The ACLU is our nation's guardian of liberty, working daily in courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve our rights and freedoms: freedom of speech, press, association and assembly; freedom of religion; the right to due process; the right to privacy; the right to equal protection under the law, regardless of race, sex, religion or national origin.
Throughout time, the arts have told powerful stories about rights and freedoms. Over time, the entertainment industry has proven to be highly influential in informing and shaping public opinion about Constitutional issues.
Historically, works like To Kill a Mockingbird, 12 Angry Men, Norma Rae, and All the President's Men have provided us with stories about racial equality, criminal justice, the rights of women and workers, and protections from government abuse of power. In the last decade, films like Boys Don't Cry and Philadelphia contended with gay, lesbian, transgender, and AIDS patients' rights. Enemy of the State looked at privacy and the Fourth Amendment. Good Night and Good Luck and Shut Up & Sing tackled the fundamental freedoms of press, speech, and dissent guaranteed by the First Amendment. Rendition, The Road to Guantánamo and documentaries including Taxi to the Dark Side and Ghosts of Abu Ghraib have critically examined issues of human rights, due process and the government abuses of power confronting us today.
Because freedom can't protect itself, the ACLU provides a network for concerned individuals to learn about and defend civil liberties through news and information on our website, inour action center, and via email. The discussions encouraged by Rights / Camera / Action aim to inform and excite audiences, as well as empower them with the resources to learn more, change more, and act more.
SELECT PROJECTS
The Visitor
A disillusioned professor and a young immigrant couple in New York City grapple with the treatment of immigrants and legal process post 9/11.
Standard Operating Procedure
Explores how the soldiers at Abu Ghraib were scapegoated to cover up torture policies authorized at the highest levels.
Taxi to the Dark Side
An investigation into the murder of an innocent taxi driver at the Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan, exploring Bush administration's torture and abuse.