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ACLU Files Brief In Defense Of Religious Speech (06/04/2008)
NEW ORLEANS - At the invitation of the Alliance Defense Fund, the ACLU Foundation of Louisiana has submitted an amicus "friend of the court" brief at the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In the case, Netherland v. City of Zachary et al, the ACLU stresses that the First Amendment protects the right of an individual to quote Bible verses on the public streets. John Todd Netherland was arrested in Zachary on charges of disturbing the peace - for quoting the Bible. In its brief, the ACLU emphasizes that the government has no authority to censor speech and that "when a citizen attempts to quote the Bible in public, the Constitution protects his right to do so without fear of criminal prosecution."

MCLU Asks Supreme Court To Reject Augusta's $2,000 Fee for Protest March As Violation of Free Speech Rights (05/29/2008)
PORTLAND, Maine. - Yesterday, the Maine Civil Liberties Union Foundation asked the US Supreme Court to review the constitutionality of the fees of about $2,000 imposed on marchers by the City of Augusta. The request came in the form of a petition for a writ of certiorari--a mechanism for the Supreme Court to review decisions of lower courts across the country-for the case of Sullivan, et al. v. City of Augusta, a case originally filed by the MCLU in 2004. The lower court in question in this case is the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston, which last year upheld Augusta's parade fee provision even as applied to individuals who could not afford the fee.

In ACLU Lawsuit Regarding First Amendment Activity During DNC, Parties Agree On Some Issues; Additional Issues Remain For Federal Court Resolution (05/23/2008)
DENVER -- Attorneys representing the City and County of Denver and the Secret Service, and ACLU of Colorado attorneys representing twelve advocacy organizations, filed documents late Thursday evening in federal district court indicating that they had reached agreement on some of the issues raised in an ACLU lawsuit filed May 1 that seeks to protect the right of free expression during the time of the Democratic National Convention in Denver in August, 2008.

Scott Calls for Reinstatement of Critical Safeguards on FBI Spying (05/21/2008)
Washington, DC -- The ACLU commends Rep. Robert “Bobby” Scott (D-VA) for introducing H. Res. 1211, a resolution calling on Congress to reinstate the pre-Ashcroft guidelines, which provide stronger protections from unwarranted, domestic FBI spying for ordinary Americans. On May 30, 2002 Attorney General John Ashcroft adopted his own guidelines in order to loosen the internal policies that guide federal investigations. These guidelines have enabled have enabled the Department of Justice and the FBI to track Americans’ dissent against the Bush administration and the government without showing cause or evidence of any criminal activity.

ACLU Urges Restoration of Reasonable Limits on Media Cross-Ownership (05/15/2008)
WASHINGTON, DC -- The ACLU urges members of Congress to support a resolution (S.J. Res 28), reversing the FCC’s Broadcast Cross-Ownership Rule.

ACLU Skeptical of Senate Report on "Homegrown" Terrorism (05/08/2008)
Washington, DC – After Senators Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced a report on Islamic homegrown terrorism today, the American Civil Liberties Union strongly urged Congress to use caution when moving forward on related legislation, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 (S. 1959). The report, "Violent Islamist Extremism, the Internet, and the Homegrown Terrorism Threat," is based on findings from hearings held by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. The ACLU and nearly twenty other groups sent a memo to the committee outlining concerns with the report, most notably the free speech implications of labeling the internet as a "weapon" and the unfair singling out of one religious group as possible "extremists."

ACLU Commends Net Neutrality Hearing (05/06/2008)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union commends Chairman Edward Markey (D-MA) of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet for holding a hearing today on the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008 (H.R. 5353), legislation designed to keep the Internet free for open discourse.

Booksellers, Publishers, Librarians and Others Challenge Censorship Law (04/28/2008)
PORTLAND, Ore. - Should a grandmother have to risk being charged with a crime if she gives her 7-year-old grandson a copy of "It's Perfectly Normal," a sex education book widely regarded as among the best available?

Senate Poised To Tighten Broadcast Ownership Rules (04/24/2008)
Washington, DC – Today, the Senate Commerce Committee is expected to approve a bipartisan resolution, sponsored by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND), which would restore a media ownership rule recently rescinded by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The old rule generally restricted a company from owning both a newspaper and a television station in the same city, unless the FCC granted a waiver.

Botetourt County Promises to Repeal Ordinance Placing Time Limits on Campaign Signs (04/22/2008)
Botetourt County, VA - Botetourt County Administrator Gerald Burgess has informed the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia that a local ordinance prohibiting the posting of campaign signs on private property more than 60 days in advance of an election will be repealed in the near future and will not be enforced in the interim.

ACLU: Keep the Internet Open and Innovative (04/17/2008)
Washington, DC –The ACLU submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today calling for open access to the internet. Its activists plan to participate in today’s FCC public hearing on Internet freedom and net neutrality in Palo Alto.