We Did It! Freedom To Marry! Now, Help Us Secure This Victory!
We have great news! On May 15, 2008 the California Supreme Court ruled that the state may no longer exclude same-sex couples from civil marriage. Brought on behalf of twelve same-sex couples, it charged that barring same-sex couples from marriage violates the state constitution's guarantee of equality. California now affords all loving couples equal protection under the law. “At a time when civil rights and civil liberties are increasingly under fire, the California Supreme Court supported basic human rights for all people,” said Ramona Ripston, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California. “We applaud its decision and we are once again proud to live in California. Gay and lesbian families now know that they are valued and valuable.” The ACLU/SC has been a leader in the struggle for equal treatment for LGBT families for decades, and one of the principals in this successful lawsuit. While this victory is sweet, this fight is far from over. There is yet another anti-marriage initiative expected to quality for the November ballot. The ACLU/SC is a strong partner in Equality for All, a coalition working to defeat this initiative, and we would like your support. Please visit the Equality For All website and help us secure today’s victory. Pledge your support both with your time and any donation you can afford. Let California ring! (Photo: ACLU/SC attorney Clare Pastore speaks at today's press conference while Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa looks on.)
Washington Post Investigates Forcible Drugging
In a series of investigative reports, The Washington Post has compiled one of the most comprehensive accounts to date of immigration officials forcibly drugging people without medical or other oversight. It was a class action lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Southern California and the law firm of Munger, Tolles, and Olson that brought this egregious practice to light, and appears to have ended it for the time being. Today’s entry in “Careless Detention” mentions one of our clients in that case, Amadou Diouf. “As some of us suspected, it was indeed the Bush administration that ramped up this practice,” said Ahilan Arulanantham, the ACLU/SC staff attorney who was lead on this case. “Moreover, the Post's investigation reveals that the abuses that occurred went beyond even the horrifying abuses to which our clients were subject.”
Feed The Poor ... Get A Ticket?
The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California has filed suit in U.S. District Court to protect the free-speech and religion rights of volunteers for Welcome INN (Interfaith Needs Network), an interfaith group that was providing free meals to the poor at Doheny State Park. The suit seeks to overturn an unconstitutionally broad state law that allowed park rangers to interfere with their work.
Jails Project Helps L.A. County Inmates and Families
Video Surveillance of Public Spaces Grows in California (pdf)
Get Help Fixing California's Broken Classrooms
Military Recruiting in Our Public Schools
OC City Repeals Law Targeting Day Laborers
U.S. Citizen Illegally Deported From Jail Found After 3 Months
