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How does the ACLU decide which causes to
defend?
Because the ACLU has a limited budget and staff, it is impossible to
represent every person whose civil liberties have been violated.
Instead, the organization tries to select cases which will impact the
greatest number of people - those cases which have the potential to
break new ground or establish new precedents to strengthen the freedoms
all of us should enjoy. The ACLU has represented African-Americans and
Latinos who were denied their right to vote; it has represented the
elderly and children denied their constitutional rights; it has
represented workers denied their right to organize into unions; it has
represented journalists who refused to reveal their confidential
sources; and it has represented teachers and others fired from their
jobs because they were gay or lesbian.
The ACLU always seems concerned about
minorities. Doesn’t the majority have rights, too?
For over 80 years, the ACLU has challenged violations against civil
liberties, regardless of who has been victimized. It is a principle of
our democratic system that the majority of the people, through elected
representatives, governs the country. However, a fundamental principle
of American democracy is that even a democratic majority cannot be
permitted to tyrannize the minority and restrict individual rights. For
example, prior to the Civil War, a majority of U.S. citizens favored
slavery. Fortunately the government moved to ensure basic freedoms for
all Americans.
You’re all a bunch of liberals, aren’t you?
The ACLU is a nonpartisan group. We have defended people across the
political spectrum, from the Moral Majority and Oliver North to John
Scopes and communists. The ACLU strongly supports women’s right to
choose abortion, yet we have also supported the right of anti-abortion
activists to protest near abortion clinics. The ACLU has won support
from women’s groups for our stand on women’s rights, but has angered
some feminists for our First Amendment stand on pornography. In short,
the principled stance we take on defending the Bill of Rights is neither
liberal nor conservative.
Is the ACLU really opposed to the Pledge of
Allegiance?
The ACLU is not opposed to the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance
and encourages honoring our nation’s flag. However, the ACLU opposes the
government forcing people to recite the pledge or treat the flag in
certain ways. The most genuine patriotism is found in the hearts and
minds of the American people. That’s why the ACLU is opposed to imposing
the symbols of patriotism on people.
Why does the ACLU defend the rights of
groups such as the Nazis or the Ku Klux Klan?
If the government can take away rights from one person, it can take
rights away from anyone. For example, the principle by which the Ku Klux
Klan has the right to march is the same one that allows civil rights
activists to march against racism. Our Bill of Rights and our laws
should apply equally to all those living in the United States.
The ACLU’s mission is to defend the Bill of Rights - even if that means
defending an organization or individual whose message we despise. Read
"Why the ACLU Defends Free Speech for Unpopular Groups."
go
The ACLU is opposed to censorship, but
aren’t there limits to what can be published?
The ACLU believes that under our Constitution’s First Amendment which
guarantees freedom of speech, adults should have the right to read and
watch and listen to whatever they choose. The organization is opposed to
restraints on what can be published or distributed to adults. Attempts
to do so are usually an effort by vocal, well-organized groups to impose
their own values on all Americans.
Why does the ACLU support pornography?
The ACLU does not support pornography or child pornography. However, we
do oppose virtually all forms of censorship. Possessing certain books or
films, even pornographic ones, should not make one a criminal. Once
society starts censoring “bad or offensive” ideas, it becomes very
difficult to draw the line.
As for child pornography, the ACLU supports the government’s efforts to
prosecute the makers of child pornography for exploiting minors.
Does the ACLU support campaign finance
reform?
The ACLU supports providing public financing to assist candidates
running for office, because providing all candidates with adequate
funding to advertise on television, mail information, and travel will
create a more equitable political system. However, the ACLU opposes the
idea of putting contribution and spending limits on citizens and
candidates because doing so would limit free speech.
Why is the ACLU against religion?
The ACLU strongly supports our country’s guarantee that all people have
the right to practice their own religion, as well as the right not to
practice any religion. The best way to ensure religious freedom for all
is to keep the government out of the business of pushing religion on
anybody.
The ACLU strongly supports the separation of church and state. In
practice, this means that people may practice their religion — but not
with government funding or sponsorship. This simple principle in no way
banishes or weakens religion. It only means that no one should have
somebody else’s religion forced on him or her, even if most other people
in a community support that religion.
Why does the ACLU seem to care so much about
the rights of criminals and those accused of crimes?
The ACLU doesn’t believe in "going soft" on criminals. The ACLU supports
just, reasonable law enforcement, even tough enforcement. However, we
believe everyone is entitled to a fair trial and all rights of due
process guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.
Under the U.S. legal system, you are also guaranteed to be presumed
innocent until proven guilty. Police and court studies have shown no
reduction in the ability to fight crime because basic constitutional
rights are accorded to those arrested for crimes. In fact, we’re all
better off when police "play by the rules" and respect our Bill of
Rights.
What about the victims of crime; don’t they
have rights?
The ACLU believes that victims of crime have an entire range of rights
available to them, including the right to receive restitution, recover
damages in civil actions against criminals, and the right to be free
from intimidation.
Why does the ACLU help sex offenders?
The ACLU supports the prosecution and conviction of sex offenders. These
offenders should receive appropriate punishment—especially repeat
offenders. However, like all convicted felons, these offenders are
entitled to some basic constitutional protections. In this regard, the
ACLU opposes locking up an individual indefinitely—potentially for
life—after he has served his prison term. The punishment is based not on
additional wrongful acts, but on speculation that the person may commit
illegal acts in the future. This is unconstitutional preventive
detention. It is based on the unscientific notion that society can
predict with any reasonable standard of accuracy how a particular
individual will act at some unspecified time.
Is the ACLU against drug testing in the
workplace?
Drug abuse is a major problem within the American workplace, just as it
is within society at large. But it is both unfair and unnecessary to
force millions of Americans who are not even suspected of using drugs to
prove their innocence through degrading and unreliable urine tests.
Employers have a right to expect sober, competent, and safe performances
in their work force. The best way to achieve this is through
supervision.
By the way, the ACLU is not opposed to eye-to-hand coordination tests to
gauge an employee’s ability to operate dangerous equipment, vehicles, or
airplanes. And the ACLU believes that competent supervision,
professional counseling, and voluntary rehabilitation programs may not
be as simple as drug tests, but they are a better investment in America.
What is the ACLU’s position on abortion?
The ACLU strongly supports the right of a woman to a safe and legal
abortion and to control her own reproductive system. The ACLU believes
that personal decisions about family size and quality of life should not
be decided for people by the government.
Why doesn’t the ACLU support gun
ownership or gun control?
The ACLU has often been criticized for "ignoring the Second Amendment,"
and refusing to fight for an individual’s right to own a gun or other
weapons. The ACLU, however, has not ignored this issue. The national
ACLU Board of Directors has in fact discussed the civil liberties
aspects of the Second Amendment many times. We believe that the
constitutional right to bear arms is primarily a collective one,
intended mainly to protect the right of the states to maintain militias
to assure their own freedom and security against the central government.
In today’s world, that idea is somewhat anachronistic and in any case
would require weapons much more powerful than handguns or hunting
rifles. The ACLU therefore believes that the Second Amendment does not
confer an unlimited right upon individuals to own guns or other weapons
nor does it prohibit reasonable regulation of gun ownership, such as
licensing and registration.
Why should I care if the government listens
to my phone calls, sees my email, tracks my Internet use, or has
personal information about me. I’m not doing anything wrong!
Americans have the right to expect that their lives will not become an
open book when they have not done, and are not even suspected of doing,
anything wrong. When the government collects data on millions of
Americans, our privacy rights are slowly eroded, and the potential for
abuse by government officials increases exponentially. And while such
data may be collected in an effort to fight terrorism, it is not likely
to be effective, and may in fact actually reduce our security by
draining resources from more productive measures like improved
collection of on-the-ground foreign intelligence.
Read more
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