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ACLU of Rhode Island Sues DMV Over Driver's License Procedures For Immigrants (05/23/2005)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The ACLU of Rhode Island today filed a lawsuit against the Division of Motor Vehicles, charging the agency with a complete failure to comply with an important state law designed to ensure open and responsive government. The Administrative Procedures Act requires state agencies to provide advance public notice and seek public comment before they adopt rules and regulations governing their activities.

ACLU of California Criticizes Governor Schwarzenegger's Comments on Controversial "Minuteman" Program (04/29/2005)
SACRAMENTO -- A governor who ran for office as the people's politician should unite the residents of California rather than divide.

ACLU Dismayed at Governor Schwarzenegger's Endorsement of Armed Vigilantes on California's Border (04/29/2005)
NEW YORK -- The Immigrants' Rights Project of the national American Civil Liberties Union is dismayed at the statements of Governor Schwarzenegger praising the activities of the ""Minuteman"" vigilantes at the Arizona border.

ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project Staff Travels to Arizona to Support Monitoring Efforts by ACLU of Arizona (04/16/2005)
NEW YORK -- The Immigrants' Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union today announced that it has sent two national staff members to Arizona to support the Legal Observer Project organized by the ACLU of Arizona.

ACLU of Arizona Denounces Unlawful Imprisonment of Immigrant by Minuteman Volunteer (04/07/2005)
DOUGLAS, AZ -- The American Civil Liberties Union today condemned the actions of volunteers with a controversial citizen border patrol program known as the ""Minuteman Project"" for reportedly holding an individual against his will and photographing him holding a t-shirt with a mocking slogan.

ACLU of Arizona to Provide Legal Observers During Controversial "Minuteman" Border Watch Program (03/30/2005)
PHOENIX -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, in its traditional role as a guardian of civil liberties, announced today that it will be providing legal observers throughout the month of April at the site of the Minuteman Project at the Arizona-Mexico Border.

House Includes Asylum and Privacy Assault in 'Must Pass' Funding Bill; ACLU Urges Senate to Reject Sensenbrenner Measure (03/16/2005)
WASHINGTON - The House of Representatives today attached controversial anti-immigration legislation to an emergency military funding bill. The American Civil Liberties Union urged the Senate to reject the House's efforts to evade regular legislative order, saying that the REAL ID Act would make it more difficult to seek asylum, lay the foundation for a national ID card and chill free speech.

ACLU of Massachusetts Applauds Boston Police Commissioner's Opposition to the CLEAR Act (02/14/2005)
BOSTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts today praised Boston Police Commissioner Kathleen M. O'Toole for opposing the Clear Law Enforcement for Criminal Alien Removal (CLEAR) Act, an act expected to be taken up again this term by Congress that would pressure local and state law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration laws.

House Approves Assault on Immigrants' Rights and Privacy; ACLU Urges Senate to Reject Sensenbrenner Measure (02/10/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urged the Senate to reject legislation approved by the House today that would make it more difficult to seek asylum, lay the foundation for a national ID card and chill free speech in America.

ACLU, Allies Oppose Sensenbrenner's Anti-Immigrant Bill; Mean-Spirited Measure Would Hurt Persecuted, Undermine Privacy (02/09/2005)
WASHINGTON - In one of its first major actions this session, the House of Representatives is debating today anti-immigrant legislation introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI). The American Civil Liberties Union renewed its opposition to the measure, H.R. 418 - the REAL ID Act -- joining a diverse coalition of privacy, immigrants' rights and conservative organizations who have raised concerns.

ACLU Applauds Decision by New York Trial Judge Striking Down Laws Banning Same-Sex Couples from Marrying (02/04/2005)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union applauded a decision by a New York trial court issued today striking down as unconstitutional New York marriage laws that ban same-sex couples from marrying.

Sensenbrenner Renews Assault on Immigrants' Rights; ACLU Says Measure Would Hurt Persecuted Seeking Sanctuary (01/26/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today opposed legislation introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), calling it an unnecessary assault on immigrants. The Sensenbrenner legislation includes several controversial provisions that were pulled from the intelligence reform legislation adopted by Congress last year.

High Court Affirms That Government Cannot Indefinitely Detain Mariel Cubans (01/12/2005)
NEW YORK - The Supreme Court today ruled 7-2 that the government violated the law by indefinitely detaining ""Mariel"" Cubans who cannot be deported because Cuba will not allow their return.

In First Week, House Renews Anti-Immigrant Push; Extreme Measures Rejected During Intelligence Reform Debate (01/07/2005)
WASHINGTON - With the new Congress barely a week old, three major anti-immigration bills are already in play. The American Civil Liberties Union called many of the bills extreme and noted that most were rejected as harsh and unnecessary during debate over intelligence reform legislation passed at the end of last year.

As 109th Congress Convenes, Rep. Sensenbrenner Sets Anti-Immigrant Tone (01/04/2005)
WASHINGTON -- As members of Congress return to Washington to open the 109th Congress, House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) is set to introduce legislation that the American Civil Liberties Union called an uncalled-for assault on immigrants. The new Sensenbrenner legislation includes controversial provisions that were pulled from the intelligence reform legislation adopted by Congress last year.

Indiana Civil Liberties Union Awarded Grant for Community Outreach (11/01/2004)
INDIANAPOLIS--The Indiana Civil Liberties Union announced today that it has received a $20,000 grant from the Efroymson Fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation to support the creation of a ""What Are My Rights?"" program for community education and outreach. The grant will allow the ICLU to design and implement a civil liberties curriculum for at-risk high school youth and recent adult immigrants.

ACLU of Virginia Offers Legal Assistance to People Facing FBI Questioning Under Sweeping Pre-Election Surveillance Initiative (10/18/2004)
RICHMOND, VA--The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia announced today that it will provide lawyers to assist persons selected for questioning under a sweeping FBI initiative to aggressively target Muslims and Arabs and surveil Mosque activities leading up to the November 2 election.

FBI's New Surveillance Plan Chills Religious and Political Activity, Bay Area Civil Rights Groups Warn (10/05/2004)
SAN FRANCISCO - The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC-SF), the Bay Area Association of Muslim Lawyers (BAAML), and the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) today announced that they will closely monitor a new government plan to use "aggressive -- even obvious - surveillance" tactics in advance of the November 2nd general election.

Court Orders Attorney General Ashcroft to Disclose Secret Memo on Local Police Enforcement of Federal Immigration Laws (09/27/2004)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union today welcomed a ruling by a federal judge ordering the Department of Justice to disclose a secret document outlining the legal rationale for a new policy granting local police unprecedented powers to enforce non-criminal immigration laws.

ACLU Urges Rhode Island Hospitals to Protect Patients' Privacy (09/21/2004)
PROVIDENCE--The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island announced today that it has called on local hospitals to reject anticipated earmarked federal funding that would require health care providers to determine the citizenship status of each uninsured patient seeking treatment.