Home : Affiliates

The ACLU has an affiliate in every state and Puerto Rico. Affiliates handle requests for legal assistance, lobby the state legislatures and host public forums throughout the year. Find your local affiliate in the center column below.

Court Rules Government Can Continue To Suppress Detainee Statements Describing Torture And Abuse (10/16/2009)
WASHINGTON – A federal court today ruled that the government can continue suppressing transcripts in which former CIA prisoners now held at Guantánamo Bay describe abuse and torture suffered in CIA custody. The ruling came in an ACLU Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit to obtain uncensored transcripts from Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) used to determine if Guantánamo detainees qualify as "enemy combatants."

House Approves Bill That Would Allow Suppression Of Torture Photos (10/15/2009)
WASHINGTON – The House passed a homeland security appropriations bill today with an amendment that would grant the Department of Defense (DOD) the authority to continue suppressing photos depicting the abuse of prisoners in U.S. custody overseas. The amendment, added by Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), would allow DOD to exempt the photos from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The photos were ordered released by a federal appeals court as part of an American Civil Liberties Union FOIA lawsuit.

Legislation To End Crack Cocaine Sentencing Disparity Introduced In Senate Today (10/15/2009)
WASHINGTON – A bill was introduced today in the Senate that would eliminate the discriminatory disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentencing under federal law. The bill, the Fair Sentencing Act of 2009, was introduced by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and would also eliminate the mandatory five-year sentence for simple possession of crack. A similar bill, H.R. 3245, the Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing Act of 2009, is currently awaiting a vote in the House.

ACLU Urges Department Of Justice To Object To Changes In County Board Elections In Georgia (10/13/2009)
ATLANTA – In a letter sent today to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the American Civil Liberties Union urged the DOJ to object to changes to election procedures for the Board of Commissioners in Telfair County, Georgia, because the changes would dilute the minority vote. Because of its history of discrimination against minority voters, Telfair County was required under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act to submit the new procedures to the DOJ for federal review.

Comprehensive Immigration Reform Must Protect Privacy And Civil Liberties, Says ACLU (10/13/2009)
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) will join with other House Democrats this afternoon to outline priorities for comprehensive immigration reform legislation. The American Civil Liberties Union applauds Congress’s efforts to overhaul the broken immigration system and urges leaders in Washington to work for legislation that does not sacrifice civil liberties and personal privacy.