in an attempt to stem the civil rights movement. After the government was criticized for spying on Dr. King, the FBI was prohibited from spying on Americans. But in 2002 former Attorney General John Ashcroft changed the guidelines to permit the FBI to spy on individuals in public places.

House of Representatives Passes Legislation Aimed at Clearing Unsolved Civil Rights Cases (06/20/2007)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union cheered the House of Representatives for passing H.R. 923, the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act, by a vote of 422-2. The bill authorizes $10 million annually to establish a special federal investigator in the FBI's civil rights unit focusing on solving crimes committed before 1969. In addition, it allocates additional funds to assist local law enforcement agencies with investigating and prosecuting unsolved civil rights crimes.

Native American Families and Winner School District Announce Settlement in Case Alleging Discrimination (06/18/2007)
WINNER, SD - The Winner/Ideal Native American community and the Winner School District announced today that an agreement has been reached to settle a class action lawsuit brought on behalf of Native American students attending Winner schools.

ACLU Praises Senate Judiciary Committee Vote on Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act (06/14/2007)
Washington - The American Civil Liberties Union praised the Senate Judiciary Committee today for passing S. 535, the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act out of committee. Yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee passed the companion bill, H.R. 923.

ACLU Releases Scathing Analysis of Government’s Report to UN Committee on Racial Discrimination (06/13/2007)
NEW YORK – The American Civil Liberties Union today released a scathing preliminary analysis of a recent government report to a United Nations committee about the state of racial discrimination in the United States. The report was submitted to the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in Geneva.

ACLU of Virginia Asks Prison to Rescind Racially Discriminatory Hairstyle Policy (05/25/2007)
HAYNESVILLE, VA – The ACLU of Virginia today asked the warden at Haynesville Correctional Center in Richmond County to immediately rescind a recently implemented hair policy that appears to discriminate against African-American employees.

ACLU Shares Findings of Two-Week Investigation of Girls in Texas Juvenile Justice System (05/24/2007)
AUSTIN, TX - As part of ongoing efforts to reform and restructure Texas’s juvenile justice system, today the American Civil Liberties Union Women’s Rights Project released a preliminary report, A Blueprint for Meeting the Needs of Girls in TYC Custody. On Tuesday the ACLU briefed Texas Youth Commission (TYC) Conservator Jay Kimbrough, Acting Executive Director Ed Owens and new Chief Ombudsman Will Harrell on findings and recommendations in the report that resulted from a two-week investigation of all TYC detention facilities that house girls. The report was presented yesterday to key legislative staffers.

Department of Justice Joins ACLU of Virginia in Filing Lawsuit against Nightspot with Racially Discriminatory Policy (05/24/2007)
VIRGINIA BEACH — The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Barry Davis, owner of the Kokoamos Island Bar, Grill and Yacht Club, charging that the Virginia Beach nightspot discriminates against African-Americans by banning patrons who wear braids, twists, cornrows, or dreadlocks.