News & Commentary written by Ellen Flenniken

Ellen Flenniken is the National Campaign Director, Justice, where she leads ACLU’s national abuse of power and criminal justice campaign teams. Her portfolio bridges free speech, criminal legal reform, and national security, with a focus on building people power. She works to uphold the First Amendment as a cornerstone of our democracy, disrupt abuses of power that threaten civil rights and liberties, and reimagine community safety beyond systems of punishment and control. She has played key leadership roles in mass mobilizations like No Kings, campaigns opposing President Trump’s domestic deployment of troops and federal law enforcement in American cities, and the successful effort to commute the federal death row under the Biden administration.

Ellen joined the ACLU in 2022 after seven years at the Drug Policy Alliance, where she was instrumental in the national movement to legalize marijuana, as well as the first-in-the-nation ballot initiative that eliminated criminal penalties for drug possession and expanded access to health and social services. Before that, Ellen served in leadership roles on several major Oregon campaigns, including ballot measures for marriage equality and marijuana legalization, as well as campaigns to elect Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici and Secretary of State Kate Brown. She received her B.A. in political science and Mandarin Chinese from Middlebury College and lives in Asbury Park, NJ, with her wife and two kids.